Grand Cayman
This was our very first liveaboard dive trip! Apparently liveaboards are the bomb, at least according to the dive community. The motto of a liveaboard is Eat, Sleep, and Dive, and we found that to be quite accurate indeed. We wanted to give this style of diving a try and see if we liked it.
We flew out of Madison early Saturday morning, had a quick layover in Dallas, and then landed in Grand Cayman in the early afternoon. We took a shuttle from the airport to the yacht club where our boat, the Cayman Aggressor IV, was docked. We couldn't board until 4:00 PM, so we grabbed lunch at the yacht club's restaurant and soaked up the sun for a couple of hours.
At 4:00 PM we walked down the dock to the boat and met the captain and the crew. The first thing we did was set up our dive gear. This was the one and only time we had to set up our gear; we never had to switch our gear to a new tank, because they had an air compressor onboard and would fill up our tanks after every dive. I was super impressed! This would make the diving incredibly easier for sure. After setting up our gear, we got to see our cabin for the first time. It was tiny! Basically enough room for a bed and that was it. The room did have a sink and an attached bathroom that included a toilet and a shower, so that was a nice perk to have a private bathroom. We figured we would only be in the cabin for sleeping, so it was okay that it was small. We weren't expecting it to be big, after all. 😊
The boat consisted of three levels: the lower level included the engine room and the cabins (or staterooms); the middle level included the dive deck, the main salon (or dining room), and the kitchen; and the upper level included the sundeck and the wheelhouse. There were 17 guests onboard and seven crew members: two captains (first and second), the dive-pro, the engineer, the steward, the chef, and the night watch.
The first night the boat was docked in the marina, so it felt like we were still on land. Early Sunday morning the engines kicked on and we departed from the dock. Once we left the safety of the marina, the swells were rough. I had to sit outside on the middle level and stare at the horizon or I was going to puke. I had taken both ginger and meclizine to help with the motion sickness, but I was still feeling quite nauseous. I remember thinking, what did I get myself into?! If the entire week is like this, I'm going to be miserable...
Fortunately, once we rounded the westward side of the island and made it to the southern side, the seas became much calmer and my nausea subsided. I was incredibly relieved!
Our first dive on a trip is always exciting. It takes a dive or two to get our bearings, and then it's second nature. We've been to the Caribbean before, so we recognize most of the fish by now, yet seeing them again after a long hiatus is always exciting. Two of my favorite fish to see are the French angelfish and the smooth trunkfish. The juvenile trunkfish is so cute; the really young ones are about the size and shape of a jewelry box. They are so tiny and oddly shaped! Search for it on YouTube and you'll see what I mean.
The whole week we truly lived the mantra of Eat, Sleep, and Dive. The schedule each day was as follows:
- 7:00 AM - Wake up to hot breakfast in the main salon
- 8:30 AM - First dive
- 9:30 AM - Surface interval and sweet mid-morning snack
- 10:30 AM - Second dive
- 12:00 PM - Lunch in the main salon
- 2:30 PM - Third dive
- 3:30 PM - Surface interval and savory afternoon snack
- 4:30 PM - Fourth dive
- 6:00 PM - Dinner in the main salon
- 7:30 PM - Fifth dive
- 9:00 PM - Bedtime
After each dive we immediately took off our wetsuits and hung them out to dry, then took a hot freshwater shower on the back of the dive deck, which always felt completely sublime. A shower with the absolutely best view! After rinsing off, one of the crew would wrap us in a warm dry towel and we would head inside to see what yummy snack Chef Chelsea had whipped us for us. After most dives, Eric and I would head up to the sundeck and soak in the hot tub for a while. There's something unique about sitting in a hot tub on a boat on the ocean. 😎
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One of Eric's favorite things to see are the schools of Atlantic blue tangs. They move as a group from one coral head to another looking for food, reminding us of locusts. We were also able to dive inside two different shipwrecks on this trip. I usually refrain from entering a shipwreck, which is safe diving practice. However, both shipwrecks were cleared specifically for divers, meaning they were relatively wide open on the inside, the visibility was good and not at risk of silting up, and any snags or entrapment hazards were removed. Even with all of this, it was still creepy!
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Our favorite dive of the trip was the last dive site on the very last day, Devil's Grotto. It was a shallow reef close to shore filled with marine life. We saw a school of reef squid which made me tickled pink. We could tell they were observing us while we observed them back. I could have honestly watched them the entire dive. We also saw multiple tarpon, which Eric enjoyed. This site had numerous swim-throughs, and the sunlight filtering down through the coral was beautiful. It was a great dive to end the trip.
In summary, this is what we loved about the liveaboard dive experience:
- We were able to dive A LOT! I logged 26 total dives and Eric logged 23. (He sat out a few of the night dives; they are not really his thing.)
- Setting up our gear only once was so easy and convenient.
- The food was amazingly delicious, and fruit and snacks were available at all times.
This is what we missed:
- There was no exploring the island as we were on the boat the whole time. Eric especially felt a bit trapped on the boat.
- Except when we were in our cabin, we were constantly surrounded by other people.
- Sadly, the coral was probably in the worst condition we have seen so far.
- Unfortunately, we were unable to make the trip to Cayman Brac and Little Cayman due to weather. This was disappointing, as we were looking forward to diving the Bloody Bay Wall.
One day I'm sure we will choose to go on another liveaboard dive trip, especially in a location where the sites are varied and far between. Diving from a liveaboard makes the diving much easier to access in addition to allowing us to make many repetitive dives.
One last highlight of the trip for me was earning my first ever Iron Diver award. If you complete all of the offered dives on an Aggressor, you earn the status of "Iron Diver." I found out about this on Day 2 and immediately thought, "Challenge accepted." Everyone on the boat knew I was aiming for this and were super encouraging. It provided me that last little bit of motivation to get in the water for night dives after being warm, dry, and full post-dinner. I was ecstatic when I finally received my certificate, BC tag, and medal at the end of the week. 😊
Site Overview
Location: Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, Caribbean SeaFish Observed: Grunts, Tangs, Angelfish, Parrotfish, Snappers, Butterflyfish, Squirrelfish, Trunkfish, Barracuda, Tarpon, Hamlets, Triggerfish, Spotted Drum, and more!Other Aquatic Life Observed: Turtles, Nurse Shark, Octopuses, Stingrays, Eels, Reef Squid
Dive Log