Sixth Expedition to Coco Island Costa Rica
-- January 30 - February 9, 1997--
Ever get used to seeing Hammerheads
while diving? Ever seen so many white tipped reef sharks
you forget they're swimming with you? Try Coco Island! Our group
of ten Rotarian divers experienced all this and more
aboard the Okeanos Aggressor! My
only hope is all our readers will be able to find a way
to enjoy this part of the underwater world as much as we
did. Hopefully this article will guide you and help you
plan it. Don't delay!
Up early in the morning at 5:30 a.m. to catch a 7:00 a.m. plane to Houston. On to San Jose, Costa Rica arriving at 1:20p.m. central time. Quickly, we caught a waiting cab and the whole group arrived at the Grano De Oro hotel. All together a very smooth trip!
The Grano De Oro is a pearl among
stones. A very quaint building nestled among buildings
typical of a third world country run-down and dirty. The
Grano De Oro is the extreme opposite - well cared for and
immaculate. It is a pink building that on the outside
resembles a Victorian home. One wonders whether very many
rooms are available. It is deceiving. Inside, the hotel
has 35 warmly decorated rooms and suites. It has a sun
deck, two hot tubs and a shower. It is a first class
place that gives one the flavor of the region. After a
two hour stroll through downtown San Jose browsing the
markets and shops, we all met for dinner at the Grano de
Oro hotel restaurant. The food was impeccable, the
service superb. After exchanging a lively conversation
amongst ourselves and a few bottles of wine, we retired
for the evening.
Woke up at a leisurely 10:00 a.m., sauntered on down for breakfast where we were entertained by a humming bird dining on the nectar of the flowers around us, while we dined on banana- macadamia nut pancakes that melted in your mouth. After that it was time killing while we awaited the Aggressor bus to take us the supposedly two hour trip to Puntarenas, Costa Rica to board the Okeanos Aggressor. This ride, because of the narrow road through the mountains and frequent stops for traffic problems and rest stops, actually took us three hours. The view and scenery along the way made the trip seem like less.
As we arrived in Puntarenas, the very
patient Rotary Club of Puntarenas was at the dock to
welcome us and take us to their club. They actually had
been waiting for approximately three hours. Because of
some language difficulties and the Aggressor fleet
picking us up late and the long ride, they had been
expecting us sooner but waited patiently for us to
arrive.
When we did arrive, ten
Rotarians piled into their cars for the ten minute ride
to their club. There, in an open air building in a very
poor town and under much fan fare, we gave $900.00 to the
Rotary Club of Puntarenas. They used the money to buy
playground equipment for four needy schools. The
equipment was all set up for us to inspect; four shinny
new heavy-duty swing sets that you could tell would be
used for hours by the children of this town until they
fell apart.
The teachers and students were there also to greet us, thank us, and take pictures of us. After some food and exchange of T-shirts and other gifts (a hat of Puntarenas and an ash tray made of sea shells ) we made our way back to the ship and departed the harbor for the thirty-six hour trip to Coco Island. That evening consisted of dinner, slide show, gazing at the stars, then a deep sleep.
We were on the boat traveling to our destination, Coco Island. Calm seas, reading, sleeping, quiet conversation, gentle breezes, sun, cards, sunset, harmony!
Up for breakfast at 7:00 a.m. for French toast, oatmeal and fruit, dive briefing at 7:30 a.m. and in the water by 8:15 a.m. Dropped over the side of the Zodiac and immediately looked down to see a large marble stingray and a white tip reef shark. After that it was like a movie film with each frame filled with something unique. Hammerheads, eagle rays, tuna, hammerheads, reef sharks, stingrays, hammerheads, reef fish, then a safety stop and surface. Never saw so many pelagics, ever! The next two dives were the same with a little more current. There were so many white tip reef sharks they were like litter on the bottom of the sea. One will see mature adults to hatchlings. Incredible!! We are so caught up in the big fish, we lose sight of the marine life around us. All three dives today plus a night dive were spent diving around an out-crop of rock called Manuelita Island.
During the afternoon we climbed to the top of Coco Island. The path was very steep, rocky and narrow but the view was stupendous. This is not for the person who is not sure footed. A wonderful lunch and dinner to follow with a night dive each night at 8:00 p.m. if you so desired.
We saw a very rare display of white tip
reef sharks mating where the male clasps on to the
female's pectoral fin and around and around they go! The
divemasters tell us they have been here for six years and
have only seen this twice before. At times we had jumped
into the water and thought we had entered the movie,
Twister. The current was awesome with one hand on your
mask and the other on a rock. We let the show come to us
- stingrays, hammerheads, eels, and a constant procession
of marine life. Then back to the boat for a turkey
dinner, movie and bed.
Days seemed to fly by and before you knew it, the sun was setting. There were times while we were diving where we would look up and see a school of manta rays silhouetted above us. On one dive we saw two orange frog fish perched on the wall staring us down. One evening to entertain us, we fed six foot silky sharks left over swordfish. One day while diving, a school of manta rays, eight of them in all sizes, swims by us. One large one breaks out and swims with us for approximately ten minutes while we each touch and photograph him. The divers that were training on the rebreathers we able to get up close and personal with many a hammerhead.
Soon we were heading back to Puntarenus racing the dolphins to our harbor. If anybody is contemplating this trip, we highly recommend it. This trip will long be remembered.
T. C. Hosey, Editor