Beautiful Cozumel - Current Conditions

December 20th, 2005

Cozumel is probably the top place in my mind for tropical diving anywhere close to home. This year the island got slammed by a coupla hurricanes. I was glad that I’d been there several times before the storm came through and got to see the stunning reefs and swim-throughs there. I’ve been slacking big time on writing up my Cozumel trip report and uploading my gallery from there, due to my present commitments to Newsvine. I was finally prompted to write this short post on Cozumel by an email I received from my friends down at Deep Blue, the dive operator I did my PADI Rescue Diver with. I don’t believe Deep Blue will mind me republishing the email for the purpose of trying to get word out about how things are down there after hurricane Wilma.

From Deep Blue:

This year was certainly one we will never forget, a record hurricane season for the Atlantic. Last time we had a direct hit was 10 years ago and this season we had Emily, a category 4 storm on July 17, and then on October 21 we got pounded severely for 3 days by Wilma, the worst hurricane ever!

The good news is that Cozumel and its people have bounced back with amazing speed, determination, and positive attitude. The resilience of these people is to be admired in light of all the hardships, loss of income and jobs resulting from these storms.

This website has excellent current news and pictures about the island and shares balanced view of the situation.

We are especially happy and relieved to report that the reefs suffered minor damage and diving is as good as ever, marine life even more abundant, and visibility is over 120 feet as usual. New opportunities are being discovered in the wake of the storms. The shifting of sand has actually exposed new sites for exploration, including newly-revealed caves. The Marine Park Authority expects a full recovery and we are all looking forward to experiencing the natural process of regeneration taking place.

Beachfront hotels suffered a lot of damage and some remain closed for repairs through January or February, so airlines have also cut back flights direct into Cozumel. As of today, Continental flies from Houston and Mexicana from Mexico City, and you can also get here from Cancun, which has become a lot easier to taxi and ferry across. Downtown hotels are all open, so check with your travel agents or let us know how we can help to get you here.
The Cozumel Dive Guide was such an amazing success that we’ll be printing the Second Edition early next year, so stay tuned…..
In the meantime, we now have available online the Cenotes Dive Guide and the Playa del Carmen Dive Guide.
Check them out here.

They are both excellent guides to the world famous Cenotes and ocean diving on the Mayan Riviera.

As you can see there is still stuff worth seeing down there, even some new dive sites. I’m sure that the town is still pretty battered from the whole ordeal, but that may mean that flights can be had at a steal. Both the amazing drift dives off of Cozumel and the unique Cenote dives of the Riviera Maya have long been among some of the best dives I can remember, and Deep Blue was one of the most professional and friendly dive operators I’ve ever worked with.

Update: A member of Northwest Dive Club, Pinkpadigal, is currently down on the beautiful island of Cozumel. Here is her account of the current conditions (as of 8/14/06):

My husband Tom and I are loving this vacation. Cozumel seems the same as always with very few visible reminders that 2 devistating Hurricanes blew through here less than a year ago. There are many new docks and a few new places but the island has recovered nicely.

The reefs have taken a horrible beating. All the purple fans are gone and the hundreds of Conch that once were everywhere have been replaced with dead shells. The beautiful basket coral the Island was famous for are now in warped shapes and in many cases, non-exsistant. Many of the reefs are now completely covered with sand or twisted dead pieces once-living rocks. Large fish are gone and it is common to only see 1-2 Queen Angelfish on a dive, compared to hundreds 2 years ago. In Devil’s Throat, the Coral Cross has been destroyed. Evidence of Emily and Wilma still remain in large areas where the sand looks poorly swept across the ocean floor. It breaks my heart to see this devistation.

However, the reefs are recovering. There is a lot of rays and sharks, more than before. The deeper reefs look untouched and the amounts of tiny fish are helping clean up the sand and coral. In the next 2-3 years, things will be back to normal but because of the efforts of the people of Cozumel and the Mexican Government, the reefs will be healthier and more beautiful than ever. For the most part, all the debris has been cleaned up although occassionally we come across a piece of wood or car bumper.

….. Read On.

Entry Filed under: SCUBA, Travel