SCUBA Diving Belize

[tps_title]Exclusive SCUBA Diving Tips to Belize Slideshow![/tps_title]

Belize was considered by many divers to be a Western Hemisphere water paradise decades before it became the oh-so-trendy destination it is today. Exceptional diving is plentiful from end-to-end of the 190-mile-long (300km) Belize Barrier Reef, which extends from the northern tip of Ambergris Caye to the Sapodillo Cayes in Belize’s southernmost region.

Belize is located on the Yucatan Peninsula approximately 250 miles south of Cancun. It borders Mexico to the north, the Caribbean to the east and Guatemala on the west and south.

The country offers all ranges of diving from shore diving, in shallow water, to the plummeting depths of the famous Blue Hole. Barrier reefs found here offer superb diving for beginners, including Hol Chan Marine Park, located a few miles south of Ambergris Caye.

One can divide Belize into three distinctive dive locations, each with its own personality and types of diving.

1. Three outer atolls: Lighthouse Reef, Turneffe Island, and Gloverâs Reef;
2. Ambergris Caye and the Northern Barrier Reef; and
3. The Southern Barrier Reef and Plancencia. Divers can mix and match each of these destinations on a single trip.

Next Slides Include What to See and Where to Dive

[tps_header]WHAT TO SEE[/tps_header]

Reefs, mostly mounds of colorful underwater limestone, are believed by many divers to be the most beautiful habitats found in the sea. Belize is home to the second largest barrier reef in the world. This spectacular sight, stretching from north to south, runs nearly parallel to the coast. Over 400 species of fish, at least 70 types of coral and a variety of sponges are found in waters that surround Belize’s Barrier Reef.

The largest marine reserve in the country, the South Water Caye Marine Reserve stretches from Hopkins to the Sittee River and attracts increasing numbers of divers each year. A nearby underwater cave named ‘Hell Hole’ awaits exploration; it has a mouth that in places is 15ft wide.

Belize is a wall diver’s paradise. Sheer walls carrying such names as Painted Wall, Half Moon Caye and Quebrada are adorned with orange elephant ear sponges. Moray eels, spiny lobsters and arrow crabs hide in every crack, crevice, cave and tunnel of these coral wall formations.

Just offshore from the village of San Pedro, Hol Chan Marine Reserve is an underwater park situated at a deep cut in the barrier reef. Here divers can spot a variety of corals and throngs of grouper, snapper and barracuda. At Shark Ray Alley, people can snorkel with nurse sharks and stingrays.

The Blue Hole, a collapsed freshwater cave system, is 1000ft across and 400ft deep. Jacques Yves Cousteau, declaring it in 1985 one of the top ten dive sites in the world, made the Blue Hole famous. One can, on a Blue Hole dive, see beautiful vertical stalactite formations. Only persons with considerable diving experience should attempt exploring the Blue Hole.

Trips to the Blue Hole operate from San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, as well as from Caye Caulker and Turneffe. All trips involve a two-hour boat ride each way.

Belize has an annual mean temperature of 79 degrees F. The humidity, while at times high, is tempered by sea breezes. Saltwater temperatures vary between 79 and 84 degrees. A visit to Belize is sure to be a memorable experience. It certainly was for me.

[tps_footer]Next Slide Includes Where to Dive[/tps_footer]

[tps_header]WHERE TO DIVE[/tps_header]
Whether you dive from a mainland base, island hotel, or a live-aboard boat, Belize scuba operators have their own particular dive locations to share, in or near the Belize Barrier Reef. Dive shops exist most everywhere there is access to the reef.

Belize is home to three of the four coral atolls found in the Western Hemisphere, with Turneffe being the most biologically diverse. To dive here contact Turneffe Flats Diving Resort at 1-888-512-8812. The resort is located on the Eastern (seaward) side of the Turneffe Atoll on private land with coconut palms and a white sand beach, providing access to miles of superb diving.

Avadon Divers (Anne-Marie and Phillip McNeil), Plancencia, Tel. (USA) 954-333-8628, offers diving with whale sharks. Over 25 species of fish gather at Gladden Spit to spawn during full moon periods in the springtime. It is the spawn of the Cubera snapper that whale sharks mainly come here to feast on. For more information, email the McNeils at: [email protected]

On Long Caye, Gloverâs Reef Atoll, Jim and Kendra Schofield operate Off the Wall Dive Center & Resort, P.O. Box 195, Dangriga, Belize. Email: [email protected]. The Center features 100ft of visibility.

 

Joe Zentner has written for ALL AT SEA since 2007.