Pro Tec Cozumel: Messages

Paso del Cedral Reef is a very good photographic dive with lots of opportunities to photograph schooling fish. There are large aggregations of grunt and snapper, particularly the blue striped grunt and the schoolmaster. The Corals are fairly short, as you would imagine on this exposed strip reef, but where the reef is cut by sand chutes there are some very interesting small coral, such as disk coral and cactus coral. The southern stingray feeds in the sandy areas to the inside of the reef. Among numerous mollusks is the occasional the queen conch, which is becoming increasingly scarce.

Very deep Maracaibo Reef and steeply inclined wall are subject to unpredictable currents. When descending through open water to reach the descending terraces you must move swiftly and keep close in to the reef or you may be swept away from your planned position on the reef. Wide-angle photography is best, as you keep moving along the reef, the depth is great, and you do not have time to study the reef and its inhabitants. However, you can marvel at the complexity of the old coral limestone structures, caverns, caves and swim throughs. Only the most experienced divers should attempt this site and only under supervision of a very experienced local dive master carrying a signal marker buoy and a seasoned boat-handler.

Although this reef is best seen at depths exceeding recreational limits and engaging in deco procedures, a no- decompression dive with very limited time at depth is possible, groups will be kept together by the dive master and a mid-water decompression safety stop is obligatory on the way to the surface. It is close to Punta Celarain lighthouse and south from Colombia reef.

Opposite Punta Tunich, several hundred yards or meters further out than Yucab, but running parallel with the reef you can find the drop-off. The Northern end of this reef is the most interesting. The wall at this end is near vertical, with numerous caves and crevices which bisect the reef, running from the crest at around 66ft/ 20m down to much deeper water. Squirrelfish and pairs of angelfish can be approached fairly easily. A number of very large green moray eels can be seen along this reef.

San Juan Reef is a flat strip reef with sand around, sloping into the depths. Wire coral and purple sea fans are common, but the large pelagics are the attraction here.

Barracuda Reef is the most Northerly reef with strong currents in the area; all divers must be experienced open water drift divers. This is a flat strip reef with sand around, sloping into the depths. The attraction is the above-average chance to see large pelagics, such as barracuda, jacks, rays and sharks. Very large barrel sponges, rope sponges and elephant’s ear sponge can all be found here.