The diving has been really nice here in Utila over the last few weeks. The underwater visibility is great these days now that the rainy season is over. I have been bad about posting while busy finishing up the Divemaster training (SO CLOSE!). We aren’t able to bring cameras on training dives because we are working, so I only take photos on our “fun dives.” Here are some Utila diving photos and videos.
fun dive photos
Here are a few underwater shots from some fun dives I’ve done lately.
A trumpetfish
I found my red filter so moving forward the photos will not be so blue! But for now, this is what I’ve got, including this pretty angelfish.
One of the requirements of UDC’s Divemaster program is to participate in a beach clean-up, which is a great way to ensure all the students are aware of the environmental problems with our oceans. Last Monday, I participated in my first beach clean-up with Utila Dive Center. It was enlightening and a little bit depressing but ultimately rewarding.
Getting to the beach clean-up
We met at UDC and drove in a van to the beach at the southeast end of the island, where I had never been. From Google Maps, I guess it is Iron Shore Beach. There’s no road across the island, so we went all the way south and then back up the east side.
UDC to Iron Shore Beach, Utila
Advance preparation
One of the UDC instructors, T, led the group and she organized everything, providing gloves, garbage bags, rakes, and trays to put special types of refuse on, like glass bottles (of which there were few) and bottle caps (many). We were prepared and we needed to be. The amount of trash that washes onto that island from the ocean has to be seen to be believed.
Organized into teams, we competed with each other a bit: for most trash, and most of each type of trash. It was just one element to keep people involved, but most of us didn’t need the game.
I had two dolphin encounters this week! Two days ago, the open water dive class I assisted were taken into the bay near the dive shop to snorkel with dolphins. It was amazing listening to them communicate and experiencing them swimming and playing around us in the open water. Swimming with dolphins in Utila is one of my favorite experiences.
DOlphin encounter at sea in utila
Today, we had a dolphin encounter as we were heading to our dive site. This time, I had my phone so I took some photos and video from the boat! These dolphins were super friendly – they were surfing the waves and swimming around the snorkelers. They are so much fun! I can’t recommend swimming with trapped dolphins at a resort, but if you ever get a chance in the wild, do it.
I came to Utila to get away from the cold in Canada, but mainly to do professional PADI scuba training. Here’s what it’s like for me training to be a divemaster in Utila, Honduras.
PADI Divemaster Training at UDC
Since Monday, February 26th I have been enrolled in the Divemaster training program at Utila Dive Center. It has been time consuming, educational, entertaining and tiring! I love it!
A little over 2 weeks ago, I embarked on my latest adventure: Professional Scuba training in Utila. These first two weeks have been exhilarating and overwhelming, but now I have more time to post about the experience of living in Utila.
Getting to Utila
The view during my flight from Belize City to Roatan
I flew Toronto to Belize City to Roatan (that leg in a small 12 seater plane), spent one night in Roatan, and ferried to Utila the next day. It was a pretty uneventful trip, despite a slight delay due to torrential rains at the Belize City airport. I even met a kind Canadian who spends his winters in Roatan whose friends were picking him up at the airport and offered to drop me at my hotel since it was on their way. Gotta like friendly travelers.
You can also travel to Utila from the mainland. Many people fly into San Pedro Sula and then take the bus to La Ceiba, a coastal city which has ferries to the Bay Islands. Sometimes you can catch a plane direct to La Ceiba and then the ferry, which would be preferable. Transport within the country is cheap, but the buses are not always fast or comfortable, as is common in Central America.
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