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General Diving Descriptions
Grand Cayman Diving
West End - Home of the famous West End Wall. This is where Cayman diving all began. Legendary dive sites such as
Orange Canyon, Trinity Caves and the Wreck of the Oro Verde.
The North Wall drops sheer into the depths with huge towers of coral punctuating the cliff-like wall. Being less
dived than the west, the North Wall is home to many large pelagics such as sharks and schools of eagle rays are
often seen.
The South Wall encloses reefs with the most astounding coral you have ever seen.
Stingray City on the North Sound Sandbar of Grand Cayman is a gathering of surprise! - sting rays that comes in
to the shallows to let themselves be fed with fresh fish.
East End - Intricate series of passageways, black coral trees, lush corals, the largest schools of fish you will
ever encounter. You will aso find the deepest drop-off in the northern hemisphere -- 25,000 ft. (7,620 m)downwards,
and a favorite hangout for sharks and eagle rays.
Little Cayman Diving
5 miles west of Cayman Brac, Little Cayman is the epitome of the quiet tropical island. This tiny island is a gem
in the crown of the Caymans and offers what has been frequently called the very best diving in the Caribbean. With
only 98 permanent residents you quickly begin to feel like one of the family. People seldom fail to wave as you
drive or bicycle past them.
As with the Brac, the dive potential is found along walls surrounding Little Cayman. What sets Little Cayman aside
is the extreme ease of accessing these walls. At Bloody Bay, these vertical drop-offs, dripping with sponges and
gorgonians and populated by a healthy number of fish, start as shallow as 18 ft (5 1/2 m), dropping from there
into over 6000 ft (1828 m) of water. This is one of those extremely rare areas where you can plan a multi-level
dive and finish off-gassing at the very top of the wall and the lush coral flats above it.
Cayman Brac Diving
Twelve miles long and just over a mile in width, is home to about 2000 permanent residents. She is a generally
flat island ringed by ironshore and sand beaches shaded by towering palms and stands of casuarina trees.
Sloping, vertical and undercut walls are the norm for deeper sites. The drop-offs tend to start around 40 to 60
ft (12 to 18 m), though this will vary by site. These deep sites are complemented by a large array of shallow sites
(40 feet or less) with truly incredible coral growth. You will find single coral heads stretching to within 10
ft (3 m) of the surface. Due to this amazing relief, many of the shallow dive sites can easily accommodate snorkelers
as well. There is a fringing reef around much of the island and the snorkelling in the hallow lagoon inside this
reef can be excellent.
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| The following description and sites were furnished
by Eileen Dennett, instructor/divemaster with Cayman Diving Lodge
on Grand Cayman's East End. |
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Grouper Grotto
Access: Boat
Depth: 20-60 feet
Located just outside the South Channel, this site is a combination of caverns and coral heads in sandy patches
giving the site unmatched eco-diversity. Large pelagics like manta rays and eagle rays have been seen here. In
2001, this site was filled with millions of silversides which combined with the hundreds of tarpon to create an
interactive underwater kaleidoscope not often experienced by divers anywhere in the world. |
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Ironshore Gardens
Access: Boat
Depth: 30-60 feet
A signature East End dive in Half Moon Bay with numerous canyons, tunnels, and swimthroughs including the infamous
"Throat". The entire dive can be spent exploring these passages in the reef. Glassy sweepers school in
the caves, tarpon abound and yellow rays are often found. The top of the reef from here down to Frank sound is
without a doubt the healthiest in the Caribbean. Large elkhorn corals and majestic star corals provide habitat
for mass schools of chub, creole wrasse, sargeant majors and blue and brown chromis. The rare Caribbean Torpedo
has been seen in this area. |
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Tarpon Taproom
Access: Boat
Depth: 30-60 feet
A continuation of the reef structure along Half Moon Bay. Spectacular top reef with massive elkhorn formations
and diverse sponge life. This site was home to a long-lured frogfish for most of 2001. |
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The Maze
Access: Boat
Depth: 60-110 ft.
This incredible wall outside the South Channel drops to over 2000 feet and is named for the section of tall and
narrow crevaces divers swim through to reach the wall. The visability in this area can rival or beat anywhere in
Cayman most of the time. Also this area is home to a group of Caribbean reef sharks that have been resident for
many years. |
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Three Sisters
Access: Boat
Depth: 60-110 ft.
An extremely beautiful East End wall site. This dive consists of three large pinnacles. Affectionately called Agnes,
Bertha and Claire they stand just off the wall and attract a multitude of sea life including hammerheads and eagle
rays. Divers can swim between the wall and the pinnacles or perform infinite figure eights around them. Either
way, both large oceangoing and smaller tropicals make these pinnacles home. |
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