UnBELIZEABLE - Trip to Belize: Blue Hole and Half Moon Caye
- Kristal
- Jun 17, 2017
- 7 min read
Today we set our alarms for 4:30 am as we had an all day trip to the Blue Hole! Yesterday we spoke to a couple dive shops to see about getting an all day trip somewhere and although there were a couple 4-5 hour options, the Blue Hole trip was the only true all-day 12 hour trip (5 am-5 pm).
The Blue Hole is an amazing natural wonder which used to be land above water but thousands of years ago became a sinkhole and was filled by rising seas. Deep under the surface there are caves with stalactites from when it was dripping with fresh water above ground. It's pretty cool to see the cross-section of it:
In most pictures of the Blue Hole it kinda looks like there is land around the edge of the hole. However, it is actually all underwater coral reef.
We got picked up by speed boat at 5 am from the pier closest to our hotel which took us to the main boat, the Papa Tomas . We got our snorkeling gear, grabbed some coffee and headed out to sea! They had fruit and pastries out for people who wanted breakfast. No coffee though, so if you're a coffee nut like me, grab some before you board.
The boat ride out to the Blue Hole was about 2.5 hours so I slept for most of the way out there. There were 28 people on the trip, 5 snorkelers and 23 divers. They had a photographer along who gave a nice little speech about "if you are in witness protection or here with someone other than your spouse, let me know and I'll crop you out of the videos and pictures"...LOL! The ultimate "Man, I don't know your life."
After crossing a couple reefs and open sea portions (bumpy!) we made it to the Blue Hole! There was one little speed boat out there with 3 guys on it who were coast guard of some sort, but otherwise it was just our boat and some small planes doing some fly-bys which was pretty cool! I bet they got some amazing photos, but...they didn't get to snorkel it! I did :-D
Our boat docked on one end and we got out to snorkel around the reef. The coral was amazing! There were thousands of fish of all colors and we saw a sea turtle!!!! Yay! Also, I am an idiot and didn't bring an underwater camera, so these are the pics from the photographer that was on board.
Swimming above the coral was my favorite part. The guide kept trying to get us to swim over the edge of the Blue Hole and saying, "you never know what will come up from underneath!" I mean....no thank you?? There are definitely sharks down there. I saw the video of the divers who went down into the Blue Hole and they did see a shark! I have got to admit, it was definitely a little freaky when it was time to swim back to the boat across the open hole. After about an hour of enjoying the coral we got back on board and the Papa Tomas headed off to lunch on Half Moon Caye. Half Moon Caye (pronounced Key) is a nature sanctuary for the Red Footed Booby Bird that only nests on this island and in the Galapagos.
We had a nice lunch of stewed chicken, red rice, and fruit- and took some time to check out the island. One end of the Caye faces out to sea and has a lighthouse on it and the other end is the jungle which has the Booby Bird sanctuary with a viewing platform. I went barefoot around the island, but the viewing tower is made of steel and wood so it can get really hot on your feet. Sandals would be smart for next time. This island has no full-timers living on it, only researchers and visitors so the wildlife is everywhere; hermit crabs, iguanas, and lizards running around. One side of the island faces inward towards the atoll and is more protected and calm, while the other side faces open ocean and is much more rocky and turbulent. If you look at the pictures of the island, you can see the differences in the water as well (the boat dock side is the protected side).
After about 2 hours on the island for lunch and exploring, we got back on the boat for our next stop: The Aquarium. The Aquarium is so called because it is a coral reef that has a major concentration of marine life. We got out to snorkel here, but this one was really different than the Blue Hole. The Blue Hole's coral reef was up near the surface of the water, only about 2 feet below water surface, but this reef was deep down. That meant that you were really in open ocean here which was scary but cool. We could see the divers bubbles rising from beneath us as they went all the way down to the depths. Our guide had a water bottle filled with rice and as he dove, he opened the top so a spiral of rice started to float out. Suddenly A HUGE swarm of fish just enveloped him! It was awesome. Some of the fish were teeny tiny and others were pretty big, like a good two or more feet long. He then swum around me and the other snorkelers and all the fish were just everywhere! It was super cool.
The wind had picked up at this point and the current was pretty swift. Even our guide remarked that this was the strongest current he had ever felt here. Some of the snorkelers started to get back into the boat and the guide disappeared for a bit. I decided to stay in the water enjoying the fishes but after a while I started to notice I was getting pushed around the far side of the boat away from the others and it was a real fight to get back. I am not the best swimmer so I figured it was probably time to get back in the boat as well. I got back in the boat and the Mr. decided to stay in the water. No problem, he's a better swimmer than I am. Until! The boat started driving away! He has his own story of his "come to Jesus moment" when he realized the boat had left him in open ocean without anyone else around. Meanwhile I was on the boat trying to keep my eyes on him and tell someone that "hey, we missed one!" Apparently what happened is that the divers also got pushed by the current and so now they were ready to get picked up in a much different location than where we went in and the boat had to go get them because they have weights on and stuff. Thankfully, after swimming alone for a bit, the Mr. ended up meeting back up with our guide who had disappeared earlier chasing after one of the other snorkelers who got swept away by the current as well. Bye forever, friends!
After everyone was safely back on the boat, it was time to head back to San Pedro. The sun was perfect for a nice lay out on the front of the boat. The boat crew wouldn't let the divers drink for an hour after diving, but since we just snorkeled, it was time to break out the beer that we had brought! There was music playing and sun shining and beer flowing (and after an hour...rum punch!). They had fresh fruit and cheese and chocolate bars set out to keep us all happy on the long ride home.
It took nearly 3 hours to get back because the weather was so windy, we had to take a different route home, but that was cool because we were in no hurry. Just enjoying the view and the company.
After getting back to the dock around 6:30 pm, we headed off to dinner at Elvi's Kitchen (we called and changed our reservation from 7pm to 8pm with no problem) The food was delicious and fresh -I ordered the daily special which was a seafood bouillabaisse, the ambiance was nice --there was a classical guitar player, -and the service was awesome. A nice end to this trip.
Back to the AirBnb for a good night's sleep (also some aloe because I am very very extremely burnt) and tomorrow it's travel day back to the U. S. of A.
Final notes from today:
The dive company we used was amazing! The captain was awesome and the guides were on point all day, even when things got rough (one woman got the bends and multiple people got seasick on the boat). Couldn't have asked for a better crew. They were called Amigos Del Mar and it was $195 per person (we snorkeled) for the all day trip with 3 dive locations, water, snacks, lunch at Half Moon Caye, and rum punch.
(You can see their entire rate sheet here: https://www.amigosdivebelize.com/rates)
***MAJOR NOTE: Half Moon Caye is a national park, and there is an entrance fee of $40 USD per person which is not included in the $195. You have to bring this in cash with you before you get on the boat.***
Bring an underwater camera. I am kicking myself for not having one because there was so much cool stuff I saw underwater on this trip!
Also, if beer is important to you, bring it! We shared our beer with a few people on the boat who didn't realize there wasn't any.
Finally, bring Sunscreen level 1000. I got so burnt, even my forearms peeled when I got home. Blechhh!
There is a store on San Pedro near the ferry dock that has everything you could possibly need for your stay if you forgot to pack anything. Big purple building called Super Buy. The manager is super nice as well.
The only souvenir I brought back from the trip:
The most amazing delicious sauce that is spicy in the best way and sweet at the same time. EYOM!
Bye Belize! It's been awesome! I will definitely be back again :) Next time...the Jungles and Ruins!
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