2 Apr 2024
Today, I did my deepest dive yet- 134′ / 41m!
Diving the Blue Hole requires the right combination of conditions- sunny, but at the right angle, not too much wind, and a high-riding boat. My boat, despite being 110′ / 33.5m long, rides quite shallow (8′ /2.5m is what I’m remembering, but I’m not 100% sure), so it’s able to maneuver through the shallow reefs that surround the Hole.
Dive #10 – Great Blue Hole
We descended much faster than I though we would- I looked down at my computer a couple minutes in and was surprised to see 90′ /27.5m! It also got dark quite quickly- I was glad I grabbed my back up light.
So the Blue Hole is a little over 400′ / 125m deep, but at 100-130′ / 30-40m, there are some cool stalactites and we have about 8 minutes to explore them:
My buddy swimming between the formations:
Our time at depth went quickly and we slowly started working our way back up. As we got more shallow, the light returned:
as did the aquatic life, like this GIANT crab:
with his arms, he was over 2′ across!
Conch peeking out of his shell:
Swallowtail headshield slug:
I’ve seen these guys before, but they’re really pretty!
Normally, they have long tails like this guy:
The first two must have gotten nibbled 🙁
Peterson cleaner shrimp:
It’s kinda hard to capture the Blue Hole without a drone (which is illegal), but here’s an edge shot:
and a pano as we sailed away:
We enjoyed some delicious hot-from-the-oven cinnamon rolls:
while the boat returned to Half Moon Caye, where we’ll be going ashore for the afternoon.
Welcome to Half Moon Caye!
In the distance, I could see birds swarming, so finding them is my first order of business:
Beautiful sandy beach:
It was warm, but there was a decent amount of shade:
Also, iguanas!
And crabs!
If you stood still, you could hear them rustling in the leaves just off the path.
I regret not bringing my big camera- my little camera only has a 70mm lens, with a longer lens, I could have gotten some seriously awesome shots of the frigates and boobies that nest here:
I did spot this little fluffy juvenile red-footed booby that was within range of my little camera:
Magnificent? frigatebird, in flight!
Heading toward Sunset Beach:
There were so many little lizards:
Another critter were having my long lens would come in handy, but the little camera managed alright:
Crab party:
Slightly less shaded then earlier…
But a pretty beach at the end of the path:
Heading back toward the dock, I found this little iguana:
Crab enjoying a snack:
At the other end of the island was lighthouse- I tried to line the sun up with the top of the tower, but obviously missed by a bit:
The remains of the old tower:
Pelican back at the dock:
Waiting for the speed boat that’ll take us back to our boat:
My boat!
Dive #11 – Quebrada
After returning from our extended island surface interval, the boat sailed back to Long Caye for the rest of today’s dives.
Longjaw squirrelfish:
Blackcap basslet:
This guy wouldn’t come up out of his hole so this is the best shot I was able to get, but you can see his cool speckled head!
Neck crab:
Fireworm:
Longspine squirrelfish:
Grumpy Blue chromis:
Potato chips on a log:
I’m not actually sure what the potato chips are- they were all over parts of the coral, but the log is actually a sea cucumber.
A pair of lizardfish:
Yellowtail damselfish:
Saucereye porgy?
I saw little juvenile fish like this one fairly frequently- not sure if they were all the same type, or even who this guy is:
Scrawled filefish:
Dive #12 – Quebrada
Lionfish are invasive here as well, though fortunately, this is one of only a few I’ve seen so far:
Reef shark!
and another!
Juvenile spotted drum:
I think this guy was being cleaned:
Look at this arrowhead crab’s little claws!!!
Stoplight parrotfish:
He was also being cleaned, but I was a bit too slow to catch his cleaner.
Scorpionfish face!
A pair of Creole wrasses:
I’ve been trying to get a shot of a pair of these guys for several dives now- they dash around in pairs and my camera isn’t quite up to tracking them. But tonight, I got lucky!
Blue tangs- one being cleaned in the background, but I’m not sure why the front guy is covered in dark spots:
Tiny blenny:
I definitely got lucky with this one- his head is like half the size of a pencil eraser and he kept tucking back into his hole. Not sure how my camera managed to focus on that.
Schoolmaster:
Lizardfish:
This is another picture that took me forever to get:
Every now and then, a Blue tang would turn dark (like the top guy in this picture) and chase the others around. I’m going to guess it has to do with mating? but I’m honestly not sure.
A pair of grumpy Blue chromis:
Graysby:
Christmastree worm with its worm parts showing:
Pederson shrimp:
Dive #13 – Quebrada
As the sun set, we geared up for another night dive:
As soon as I dropped, another diver pointed out this adorable little squid!
So cute, so hard to track/focus on!
This nurse shark cruised around for most of our dive:
Sharptail eel, on the hunt:
There are 3 eels in this picture- can you find them all?
That guy on the right wouldn’t come out any further 🙁
I do love their exaggerated nostrils 🙂
A sleeping parrotfish:
I may have woken up this balloonfish- I passed my light over him, swung back to take a picture and he charged me! He swam right at my chest then zoomed off:
Oops! (I’m wearing a 5mm suit + a 3mm hooded vest, he didn’t hurt me at all)
Reef shark cruising through:
Southern? ray:
Other divers found him first, so he was annoyed and over pictures.
Spiny lobster, out and about:
Hiding eel:
Hi!
(spotted eel, spotted!)
Despite the afternoon excursion (or maybe because of the excursion and extra time in the sun), I’m exhausted. Will definitely sleep well (again) tonight!