The Buddy Line Winter 2019

It’s Not Too Late to Leave Winter Behind on a Spring Dive Trip

Photo by Teresa Hattaway

Improved Dining Experience at Little Cayman Beach Resort

This month we officially opened a larger, modern dining facility at Little Cayman Beach Resort, which includes a bar specifically for dinner guests, an expanded indoor dining area, and larger outdoor dining area in a new screened pavilion. We will now be able to seat large groups, small groups, and individuals all at the same time.

Late last year we also opened a new reception and lobby out in front of the resort, which freed up the space for this dining room expansion. And during grand reopening ceremonies on February 20, our company’s CEO and Chairman of the Board, Michael Tibbetts, announced future plans to build more oceanfront rooms at both Little Cayman Beach Resort and Cayman Brac Beach Resort. No timeline has been set.

Chef Karen Making Waves with Her Cuisine

Finally, the dining room and buffet serving area will match the quality of the cuisine Chef Karen and her staff deliver to guests. She is from St. Catherine, Jamaica, where she studied culinary arts in high school and at a specialty school after graduation. She’s always loved cooking and made most of the meals for her family while growing up.

Chef has been at Little Cayman Beach Resort for many years, but has only been in charge for the past year. She takes special delight in satisfying the needs of guests with dietary restrictions and wants all guests to be happy and enjoy their meals so they come back for more than just Little Cayman’s outstanding diving.

One of Chef Karen’s specialties is her Spicy Pumpkin Chowder that is always a crowd pleaser. She’s been kind enough to share her recipe so you can make it at home and be reminded of your Little Cayman vacation. Preparation time to table should be 1 to 1-1/2 hours depending on whether you can get fresh pumpkin or need to use canned. Find the recipe here.

Calendar of Events

Find Us at These Dive Shows

If you live in one of these areas or plan to visit, stop by our booth at these dive shows to talk about Cayman Islands’ diving and pick up our show specials:

• March 8–10, 2019 at the Boston Sea Rovers Dive Show, DoubleTree by Hilton-Boston North Shore
• March 29–31, 2019 at Beneath the Sea, the Meadowlands in Secaucus, NJ
• April 26–27, 2019 at the San Francisco Dive Show, Santa Clara Convention Center

You’ve Got a Friend (or Two)

Look for these friendly faces to help you feel at home on your next visit to one of our resorts.

Helpful Hints to Make Dive Travel Easier

If you’re traveling to one of the Sister Islands, you will be arriving on a Cayman Airways flight. They operate Boeing 737 jet services from Miami to Cayman Brac on Saturdays and have multiple daily flights on one of their Saabs (34 seats) from Grand Cayman or a de Havilland Twin Otter (19 seats) when the flight is continuing to or coming from Little Cayman. The Twin Otter is the only way to get to Little Cayman, and many think it’s among the highlights of their journey. But understanding the luggage anomalies of the smaller planes is important to getting your dive vacation off to a great start.

Although it’s always a good idea to put medicines and irreplaceable items in your carry-on luggage, you may want to consider also adding in your mask and swimsuit.

All planes are subject to weight restrictions. And small aircraft like the Twin Otter may not be able to accommodate a plane full of people AND all their luggage—especially in warmer temperatures like we experience year round. In this case, people generally fly before bags which can be put on the next flight—often very early the next morning when they have fewer passengers aboard.

If this happens to you, just let our Front Desk know upon arrival so we can be on the lookout for your luggage. Also alert Reef Divers, and we will supply you with rental dive gear at no charge. With your own mask and swimsuit—you’ll not miss a dive. In most cases, your bags with your own dive gear will be in your room when you return from morning dives.

So the next time your dive travels take you to Little Cayman or Cayman Brac, check your aircraft type so you can be prepared for a potential luggage delay.

If you have a great tip to share, please submit it to editor@clearlycayman.com.

Clearly Cayman Dive Log

Oli, Instructor and Staff with Reef Divers at Cobalt Coast Resort, is from Dunedin, New Zealand. She fell in love with the marine world when she worked as a beach lifeguard back home, got certified, and now even spends her free days diving and perfecting her underwater photography. She’s been with us since shortly after we purchased the resort and set up our own dive operation.

La Mesa is one of Oli’s favorite dive sites off Grand Cayman because of the vivid colors, interesting topography, healthy coral, and abundance of marine life. The name means “table top” which perfectly describes the large, coral plateau. It’s a small site as far as area, but big on divers’ favorites lists after they’ve been here. You may get greeted by the resident green moray and can find many hamlet species plus macro creatures like gaudy clown crabs and purple-lined sea goddesses. Most of the site is at 20-45 feet.

I’ve Seen That

Photo by Olivia Marshall

The Caribbean Reef Squid (Sepioteuthis sepioidea) is the most common species of squid across the Cayman Islands. Divers and snorkelers can often see them traveling together in groups of 2 or more, usually in shallower areas of the reef less than 30 feet. Here are some “squidy” fun facts:

• Adults grow up to 8” long and are semelparous—females die after laying eggs and males die shortly after fertilizing them
• Have 3 hearts that pump blue blood due to a copper-containing protein called hemocyanin
• Able to change color instantly (multiple colors or half and half)—useful for hunting, camouflage, and attracting a mate
• Have the largest eye-to-body ratio in the animal kingdom
• Can bioluminescence during the day or night
• Can be blinded at night by dive lights, making them more vulnerable to predators

Learn more about our marine environment and creatures from Katie Correia, Science Programme Coordinator at Central Caribbean Marine Institute, Little Cayman Research Center. For more info on the CCMI, visit www.reefresearch.org.