Clearly Cayman
The Buddy Line Fall 2019
Even More to Love About Your Next
Clearly Cayman Dive Vacation
If some of the best, world-class diving in the Caribbean is NOT enough for your next vacation, check out these new experiences.
Learn how to take better underwater photos with personal coaching by our pro at the Reef Divers Photo Center at Little Cayman Beach Resort.
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You’ve got it! Now the Brac’s the place to use your CCR Rebreather to explore our marvelous reefs, canyons, wrecks, and walls.
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This is one of the only places on earth you can dive fabulous walls in the morning and climb or rappel the 141-foot Bluff above them in the afternoon.
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Reef Divers Boats Provide Safe,
Comfortable Rides to the Reefs
Clearly Cayman owns the largest fleet of Newton dive boats in the world—twelve total 42- and 46-foot boats across all three of our resorts. All were designed by divers and custom-built for us to ensure comfort and safety. Our dive boats are certified to the highest safety standards by the American Bureau of Shipping and our staff members are trained in the management and operation of all the safety equipment on our vessels and diving and maritime emergency response.
Every Clearly Cayman dive boat has these built-in features:
Calendar of Events
November
- 11 Veterans Day
- 13 Caregivers Day
- 18 Moray Monday Madness Sale
- 28 Thanksgiving Day
December
- 3 Giving Tuesday
- 4 National Cookie Day
- 20 National Sangria Day
- 21 Winter Solstice
- 25 Christmas Day
- 26 Boxing Day
- 31 New Year’s Eve
January
- 1 New Years Day
- 3 National Fruitcake Toss Day
- 4 National Spaghetti Day
- 15 National Strawberry Ice Cream Day
- 20 Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- 31 National Hot Chocolate Day
You’ve Got a Friend (or Two)
These are among our staff rock stars. Look for these people to help you feel at home on your next visit to one of our resorts.
Meet Ingrid, Dining Room Team Leader at Little Cayman Beach Resort
Although guests at Little Cayman Beach Resort traditionally look forward to all meals at the resort, being greeted by Ingrid’s 1,000-watt smile undoubtedly is the perfect appetizer. She’s been with us for about 2-1/2 years and fills in as a barista at our coffee bar and bartender when needed.
Ingrid is from Montego Bay, Jamaica, and entered the hospitality industry there as a personal concierge for families staying at the resort where she worked. She had to be an expert in all aspects of caring for tourists, because that’s what was expected of her. Her goal is to make all of our guests feel very special so they enjoy their vacation to the fullest and come back again.
Ingrid excelled at singing, drama, and netball (similar to basketball) while in school and now has four children. Since arriving on Little Cayman, she has made many really big life changes. Ingrid has learned to ride a bike and drive. She has also learned to swim and snorkel and just recently became a certified diver.
Meet Chef Guna, Head Chef at Cobalt Coast Resort
Chef Guna is from Chennai, India, where he learned to prepare fine food and beautiful plating. He was inspired by an uncle—a chef who created artistry with his food. If you’ve been a guest at the resort since last spring, then you’ve been the beneficiary of Chef Guna’s upgraded cuisine. His nightly plating of the day’s entrées looks like what you’d expect to see at a multi-star restaurant. It’s no secret that Chef’s food also tastes every bit as delicious as it looks.
Chef Guna honed and perfected his skills at Royal Caribbean Cruise Line where he was named employee of the year, at the Marriott Dubai, and at several restaurants on Grand Cayman before joining us at Cobalt Coast as Head Chef. He combines fresh ingredients and seasonings to create excellent taste, flavors, and smells so guests leave feeling as if they’ve feasted with all of their senses.
When not working, Chef Guna uses the Internet to communicate with his family back in India or heads to Grand Cayman’s beaches to relax in the beauty of our Caribbean.
The Safety Stop
How Do Your Buddy Diving Skills Measure Up?
Diving with a buddy is core to all scuba certification courses. It’s right up there next to the rule that you never ever hold your breath. Yet many divers seem to feel that the longer they’ve been diving, the less important it is to follow the simple buddy diving rules that can be lifesaving in an emergency. This is even more important if you’re diving with someone for the first time or if you or your buddy are new or using new equipment.
Having a dedicated buddy for your dive not only helps keep you safe in the event you have an equipment failure (because there really is NOT a good reason to run out of air), but it also makes you responsible for helping them if they experience a problem. So doing a proper pre-dive check is vital to confirm that you both are familiar with each other’s gear and that it’s all functioning properly. PADI teaches the “burger with relish and fries” system.
- BCDs: connected, at comfortable height, and functioning
- Weights: right amount of weight for conditions and properly secured
- Releases: confirm fastened and working and that each knows where their buddy’s are located and how to operate
- Air: tank valves fully open, gauges and primary regulator and alternate air source working properly, sufficient air for planned dive, and if diving Nitrox confirm it’s been analyzed with a computer set for proper oxygen percentage
- Final check: head-to-toe checks that each has all equipment (mask, fins, weights, light, camera, etc.) with all hoses and loose devices secured before entering the water
How does your pre-dive routine compare?
Coming in Winter 2020 Buddy Line: How close to each other should buddy teams dive?
If you have feedback or ideas, please submit to editor@clearlycayman.com.
Clearly Cayman Dive Log
Find out why these are some of our staff’s favorite dives
Although he has great love for every site around his home of Cayman Brac, BJ’s new favorite dive is Windows—one located just below the 141-foot Bluff at the far southeastern end of the island. It’s one of the most recently opened moorings by the Cayman Islands Department of Environment and is only accessible when the seas are flat calm.
At Windows, you literally dive along the base of the Bluff and around Little Cayman Brac—a rocky pinnacle just offshore below the Bluff. Although the mooring pin is in 25 feet of water, you can literally dive even shallower and follow the unique topography that is the underwater extension of the Bluff. Look for nimble spring crabs, long spine sea urchins, scorpionfish, and lots of parrotfish, queen triggers, and other schooling and macro marine creatures. Because this can be dived so infrequently, the reef is in pristine condition.
BJ is a native Bracker who was named to the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame in 2018 for his contributions to the marine environment around Cayman Brac. He’s been with Reef Divers since 2006 and is a well-known resource for his knowledge about the underwater world and culture of the island.
I’ve Seen That!
Marine Life from Our Cayman Islands’ Caribbean
This cool creature is the Queen Conch (pronounced konk), otherwise known as Lobatus gigas. Divers must be very patient when trying to take their photos. These animals quickly withdraw their beady eyes back into their shells upon approach. Queen conchs are also a commercially important species to the culture and fisheries of the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean and may be harvested from non-protected areas during the winter months outside their breeding season. The body and large foot are edible and part of many great Caribbean dishes and the shells are prized for jewelry making.
Here’s more you should know about Queen Conchs:
- In the same Mollusca family as clams, octopus, and squid.
- Also a member of the marine Gastropod (from “belly foot” in Latin) family. They have a single claw-like device at the end of their feet that they use to defend themselves.
- May grow up to 12-inches long and live up to 40 years.
- Quite interesting to watch them move—their eyes come out, they go in, then the foot reaches out and pulls them forward quite ungracefully.
- Are herbivores, dining on marine algae, grasses, and other detritus.
Learn more about our marine environment and creatures from Katie Correia, Science & Education Manager at Central Caribbean Marine Institute, Little Cayman. For more information on the CCMI, visit www.reefresearch.org.