Page 86 - Central America

MARY’S PLACE - one of Roatan’s most spectacular dive sites, famous
for its deep crack, formed by volcanic activity. Impressive overhangs
teem with colour, life, and seahorses galore. Every type of coral and
sponge you can imagine. The dive starts at a permanent mooring buoy
on the reef shelf, along a vertical crevice that drops from 40’, with a
huge section of the wall broken away from the main section to form a
wide slit. Many smaller crevices invite exploration among bouquets of
Rope and Tube Sponges, seafans and Black Coral. A sand shelf drops
from 140’ to 200’, offering a magnificent underwater view.
MENAGERIE - Aptly named (meaning “zoo”) because the site teems
with fish, Expect schools of Atlantic spade fish, Bermuda chub, dog
snappers, and jacks abound with a wall that has coral overhangs, gor-
gonians, and large barrel sponges. The mooring is at 20 feet; the top
of the reef gently slopes to 50 feet; then the wall drops off past recrea- ing the wreck, and the large sand patch beside the wreck is a great
tional dive limits
MELLISA’S REEF - Characterized by large cuts or ravines in the reef,
this site provides the impression of having a wall on each shoulder
when a diver travels through these cuts. Several of the cuts reach 35
feet in height and permit a diver to look for both reef-dwelling crea-
tures in the sides of the cuts as well as bottom dwellers at the base of
the cuts. The wall itself is covered with sheet coral and drops beyond
recreational limits. Depth:: 35 – 110 feet.
MIKE’S PLACE - There are both a shallow and a deep wall nearby,
this site has a place for everyone! This is a great dive for those wish-
ing to brush up on their navigation skills. Like The Bite, this site ap-
pears to be nothing but coral! From the mooring at about 25 feet, the
reef begins a gradual descent to approximately 100 feet. Several coral
ridges and overhangs characterize this site and make it a site that not
everyone dives, but one that should not be overlooked. Popular night
dive. Depth: 25 – 100 feet.
MISSING LINK - Moored in 20 feet; the reef top ranges from 20-30
feet. Large mounds and hedges of hard corals cut to the edge of the
reef top, with the wall dropping off to 80 feet. Watch for schooling fish
on this site.
MISTER BUD WRECK – is a cargo ship sunk intentionally in 1995.
The ship is upright along the reef ’s edge with the deepest part at about
70, having been pulled from its original resting place by Hurricane
Mitch. The dive normally focuses part of the time of the wreck, then
on to the coral reef. Blanketing the top of the reef is an abundance
of soft corals such as sea plumes and sea rods with flamingo tongues
and seahorses clinging to them. Sand dwellers such as jaw fish, garden
eels, flounders, and sail fin blennies all reside in the chute surround-
place to spot stingrays. Depth: 40 feet to past recreational depths.
MONGOOSE - is a site that like Dolphins Den takes you from the
inside of the reef to the outside, the mooring sits in about 10ft of wa-
ter. This dive site is an impressive canyon, and the cracks and crevices
provide hiding places for many different sea creatures look out for eels
and spotted drums. Also keep an eye out for rays around the entrance
to mongoose as they have been frequently spotted. Depth: 80 feet.
MORAY LAGOON - wall near Pristine Bay, but it’s a macro-lovers
dream. It also has a vertical wall.