Caribbean sunset, while others relaxed in the hot-tub on the sun deck. Dinner followed … and we soon realised how well fed we were going to be over the coming voyage.
The food is worthy of further mention. Continental breakfast before Dive 1; full breakfast after Dive 2; lunch after dive 2; snacks after Dive 3; dinner after Dive 4. What really stood out was the quality of the food. It never ceases to amaze me how liveaboard chefs can come up with such delightful culinary creations in relatively small kitchens.
Entering the Exumas
By the following morning, the threehour ride over to the Exumas had been completed and we were ready to dive again. For me, much of the appeal of this area is the variety of dive sites and the diversity of marine life that comes with it; from deep plunging walls to shallow reefs, shipwrecks to plane wrecks, sharks to reef fish, crustaceans and mollusks.
Another memorable component of the itinerary was diving off the island of Eleuthera. Here, the sites are defined by dramatic walls, where shallow reef tops give way quickly to deep blue water, creating a strong sense of scale and exposure.
The walls of Eleuthera are swept by nutrient-rich currents, and with that comes an increase in fish life and the potential for big fish encounters. Caribbean reef sharks were seen cruising along the drop-offs, while schools of snappers and grunts gathered along the wall edges, seemingly suspended in the water column.
Eleuthera’ s diving was energetic and dynamic. The coral growth was healthy, with large sponges and gorgonians thriving along the wall. The combination of depth, current and marine life made these dives especially rewarding, further enhancing the diversity of our itinerary.
A giant stride from the dive deck
Over the course of the week, we explored several dramatic walls. Dog Rocks was a particularly impressive wall site on the northern edge of the Exuma Cays, where the top of the reef sits at about 12m and then plunges vertically into the deep blue, making it one of the region’ s most thrilling sites.
The terrain features underwater canyons and dramatic swim-throughs, which proved to be very popular with my fellow divers. Coral life is rich, with black corals, huge tube sponges and elephant ear sponges that have been growing for hundreds of years. Caribbean reef sharks were spotted patrolling the wall. A school of Atlantic spadefish hung out just above, unfazed by the presence of divers. With visibility often
reaching 30 metres, it was awe-inspiring to swim a short distance away from the wall and look back at its sheer scale.
Sites such as Crab Mountain and Three Peaks provided opportunities to explore shallower patches of reef and sand. Trumpetfish were found hanging vertically in the water column, trying to camouflage themselves among gorgonians. Exploring overhangs revealed spiny lobsters and huge crabs. Green sea turtles were seen cruising the reef, periodically ascending to breathe. One of my personal favorites, the flamingo tongue mollusk, could be found on several dive sites, usually attached to sea fans.
The sandy patches that punctuated the expansive reefs provided different scenery to explore. At first the sand may look like
Where did I leave my yellow fins?
Ready to dive
57