Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog » Grand Cayman

Witness The Sinking Of The USS Kitiwake at Grand Cayman This December

Nevin — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 16:00:19 +0000

If you’re planning a visit to the Grand Caymans this winter, make sure you don’t miss this once in a life-time opportunity to witness the creation of an artificial reef with the scheduled sinking of the USS Kittiwake on the 5^th of December 2010.

The USS Kittiwake was in service from 1945 to 1994 and was a United States Navy Chanticleer-class submarine rescue vessel. Kittiwake was decommissioned on 30 September 1994 was transferred in November 2008 for an undisclosed amount to the government of the Cayman Islands who intended to sink this 251 ft (76.61 m) vessel to serve as an artificial reef off Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman.

The Cayman Islands Tourism Association has elaborate plans to convert the wreck into a private park and attraction named the “Kittiwake Shipwreck Park” that is managed by Tourism Association where Scuba Divers will be expected to pay an entry fee of $10 per visit/dive and snorkelers $5 per visit and will be issued a BCD tag or wristband for snorkelers. The funds collected will be used for maintenance of the ship wreck, safety equipment and management of the attraction and a portion of the visitor fee is paid to an Environmental Contingency Fund. The Tourism association has already printed out wreck dive slates providing visitors with detailed information about the wreck available for purchase from a Licensed Kittiwake Dive Operator.

The Ship itself is currently in dry docks is being stripped bare and being made secure for divers and environmentally sound for sinking. The sinking itself is planned to be a huge event and was originally scheduled to take place between July 24th – 27th, 2010, but was postponed due to the delay in towing the ship from the US to the Cayman’s and plus the time and work required to make the ship “diver & environmentally friendly”. The sinking ceremony on the 5^th is expected to draw huge crowds and be covered by the media fully. Several visiting journalists, guests and ex-crew members plan to attend and witness the sinking of the ex-USS Kittiwake in the Cayman Islands. Cayman resorts along the seven mile beach have almost sold out on special packages for tourist wishing to witness the sinking as well as be some of the first divers to visit the wreck once it’s in place.

To find out more about the scheduled sinking of the Kitiwake visit http://www.kittiwakecayman.com/

images from US Navy Archives & flickr by Willamor Media

Dive Cayman Brac the Caribbean’s Wall Diving Capital

Nevin — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 17:30:00 +0000

Cayman Brac is a small island just 19km (11.8 miles) long and 2km (1.2 mi) wide that forms one of the three Islands of the Cayman Islands located just south of Cuba in the Caribbean. Grand Cayman is the largest of the three, and just 100 miles or so northeast of it lays Little Cayman and Cayman Brac. During the days of piracy in the Caribbean, Cayman Brac was a safe haven for pirates who would use the Island and its numerous caves for anchorage and replenishment of supplies. Today, the Island is a perfect getaway in the Caribbean renowned for its diving.

Diving conditions in the Caymans is second to none, and with an astonishingly clear underwater visibility usually ranging from 150′ to 200′, the reefs of Cayman Brac are perfect for snorkelers or scuba divers to explore its waters. While there are dive sites catering to all kinds of divers, Cayman Brac dive sites are renowned primarily for their abundant Wall and Wreck Diving sites. There are over 46 frequented dive sites from which at least 20 are wall diving sites and four ship wrecks to explore.

Out of the four ship wrecks, the Russian Frigate 356 – MV Capt. Keith Tibbetts is perhaps the most popular, and is a 330 foot vessel with its bow in 85 feet of water, and the stern in 60 feet. Sunk in 1996 the wreck is relatively intact and can be visited by both snorkelers and divers. This wreck is a must do dive for anyone visiting Cayman Brac, and there are over 100 species of fish inhabiting the wreck which is partially penetrable and made diver friendly.

The wall diving at Cayman Brac is simply breathtaking. Wall dive sites surround all sides of the island and are teeming with of all types, colors, and sizes of coral and sponges cascading down the wall faces. Each wall is peppered with small caves and ledges that are waiting to be explored. One of the best walls to dive at is located in the Bloody Bay Marine Park which is technically a Little Cayman site, but easily accessible by boat from Cayman Brac. This site has been rated frequently by several dive magazines and sites as one of the best wall diving sites in the world. With underwater ledges starting at 20 feet and dropping suddenly to a few thousand feet honeycombed with caves and crevices, this one mile long wall is near the deepest part of the Caribbean Sea. The abundance of coral life and sponges are second only to the hundreds of species of fish and marine life that inhabit this region. The big-lipped Nassau Grouper and Turtles are regular features of this site.

Getting to Cayman Brac is relatively simple. Tourist can get in from the US Mainland (Miami) through Grand Cayman where smaller aircraft transport you to the airstrip at Cayman Brac. LeisurePro Travel currently offers up amazing Cayman Brac packages for 7 nights on either resort or liveaboard. The Brac Reef resort package Includes 7 nights Standard accommodations, airport transfers, breakfast and dinner daily and 12 boat dives with Reef Divers, and the second diver gets half off!

photos from flickr by: lyng883, Venson Kuchipudi, joeduty

Diving With The Rays at Stingray City, Grand Caymans

Noreen — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:59:53 +0000

Rays are among the top things divers like to see on dives along with turtles, sharks, schools of barracuda, whale sharks and so on. With a wide variety of rays from the stingrays, whiptail stingrays, eagle rays, marble sting rays and manta rays, it’s always a thrill to see one. There are just a handful of spots around the World are hugely popular for sheer number of rays and a chance to swim, snorkel and of course scuba dive with these creatures.

To truly experience this ancient creature almost untouched by time, the best site worth mentioning and the most popular is…Stingray City in North Sound of the Grand Cayman Islands.

A natural channel passes through the barrier reef here in the shallow waters in the corner of North Sound of the Grand Cayman Islands. Filled with a string of sandbars the stingrays were drawn here over the years as they became accustomed to feeding off of unwanted fish parts thrown overboard by the local fisherman cleaning their daily catch. Soon they became a permanent fixture and got used to humans feeding them and climbing into the water with them.

Today, thousand of tourists particularly as part of a cruise ship attraction visit Stingray city to swim, feed and interact with the Southern stingrays. Rated one of the “best snorkeling experiences in the world”, snorkeling is one way of rubbing elbows with one of the potentially dangerous animal. However, these stingrays are a friendly bunch gathered for an easy meal and aren’t dangerous if not threatened. The snorkeling here takes place in the heart of the sandbar where the water is only 3 to 5 feet deep. The crystal clarity of the waters and numerous stingrays on the sandy bottom is just a treat not to mention when they rub up against you or even wrap their wings around you.

For the ultimate stingray experience however, the best trip to stingray city has to include diving with them. The scuba diving at stingray city is on the deeper part of the sandbar where the water is 12 to 20 feet deep and is sans fins. Groups of ten to twenty divers gear up with no fins (to avoid hurting the rays by accident) and extra weights to stay down on the sandy bottom. Instructed to form a circle, the divemaster hands out pieces of fish and squid to feed the rays. In no time the intelligent creatures have sensed their meal and swarm around the divers caressing them with their bodies and wings, urging you to give them the grub. They’re not aggressive so as to say and the chances of being stung are very slim as it’s mostly a defense mechanism and they don’t have teeth to bite, so it’s relatively safe. They suck up the food through their mouth, located on its underside and if you happen so see one from its underside you can actually see right through them.

Taking a glass bottom boat ride is also an option at Stingray city but if you’re game for it the up close and personal experience of snorkeling or better still scuba diving with the ray we feel is the thing unforgettable memories are made of!

* Photo credits; photos by petersbar, vixendoll13, Paul-W, ebatty on flickr