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- - Belize diving (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=82724)

Wow very nice pictures.

nice! what kind of camera/strobes do you use?

Thanks. I use a Canon G11 with an Ikelite housing and Ikelite DS51 substrobe. It does more than I need at the moment until my skills improve, both diving and picture taking.

Here are a couple more. I'm trying to find two videos that my wife shot. The first was a huge spotted eagle ray that cruised by and the other is me assisting in the "lion fish eradication program". It was the first time using a spear gun and it's open season on them. Unfortunately my wife's camera housing flooded and it wasn't good news for the camera of the card.

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2873.jpg

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2886.jpg

Great shots.
I'm heading to Belize next Friday. Your getting me pumped up.
Where did you stay? Where was your favorite restaurant?

We were in San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. Let me know if that is where you are headed. If so, where are you staying. Lots of great places.

Very nice. And good decision by not diving the "Blue Hole" I dove it a few years back and it has nothing in it but water, and it was expensive.

I dove Belize a few years ago on the Nekton Pilot for a week, liveaboard, lots of small stuff, large barrel sponges.

Nice shots!! We're going down to Akumal early March. We'll be doing the referal course here, and then the dives down there. Once we're certified we're going to either Cozumel or Belize for a day trip and a dive. CAN'T WAIT!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by reef_rookie (Post 678638)

Very nice. And good decision by not diving the "Blue Hole" I dove it a few years back and it has nothing in it but water, and it was expensive.

I really liked the Blue Hole day trip. It was a bit expensive but I was staying on Caye Caulker so it's quite a long boat trip for a day trip. Sure the Blue Hole dive itself wasn't that great but it was my first deep dive and my first encounter with sharks so maybe I'm biased :wink:. There were some things to see... large groupers, etc.

The other dive sites we dove there were pretty impressive though. The Aquarium and Half Moon Wall sites had loads of fish and corals. I've dove in many different countries in Central and South American and I am still impressed with the variety at The Aquarium dive site.

I also liked that you explore Half Moon Caye over lunch. There was lots to see there too.

Overall I'd recommend the day trip and do it again myself :biggrin:.

Great pics too by the way Saltcreep!!

Yes I'm also going to stay in Ambergris Caye staying at Blue Tang inn.
T minus 5 days and counting

So jealous now. We want to go back. The Blue Tang is right next door to where we were staying. It's a great location as it's walking distance to everywhere. No need for a golf cart unless you want to check out other parts of the island. A word of advice, you will see bumpy dirt roads to the north and bumpy dirt roads to the south. You are much better off renting a bike to do some exploring.

Reef Adventures (the dive shop we went out with) is literally at your front door. If you are diving and you go with them, you won't be disappointed. Michael, Travis, and Chucky were awesome. Let them know that Kyle and Nisha send our best.

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/Dockview.jpg

There is a bar (Wet Willies) at the end of the same pier. That can be dangerous. Beers can be consumed anywhere, anytime. It was kind of odd walking down the street with a beer in hand and going into a restaurant or bar with it. Nobody batted an eyelash...they offered a new one when you were done.

As for food....chicken, rice and beans. It's good and we never had a bad meal. I'm not sure what you are planning, but we ate breakfast and lunch almost exclusively in our unit. There are two grocery stores behind your hotel which helped a lot.

There are so many hidden little gems to eat at. We found ourselves eating at the food vendors in the central square a great deal. You can't beat $2 burritos. Restaurants are good. Try Elvi's, Waraguma, and the Reef. We heard good things about Wild Mango and Carumba. Fidos (Fee - Doze) is a great spot on the beach for some wings and a couple of beers. They usually have live music so it can get busy.

You have to hit up Annie's bakery (a block past the grocery stores going north) for the cinnamon buns. They open at 3pm so try to get them while they are hot.

That's about it for now. If you need more info, let me know.

Thanks. We are getting very exited.
Thanks for the pic it's nice to see it.
Did you bring your own dive gear. I've got all mine packed but may end up over weight for tropic air so just wondering what you might have done

Thanks again
J

We brought our own dive gear. Our regs, computers, and cameras/housings are taken on as carry on baggage. All our other gear gets packed in a regular bag and we tipped the scales just shy of 50lbs. Bring your mask as carry on if you have a prescription mask or you have issues with finding one that fits. At least you will have the essentials for your dive.

Tropic Air doesn't seem to worry about the weight too much. I was shocked they got all the bags on the aircraft. It's the airline that you are flying on down to BZE that will be the issue. We were on United/Continental and they are particular about the overweight/excess baggage. They'll stick it to you for overweight ($200). We were allowed one "free" bag and any extras were $40.

We've got it down to a science now.

Thanks, Ya we where only worried about Tropic air as they say on the web that it's 35lbs max.

Any more amazing Pics?

Here are a few more....

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2773.jpg

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2759.jpg

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_3002.jpg

Wet Willies in relation to Reef Adventures.
http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2711.jpg

Front street
http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_0415.jpg

Beer delivery
http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_0419.jpg

Street vendors. I forgot to add that these ones set up after 6pm. The "chicken lady" sets up on weekend days in front of the hardware store beside Richies (the grocery store). She's a must eat place too.
http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2835.jpg

Thursday night entertainment.
http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_0416.jpg

The water is fine to drink. We used tap water to make our coffee every day with no problems.

Great thanks for all the info. I hope to have a thread with as many great pics as well when I get back

J

So awesome. Look at all those gorgs, I love the Caribbean for that look. And those Diploria. sp. brains - LOVE them! Too bad we can't get them in the hobby.

Awesome pics and it looks like a beautiful place!

Belize is too far for a day trip from Akumal, but Cozumel is doable. If you want to do a two tank dive trip you will need to be in San Pedro by around 8:00 am.
But there are plenty of nice dives around Akumal, and they are much easier than Cozumel which can have some good currents.
Where are you staying in Akumal?

Quote:

Originally Posted by doch (Post 678696)

Quote:

Originally Posted by saltcreep (Post 678981)

http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/z...e/IMG_2773.jpg

I WANT!!!!!!