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| The following description and sites were furnished by Eileen Dennett, instructor/divemaster
with Cayman Diving Lodge on Grand Cayman's East End. |
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Grouper Grotto
Access: Boat
Depth: 20-60 feet
Located just outside the South Channel, this site is a combination of caverns and coral heads in sandy patches
giving the site unmatched eco-diversity. Large pelagics like manta rays and eagle rays have been seen here. In
2001, this site was filled with millions of silversides which combined with the hundreds of tarpon to create an
interactive underwater kaleidoscope not often experienced by divers anywhere in the world. |
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Ironshore Gardens
Access: Boat
Depth: 30-60 feet
A signature East End dive in Half Moon Bay with numerous canyons, tunnels, and swimthroughs including the infamous
"Throat". The entire dive can be spent exploring these passages in the reef. Glassy sweepers school in
the caves, tarpon abound and yellow rays are often found. The top of the reef from here down to Frank sound is
without a doubt the healthiest in the Caribbean. Large elkhorn corals and majestic star corals provide habitat
for mass schools of chub, creole wrasse, sargeant majors and blue and brown chromis. The rare Caribbean Torpedo
has been seen in this area. |
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Tarpon Taproom
Access: Boat
Depth: 30-60 feet
A continuation of the reef structure along Half Moon Bay. Spectacular top reef with massive elkhorn formations
and diverse sponge life. This site was home to a long-lured frogfish for most of 2001. |
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The Maze
Access: Boat
Depth: 60-110 ft.
This incredible wall outside the South Channel drops to over 2000 feet and is named for the section of tall and
narrow crevaces divers swim through to reach the wall. The visability in this area can rival or beat anywhere in
Cayman most of the time. Also this area is home to a group of Caribbean reef sharks that have been resident for
many years. |
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Three Sisters
Access: Boat
Depth: 60-110 ft.
An extremely beautiful East End wall site. This dive consists of three large pinnacles. Affectionately called Agnes,
Bertha and Claire they stand just off the wall and attract a multitude of sea life including hammerheads and eagle
rays. Divers can swim between the wall and the pinnacles or perform infinite figure eights around them. Either
way, both large oceangoing and smaller tropicals make these pinnacles home. |
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East End, Grand Cayman. Breathtaking, pristine, dramatic. These are the words
most often used to describe East End diving. Buffeted by winds, the ocean has spent millennia carving and sculpting
this reef with labyrinth passages and swimthroughs that lead divers deep into its heart. Enormous plate corals
have grown together forming archways for divers to pass beneath. Large pinnacles attract and provide a varied habitat
for some of Cayman's more elusive sea creatures.
Although admittedly somewhat rare, mantas, Caribbean torpedo rays, longlured frogfish, and hammerheads can sometimes
be seen in this diverse seascape. The canyons fill with silversides that swirl around divers; and tarpon and glassy
sweepers sychronize their movements in underwater caverns. Turtles come to feast on the sponges that grow to gigantic
proportions. Black corals with brilliant white bryozoans festoon the walls, and giant and green tube tunicates
thrive in one of the healthiest reef ecosystems to be found anywhere in the world. East End is also home to a group
of Caribbean reef sharks that have been resident for many years.
The Cayman Diving Lodge has been diving the East End for over thirty years and intimate knowledge of the sites
has been passed on from divemaster to divemaster. A poll of current divemasters as to their favorite sites led
to some lively discussions. However, the following ended up as the top five picks. |
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