Eat! Sleep! Dive!
We arrived on this beautiful 12-mile long island named Cayman Brac. Isn’t she beautiful? The Cayman Islands lie 480 miles due south of Miami, Florida just beyond Cuba and 189 miles northwest of Jamaica.
Cayman Brac Beach Resort
This is our second trip with Sugar Land Dive Shop. Our first was to Bonaire in 2018. Thanks to everyone for the wonderful trip! This is one for the history books.
We lived at the Cayman Brac Beach Resort for seven (7) days!!! Let me just state right here that Trudy, the resort Director, went above and beyond to help us when our flights were delayed. Thank you, Trudy, you and your staff are outstanding in customer service!!!
Reef Divers Valet Diving
Reef Divers Valet Diving is the outfit that took care of us. Captain Tom Bell was our boat captain for the week and the name of our boat was: Little Sister. Sometimes, Captain Tom dove with our group of 18. And, sometimes CC or Natalie would dive with us. Our maximum allowable dive depth was 110 feet. This is the rule on the Cayman Islands.
Trey, Adam, and I stayed fairly shallow as Adam is only certified to 60 feet. This will change when Adam turns 18 years old. See PADI.com for more info.
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @ Torrent Suppressors
History of Cayman Brac – The Cayman Islands
Excerpt from Cayman Brac Beach Resort: In 1503, Christopher Columbus was on his final voyage to the New World. A chance wind threw his ship off course, toward “two very small and low islands.” He noted that the “sea was full of tortoises” so much so that “they looked like little rocks”. Because of this observance, he named the islands – that we now call Cayman Brac & Little Cayman – “Las Tortugas”. By 1530, these islands had been clustered together with a third larger island and renamed “Caimanas”, a Carib Indian word for marine crocodiles that once inhabited the islands.
Source: World Atlas
“Caimanas” later evolved into the Cayman Islands, and it has stayed that way ever since.
For many years after its discovery, Cayman Brac was known to pirates as a temporary home and a place to hide their stolen treasures. The most famous pirate to roam the island’s shores was Edward “Blackbeard” Teach. Legend says that Blackbeard’s booty still hides in the caves of Cayman Brac.
Pirate coins and silver bar found on Cayman Brac by Dervyn Scott
Bloody Bay Wall
We dove “Blood Bay Wall” which is the southern area of Little Cayman. Legend has it that this is where many fights took place.
While many ships were drawn to the islands for the plentiful supply of turtle, the Cayman Islands remained largely uninhabited until 1658 when the first known settlers arrived on Little Cayman and Cayman Brac.
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @ Torrent Suppressors
Treaty of Madrid
After the Treaty of Madrid was signed in 1670, Jamaica claimed the Cayman Islands as a dependent. It remained as such until 1962 when Jamaica gained independence and the Cayman Islands chose to remain a British Crown Colony. It is believed that many of these early inhabitants were deserters from Cromwell’s army in the British colony in Jamaica, refugees from the Spanish Inquisition, shipwrecked sailors, slaves, and pirates ready to settle down to a more peaceful life.
Bluff or Brac
Cayman Brac (“Brac” is the Gaelic word for “bluff”) was named for its breathtaking 140–foot bluff. The bluff is a one-of-a-kind limestone outcrop that rises steadily along the island before coming to its majestic end overlooking the easternmost side of the island. The limestone is considered to be a semi-precious stone ranging in color from reds, pinks, and oranges, to hues of brown, gray, black and white. This unique and rare beauty is called “Caymanite” and can only be found in the Cayman Islands.
Cayman Brac is made up of a small community of “Brackers” with a population of approximately 2,000.
Photo Credit: John Hill
Download Dive Maps here
16 Dives
Sunday, July 28th, 2019
Dive #1
Dive Site: East Chute —> Depth 64’
I observed: Stoplight Parrotfish; Fairy Basslet; Beautiful Coral; Turtle; Grouper; tons of fish
Photo Credit: John Hill
Dive #2
Dive Site: Charlie’s Reef —> Depth 47’
I observed: Excellent Dive! Stingrays; Parrot Fish; Bearded Fire Worm
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #3
Dive Site: Sgt. Major —> Depth 49’
I observed: Squid, Squirrel Fish
Part of the Marine Park*
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Monday, July 29th, 2019
Dive #4 (45-minute boat ride to Little Cayman)
Dive Site: Donna’s Delight which is part of Bloody Bay Wall —> Depth 70’
I observed: Bearded Fire Worm
Aptly named for numerous pirate battles, Bloody Bay Wall is best known for the incredible underwater drop not far from shore – a nearly vertical wall of coral 1,000 feet down.
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #5 (Continued diving in Little Cayman)
Dive Site: Mixing Bowl which is part of Bloody Bay Wall —> Depth 60’
I observed: Stingray; beautiful fish; tons and tons of coral
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #6 (45-minute boat ride returning to Cayman Brac – I think we toured the island of Little Cayman all the way around)
Dive Site: Buccaneer Reef —> Depth 53’
I observed: Lobster; Squirrelfish – Great Diving!!!
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Tuesday, July 30th, 2019
Dive #7
Dive Site: #356 Wreck (aka MV Captain Keith Tibbetts) —> Depth 79’
I observed: Masked Hamlet; Beautiful coral; Nudabranch aka Sea Slug. My favorite wreck dive to date.
The only diveable Russian warship in the Western Hemisphere, MV. Captain Keith Tibbets, a large 330-foot Russian Brigadier Type II Class frigate that was placed on the north shore of Cayman Brac in September 1996. The wreck is known by the name Russian Destroyer #356 and was built in 1984 in Nadhodka, U.S.S.R. The ship was built for the Cuban navy, but never saw war. When she was sold to the Cayman Islands, she was renamed Captain Keith Tibbetts to honor a local dive operator. Source
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
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Dive #8
Dive Site: Patch Reef —> Depth 66’
I observed: Puffer Fish among other fish. Incredible diving!
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #9
Dive Site: End of Island —> Depth 52’
I observed: An Eagle Ray and Trunkfish. Beautiful Dive!
Photo Credit: Larry Legendre
Photo Credit: Larry Legendre
Dive #10 – Night Dive!!! My first!
Dive Site: End of Island —> Depth 57’
I observed: 1 sleeping turtle; 1 swimming Hawksbill Turtle, a gigantic Spiny Lobster strolling along on the sandy bottom; a large crab walking along sideways; Squid; Millions of blood worms that were attracted to my flashlight. It was fun to guide the blood worms into the Brain Coral and watch the Brain Coral suck them up! I LOVED night diving! Why did I wait so long to dive at night? Do it now – ASAP!
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
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Trivia Night
We won 2nd place next to Rich’s dive group from Dallas, Texas – International Scuba. Thanks, Trey Trosclair, Dan Bowen, Jennifer Larson, Larry Legendere, and population question guy.
Wednesday, July 31st, 2019
Dive #11
Dive Site: Rock Monster —> Depth 73’
I observed: Awesome Wall; Massive Lion Fish spotted – This one got away from CC.
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #12
Dive Site: Bert Brothers Boulders —> Depth 63’
I observed: Beautiful Pinnacle; Perfectly intact Sea Biscuit (Puffy Sand Dollar).
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppressors
Dive #13
Dive Site: Elkhorn Forest —> Depth 55’
I observed: Goliath Grouper
Part of the Marine Park*
What does August 1st represent for the Brackers??
Emancipation Day is celebrated every August 1st. According to Young, Kayla. “Emancipation Day: ‘a Bubbling Stew’ of Caribbean Heritage.” Cayman Compass, 31 July 2019.
“Much of the Caribbean will honour Emancipation Day this Thursday, 1 Aug., with parties, food and music. The day marks two historic milestones for the British West Indies – the end of slavery in 1834 and the end of apprenticeship in 1838, both on 1 Aug.”
Thursday, August 1st, 2019
Dive #14
Dive Site: West Chute —> Depth 91’
I observed: Friendly Grouper; Green Moray Eel; spotted a sand dollar/sea biscuit in perfect condition; blue coral light blue (wish I had a camera for this one); beautiful anemone.
Trey, DH, captured the Green Moray Eel on video.
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Dive #15
Dive Site: Grunt Valley —> Depth 45’
I observed: Hamlets – Indigo
src=”https://bluewaterdesignstudios.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Hamlet-Indigo.jpg”
Dive #16
Dive Site: Sea Feather Wall —> Depth 73’
I observed: Caribbean Reef Sharks – at least four were spotted
Part of the Marine Park*
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
Photo Credit: Trey Trosclair @Torrent Suppresors
*Marine Park Zone – Prohibits the taking of any marine life except by line fishing, permitted either from shore or beyond the drop-off.
Day Before Departure
The day before our flight home was the day we explored the top of the island. This gives us a full 24 hours to rest before our flight home that insures no DCS (Decompression Sickness) aka “The Bends”.
Mossy, our friendly taxi cab driver and new friend, drove and showed us the sites. Be sure to look him up on Facebook at Mossy Tour & Taxi Service when you travel to Cayman Brac.
Stop #1 Bat Cave (#9 on the map)
Stop #2 Foots’ Home
Mossy knows Foots and Mossy was going to introduce us, but Foots was not at home when we descended upon his paradise. His art is interesting, eccentric, and fascinating! Foots was in a lawsuit recently over an objectionable statue. I personally thought it was a phallic until I realized that it was two women. Foots won his lawsuit. See more here. Foots’ website.
Stop #3 First Home on Cayman Brac
A pink structure named, “Honeymoon Cottage” circa the 1700s.
Stop #4 Golden Sun Le Soleil d’ Or
This boutique hotel is closed due to new owners. The previous owner spent $32mm and never hired the locals and never engaged with the locals that run Cayman Brac. I found their website here.
Stop #5 Parrot Reserve
We drove through the Parrot Reserve hoping to catch a glimpse of a parrot. We saw this Yellow Warbler (the locals call it a Banana Bird) instead:
Stop #6 Cayman Brac Lighthouse (#12 on the map)
Simple lighthouse that was replaced with a solar-powered lens in the 1980s.
Stop #7 Little Cayman Brac Outlook (#13 on the map)
I wore flip flops, but I should have brought a pair of tennis shoes for this adventure. Overlook the cay (large rock) half way along the Lighthouse Footpath No. 25. Brown Booby breed in caves and ledges in the bluff below. I captured a Brown Booby in my video.
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Stop #8 Peter’s Cave (#18 on the map)
As with many of the caves on Cayman Brac, Peter’s Cave provided shelter from the hurricanes. According to the sign, it was last used during Hurricane Gilbert in 1988.
Stop #9 Peter’s Overlook (#16 on the map)
The sign reads: A panoramic view westwards along the bluff face of the northern coastal shelf with the town of Spot Bay 130 feet below.
Stop #10 Hotel & Bar for Sale
$2mm and it’s yours. The bar is on the water and the hotel rooms are across the road. Owner: __
Stop #11 Skull Cave
Not a very deep cave, but fun to walk in and observe the fruit bats. You can see by the picture(s) below where it gets its name.
Thanks, Mossy, for the wonderful tour!
Back at the Cayman Brac Beach Resort, we had our farewell dinner with a wonderful BBQ outside.
Left to Right: CC, Adam, Trey, Kathy, Captain Tom
Would I Visit Cayman Brac Again?
Yes, I would in a heartbeat! Just be aware that Cayman Airways delayed our outgoing flight by 8 hours for a 28-minute flight from Cayman Brac to Grand Cayman. How is this possible? IDK. Be prepared for this by ensuring that you have traveler’s insurance just in case. I’m sipping on Cayman Punch and hoping that this never happens to you.
Until our next dive trip, friend, be well! Eat! Sleep! Dive! Thanks to everyone for this wonderful dive trip! This is one for the history books.
Where shall we go next? Guam, Thailand, or Indonesia? Yes, please!
Need packing suggestions? Head over to my Packing List for Cayman Brac.
Cheers,
Kathy
Photo Credit: Dan Bowen
