The dream of a lifetime came true in Cozumel when I joined Island Divers for a night dive. After 5 day dives with the most amazing and professional dive masters, I was ready!!
https://www.islanddiverscozumel.com/
I also had the pleasure of meeting the owner of Island Divers, Chris Alliston and his lovely girlfriend and her son.
Chris is a friend of Dave & Kathy Meena’s from Vancouver Island, whom many know and love. Thank you so much Dave for the connection!! It’s very reassuring to get a recommendation for a safe crew when far from home in unfamiliar territory. As a novice diver I am learning every dive and depend on the expertise of the locals. Chris is also a professional photographer with a gallery in Hawaii. Check him out on FB:
https://www.facebook.com/ChrisGAlliston/
I’m also super pleased to be able to manage this many dives after working out and getting in shape. I’ve worked with “Laina the Traina” on strength training for the last 4 months and what a difference it has made. I would not have been able to maintain the schedule of diving I so enjoyed for the week in Mexico. The non-weight bearing activity was easy on my wrecked knees. It feels magical floating along with the fish and the sights are incredible.
I fell in love with sea life when I first went snorkeling in West Australia in 2003 with my son-inlaw Chad Peacock. We were exploring Ningaloo Reef and I couldn’t get enough!! My daughters Malena and Chelsea were cold and begging me to go in and I just kept saying “one more time.” To go below and encounter the colorful coral and matching fish, with a big sea turtle acting our tour guide was and always will be super special. After another dive experience off the East Coast of Australia on the Great Barrier Reef while on a sailing trip in the Whitsundays I came home to take my PADI certification. Cold water diving in Maple Bay and Ladysmith, British Columbia was challenging, and I love warm water diving back in Oz and now Mexico.
Each dive morning in Cozumel I would meet the crew on their boat at the dock next to the resort or at the marina, depending on harbor conditions. We would take off for the reef past the cruise ships and arrive about 20-30 minutes later, gear up and drop over the side. Depths were from 40-70 feet in amazing coral and abundant sea life. We would do a two-tank dive, one in deeper water through the amazing coral, some as tall as buildings. Swimming through the arches and around the formations was incredible. We would take a 30 minute break between dives, back on the boat for snacks before dropping back in for a shallower dive. Cozumel has the 2nd largest reef in the world.
https://cozumel-island.com/en/reef-cozumel
Chris arranged a night dive which he filmed, capturing sea life which was luminescent in our flashlights. What a thrill! Thank you, thank you, thank you Chris for making this happen.
Watch for the lobster which were two feet long, the sea turtle the locals thought was around 100 years old, and the aqua colored octopus at the end.
This was truly worth the trip and without a doubt I WILL BE BACK!! Take a coffee/tea/beer/wine break and have a look. I’m the one with the gray hair!
