We had snorkeled in Belize before and discovered a very small amount of their immense barrier reef, but this time we were ready to go down into the depths to see more of the beautiful creatures and healthy corals.
If you could see all that life thriving at the surface level, imagine what we might find this time with Scuba Diving.
Last year, in Panama I was able to get certified as an open-water diver and on this trip, it was my girlfriend, Mala's turn as she still had some skills to complete.
We headed out for our first dive at St. George's Caye, a small island positioned right in between Belize City and a very undisturbed part of the reef. This same reef spans from the area where Belize meets Mexico all the way down to Roatan in Honduras. For me, just saying "the reef" doesn't do it justice without the explanation of its greatness. In Belize, they say that it is considered the second largest barrier reef in the world, but as the Great Barrier Reef has been affected so much by global change, nearly half of it is dead or bleached. This means that Belize's barrier reef is actually the largest living barrier reef in the world.
A 15-minute boat ride from St. George's Caye and we were ready to explore this underwater world.
Jose had given Mala some very clear direction to make sure she felt comfortable with all her gear and we jumped in to immediately be comforted by the abundance of life, teeming all around us. Any nerves or worries that we had in mind before were swept away as all of our attention was taken by the sheer awe of the endless reef.
We began swimming and checking off Mala's needed skills. Along the way seeing more colours than we ever did snorkeling. Jose noticed how calm the ocean made us. It had been calling us from cold Canada for a long time and finally, we were fully immersed.
Beauty at every sight and the peaceful silence of blowing bubbles up to the surface. As we swam along slowly with the soft current, we saw many interesting creatures.
The reef had many cavernous areas and structured creviced pathways for swimming through. In many of these caves and crevices we found lobsters and crabs claiming them as homes.
In one of the large crevices we spotted a school of large jacks that swam in a tornado pattern and didn't seem to be bothered by our presence. Everything there acted as if it had never been introduced to human life and therefore, had no reason to fear it.
This brings us to the turtle. At first, we saw its silhouette floating at a distance, but as it spotted us, it decided to come take a closer look. We sat in one place patiently allowing it to make its move and this curious turtle came right up within an arm's length. It drifted by peacefully checking us out and then continued on its way. We couldn't believe that this turtle would be so considerate as to allow us to get such great pictures of him.
At around the half way point, we found a sleepy nurse shark laying motionless between two large rocks. As it spotted us, it decided that we were bigger so it swam out in a beautiful display of its reign over the reef.
Mala completed the rest of her required skills and felt confident as a newly appointed open-water diver.
On the way back to the boat, we took in as much of the colourful life as we could, but later decided that one dive was just not enough. We decided to do two more dives from St. George's Caye and everytime, it felt like a new world.
There is something so free about breathing underwater and discovering a completely new habitat that is indescribable until you experience it for yourself.
Never pass on the opportunity to dive, if you come across one. Any nerves will be swallowed by the sea once you get in. At St. George's Caye, you can't go wrong when in comes to diving. Everything from the staff and equipment, to the beautiful coral reef is world class.
This new underwater world is just waiting to be explored.
Happy swimming!
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Thank you to OFTB Travel for this incredible blog and such beautiful imagery!! We truly enjoyed your stay and can't wait to be of service to you in the sun again very soon!
St. George's Caye Resort is located 7 miles by boat transfer from the Belize City marina. We are taking reservations for summer and fall, with our worry-free travel policies. We are filling fast so book soon! We look forward to seeing you in the sun!
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What will you check off of your bucket list during your trip to St. George's Caye Resort?