Roatan/Coco View trip report
- Penopolypants
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Roatan/Coco View trip report
Ah, Coco View. There is probably better diving in the Carribean, there are definitely nicer resorts, but who puts it all together in such a neat package?
Except for the bugs. Good God, the bugs! No-see-ums abound and munch heartily on tasty flesh.
Coco View is a diving resort, not a resort that has diving. Pretty much everything in the resort is set up to make diving easy. Want to get on the boat? Put a little tag up on your locker, they load your gear. Nitrox tanks were already at my locker and waiting for me to analyze when I got back from diving. Dunk tanks for gear were set up in convenient locations, with separate tanks for cameras. Same thing on the boat, there was a separate dunk tank and table just for cameras. Showers for rinsing and lines for hanging up gear to dry. Two boat dives a day, with an optional drop off on the walls or the wreck on the way back in. Unlimited shore diving, unguided, you can solo dive if you want, nobody cares. I averaged 4 dives a day, sometimes doing 5, a couple of times I only did 3.
The boats had a moon well in the center….a hole with a ladder that you could enter the boat if the seas were rough, the idea being that the center of the boat is moving less than the ladders in the back. We only had one day when there were some waves, but I tried it out that day and it was a lot easier than bouncing around on the end of the boat. There were two side exits and of course the rear exit on the boats, so waiting time to offload was limited. I think we had 12 people on our boat, with at least one dive master, sometimes two.
Two walls in the front yard waiting to be explored from shore or by boat drop off when the boats came back in. The Prince Albert (an artificial reef) was there as well, easily accessible and exploding with life, with a resident moray eel and the biggest grouper I’ve ever seen.
There was a bait ball hanging out next to the Prince Albert all week. It was beautiful! The last morning of diving I went out to visit the ship….something was agitating the ball and the fish were whipping around in formation. It was magical.
What else did we see? An eagle ray, graceful and majestic. I lost count of the moray eels. A couple of toadfish, Pedersen shrimp, banded coral shrimp, angelfish, several unusual crabs, boxfish, lots of sea fans and tube sponges, octos, and several school of squid. The squid were very curious, and would come up to you if you were still. Sharks on the shark dive, but nowhere else. Grouper everywhere, lobsters, spotted eels. And schools of yellow tailed snapper, following you around like puppies. Barracuda, which would also trail you for a while….they weren’t quite as puppy-like. More that I can’t remember now. Vicious damsel fish protecting their patches of algae. There were two resident sea horses hanging out at the safety stop location in the front yard.
Now, I’m spoiled….my only other warm water dive trip has been to Papua New Guinea, and really, nothing compares to that. But, I thought the level of life in Roatan was pretty high, and the colors were very nice.
The resort fed us well. I recommend the waffles, fresh fruit, pastas, beans and rice, and grouper. Avoid the steak, it was unfailingly tough and chewy.
My room was in the older set of rooms, and while it was clean and neat, it was a little worn around the edges. That added to the charm for me, but if I were to return, I’d ask for a different room in the newer group of oceanfront rooms, or one of the over-water cabanas. There was a giant bottle of fresh water in the room. The rooms were air-conditioned, but my a/c was stuck on “freezing” or “unplugged”. I didn’t find that I needed it most of the time, the ceiling fan was enough.
The hammocks were strategically placed around the resort and were quite comfy. The resort has wifi internet access if you bring your laptop, or you can use the computer they have set up in the clubhouse for free. The bartenders were friendly and poured a very stiff drink. The resort has two dogs, Chiquita and Pancho. Pancho loves to play chase me and tug of war, and will ride on the kayak with you if you let him. The resort can also arrange several tours, a boat night dive (very nice, but crowded), a shark dive (worth it once, probably won’t do it again), and a tour of the island on Friday afternoon for shopping and whatnot, since you can’t dive anyway.
All in all, it was a good trip. I would go back, and I would recommend it to anyone. Pack the bug spray and use it liberally, though.
Here's some pics!
http://picasaweb.google.com/PenelopeStJohn/Roatan2007
Except for the bugs. Good God, the bugs! No-see-ums abound and munch heartily on tasty flesh.
Coco View is a diving resort, not a resort that has diving. Pretty much everything in the resort is set up to make diving easy. Want to get on the boat? Put a little tag up on your locker, they load your gear. Nitrox tanks were already at my locker and waiting for me to analyze when I got back from diving. Dunk tanks for gear were set up in convenient locations, with separate tanks for cameras. Same thing on the boat, there was a separate dunk tank and table just for cameras. Showers for rinsing and lines for hanging up gear to dry. Two boat dives a day, with an optional drop off on the walls or the wreck on the way back in. Unlimited shore diving, unguided, you can solo dive if you want, nobody cares. I averaged 4 dives a day, sometimes doing 5, a couple of times I only did 3.
The boats had a moon well in the center….a hole with a ladder that you could enter the boat if the seas were rough, the idea being that the center of the boat is moving less than the ladders in the back. We only had one day when there were some waves, but I tried it out that day and it was a lot easier than bouncing around on the end of the boat. There were two side exits and of course the rear exit on the boats, so waiting time to offload was limited. I think we had 12 people on our boat, with at least one dive master, sometimes two.
Two walls in the front yard waiting to be explored from shore or by boat drop off when the boats came back in. The Prince Albert (an artificial reef) was there as well, easily accessible and exploding with life, with a resident moray eel and the biggest grouper I’ve ever seen.
There was a bait ball hanging out next to the Prince Albert all week. It was beautiful! The last morning of diving I went out to visit the ship….something was agitating the ball and the fish were whipping around in formation. It was magical.
What else did we see? An eagle ray, graceful and majestic. I lost count of the moray eels. A couple of toadfish, Pedersen shrimp, banded coral shrimp, angelfish, several unusual crabs, boxfish, lots of sea fans and tube sponges, octos, and several school of squid. The squid were very curious, and would come up to you if you were still. Sharks on the shark dive, but nowhere else. Grouper everywhere, lobsters, spotted eels. And schools of yellow tailed snapper, following you around like puppies. Barracuda, which would also trail you for a while….they weren’t quite as puppy-like. More that I can’t remember now. Vicious damsel fish protecting their patches of algae. There were two resident sea horses hanging out at the safety stop location in the front yard.
Now, I’m spoiled….my only other warm water dive trip has been to Papua New Guinea, and really, nothing compares to that. But, I thought the level of life in Roatan was pretty high, and the colors were very nice.
The resort fed us well. I recommend the waffles, fresh fruit, pastas, beans and rice, and grouper. Avoid the steak, it was unfailingly tough and chewy.
My room was in the older set of rooms, and while it was clean and neat, it was a little worn around the edges. That added to the charm for me, but if I were to return, I’d ask for a different room in the newer group of oceanfront rooms, or one of the over-water cabanas. There was a giant bottle of fresh water in the room. The rooms were air-conditioned, but my a/c was stuck on “freezing” or “unplugged”. I didn’t find that I needed it most of the time, the ceiling fan was enough.
The hammocks were strategically placed around the resort and were quite comfy. The resort has wifi internet access if you bring your laptop, or you can use the computer they have set up in the clubhouse for free. The bartenders were friendly and poured a very stiff drink. The resort has two dogs, Chiquita and Pancho. Pancho loves to play chase me and tug of war, and will ride on the kayak with you if you let him. The resort can also arrange several tours, a boat night dive (very nice, but crowded), a shark dive (worth it once, probably won’t do it again), and a tour of the island on Friday afternoon for shopping and whatnot, since you can’t dive anyway.
All in all, it was a good trip. I would go back, and I would recommend it to anyone. Pack the bug spray and use it liberally, though.
Here's some pics!
http://picasaweb.google.com/PenelopeStJohn/Roatan2007
- Pinkpadigal
- I've Got Gills
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- Joined: Thu Jun 22, 2006 12:19 pm
Thank you for the report. I am going to Cocoview next month!!! I can hardly wait.
I am concerned about the bugs. When I am bit by mosquitos, I get large (1-2 inches) welts and I get miserable. Any suggestions on what kind of bug spray I should get?
I am concerned about the bugs. When I am bit by mosquitos, I get large (1-2 inches) welts and I get miserable. Any suggestions on what kind of bug spray I should get?
Amy Rhodes
PADI Master Instructor #183890
A-2-Z Scuba Instruction
http://www.a2zscuba.com
*******************
PADI Master Instructor #183890
A-2-Z Scuba Instruction
http://www.a2zscuba.com
*******************
- Penopolypants
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I used extra strength OFF, and I had some 20% deet stuff that worked well. Deet is toxic to invertebrates, so you have to wash it off well before getting in the water.
Other people had great success with Cutters Advanced spray and most people raved about Cactus Juice (http://cactusjuicetm.com , or you can buy it at the resort.) My Cactus Juice came the day I left, and I wasn't there to get the delivery, so I never got to use it, and the resort was out unitl the day I left.
Definitely bring a flashlight...the power went off several times while I was there.
Have fun!
Other people had great success with Cutters Advanced spray and most people raved about Cactus Juice (http://cactusjuicetm.com , or you can buy it at the resort.) My Cactus Juice came the day I left, and I wasn't there to get the delivery, so I never got to use it, and the resort was out unitl the day I left.
Definitely bring a flashlight...the power went off several times while I was there.
Have fun!
- thelawgoddess
- Pelagic
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sweet photos ... love the seahorse - they are so magical, and nice toadfish!!!
ps - your "cute baby something" (the fish with blue spots) looks like a juvenile yellowtail damsel. i tried so hard to get a photo of some tiny ones in bonaire but they were really fast ... and liked to hang out in the fire coral.
ps - your "cute baby something" (the fish with blue spots) looks like a juvenile yellowtail damsel. i tried so hard to get a photo of some tiny ones in bonaire but they were really fast ... and liked to hang out in the fire coral.
"Life without passion is life without depth."~J.Hollis
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- Penopolypants
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- thelawgoddess
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i think the yellowtail damselfish go through a few stages - first they are all black with those gorgeous blue spots, then their tails turns yellow ... and then they all but lose their spots. i think it is really interesting how some of those fish go through such visibly drastic changes.
thanks for sharing your photos - it is always fun to see what other people got to see on their trips. :-)
thanks for sharing your photos - it is always fun to see what other people got to see on their trips. :-)
"Life without passion is life without depth."~J.Hollis
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- Grateful Diver
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Grateful Diver wrote:Me too ... at some point we should consider putting a NWDC trip together for down there. It'd be fun to go spend some serious bottom time in the Front Porch with a bunch of folks from here ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
More Pics Than You Have Time To Look AT
"Anyone who thinks this place is over moderated is bat-crazy anarchist." -Ben, Airsix
"Warning: No dive masters are going to be there, Just a bunch of old fat guys taking pictures of fish." -Bassman
"Anyone who thinks this place is over moderated is bat-crazy anarchist." -Ben, Airsix
"Warning: No dive masters are going to be there, Just a bunch of old fat guys taking pictures of fish." -Bassman
YES, I agree!!!!Grateful Diver wrote:Me too ... at some point we should consider putting a NWDC trip together for down there. It'd be fun to go spend some serious bottom time in the Front Porch with a bunch of folks from here ...
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- Penopolypants
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Grateful Diver wrote:Me too ... at some point we should consider putting a NWDC trip together for down there. It'd be fun to go spend some serious bottom time in the Front Porch with a bunch of folks from here ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Ohhhhhhh?
Sounds too good!
When?
Hi, my name is Keith, and I'm a Dive Addict!
- thelawgoddess
- Pelagic
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well, i'd have to know more, but i'd definitely be interested in a club trip, too!
"Life without passion is life without depth."~J.Hollis
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- Grateful Diver
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- thelawgoddess
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september would probably be great since it is low-season (cheaper and likely less people). not sure how it'd go over at my job since we usually get pretty busy starting around then, but it's a long way out so that would work in my favor. :-)
"Life without passion is life without depth."~J.Hollis
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- Penopolypants
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The group that I went with planned the trip about a year in advance. The reserved the whole resort, and started gathering people. They had a payment plan type deal where 1/3 was due in late summer, another 1/3 in November or December, and the last due in February before they had to release the rest of the rooms. I think that made it easier for people from a financial standpoint, you didn’t have to drop so much cash at once.
Not that it was terribly expensive. For an all-inclusive dive trip the price was really good. With tax the oceanfront room was $1068, and I paid another $150 to stay by myself. The cabanas and bungalows were extra, but only by a couple hundred bucks. Nitrox was a flat $100 if you used more than 17 tanks. There are extras like the shark dive ($85) and the night dive ($25). I think with nitrox, the shark dive, bar tab, and some things from the gift shop I spent about another $300. The all-inclusive fee included all meals, water, juice, coffee, tea, 4 boat dives (including two drop offs), unlimited shore diving, tanks (air) and weights.
They worked out a group airfare from Houston through Continental, and oddly enough the rates dropped right before the trip, but Continental wouldn’t lower the group rate. I took a side trip to Georgia to see my family before heading back, so I just made my own reservations.
Anywhoo, if anybody has any questions, please feel free to ask them here, or PM me.
Penelope
Not that it was terribly expensive. For an all-inclusive dive trip the price was really good. With tax the oceanfront room was $1068, and I paid another $150 to stay by myself. The cabanas and bungalows were extra, but only by a couple hundred bucks. Nitrox was a flat $100 if you used more than 17 tanks. There are extras like the shark dive ($85) and the night dive ($25). I think with nitrox, the shark dive, bar tab, and some things from the gift shop I spent about another $300. The all-inclusive fee included all meals, water, juice, coffee, tea, 4 boat dives (including two drop offs), unlimited shore diving, tanks (air) and weights.
They worked out a group airfare from Houston through Continental, and oddly enough the rates dropped right before the trip, but Continental wouldn’t lower the group rate. I took a side trip to Georgia to see my family before heading back, so I just made my own reservations.
Anywhoo, if anybody has any questions, please feel free to ask them here, or PM me.
Penelope
I think this could be a fantastic idea...
Shops generally work this to where you have a "free" trip for every 8-10 you take. If we could put something together spreading those discounts over everyone it could bring the cost down even further.
I'd definitely be up for a September trip!
Shops generally work this to where you have a "free" trip for every 8-10 you take. If we could put something together spreading those discounts over everyone it could bring the cost down even further.
I'd definitely be up for a September trip!
More Pics Than You Have Time To Look AT
"Anyone who thinks this place is over moderated is bat-crazy anarchist." -Ben, Airsix
"Warning: No dive masters are going to be there, Just a bunch of old fat guys taking pictures of fish." -Bassman
"Anyone who thinks this place is over moderated is bat-crazy anarchist." -Ben, Airsix
"Warning: No dive masters are going to be there, Just a bunch of old fat guys taking pictures of fish." -Bassman
- Grateful Diver
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Well, since there seems to be some interest I'll start looking into potential dates, costs, etc.
I'll start a thread about it in a few days, after I've had some time to look into a few things.
Since a lot of us have already been there, it should be easier to get an idea what to expect and put something together.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
I'll start a thread about it in a few days, after I've had some time to look into a few things.
Since a lot of us have already been there, it should be easier to get an idea what to expect and put something together.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
- Grateful Diver
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