WDHOF Dive Trip 2022 • Dominica (2 of 2)
What a rollicking good time! I cannot remember having better companions, divers, or more fun on any trip! There is really nothing like spending time with a bunch of your SeaSisters! And what a group we are in theWomen Divers Hall of Fame Members and Associates – warm, intrepid, fun-loving, knowledgeable, skilled, easy-going, merry, generous in spirit, always up for a great time! Our guys are great, too!With us on this escapade was Susan Bangasser, Robin & Kiwi Parish, LauraRogers Bennett, Sherry Tamone, Lila Harris, Aya Konstantinou, John Robinson,Jann Rosen-Queralt, Christine Bird, Chi Kim. We very missed Caron Shake andJoan Hassler, Gail and Gary Chapman!
Beset with travails during this covid time, the trip was set, reset, and yet again reset…and the hoops to navigate entry into other countries were fierce and the winter storms raging across the country did not help! Yet we did arrive in Dominica smiling!
The Dominican people are warm and kind, and they seemed so glad we came! The historic Fort Young Hotel on the waterfront is lovely, in the heart of town, welcoming us with nearby shops and restaurants. They are takin great care regarding covid protocols - the only time we encountered Dominicans without their mask was on the dive boat!
The island indeed suffered from Hurricane Maria and the shallow reefs show the power of huge waves, but it has withstood. The dive boats were spacious, comfortable, and ably run. All the crew, indeed all dive personnel as well as hotel staff, are enormously welcoming. We very much relished the hospitality shown us.
The marine park has more sites than one can dive in a trip, and it incorporates the absolute best dive sites! The colorful names indicate the excitement one finds underwater. Champagne Reef, Le Sourcier, Danglebends Pinnacles, Crater’s Edge, and so on - dramatic drop-offs, caves, enormous spectacular sponges, deep undersea volcanoes with bubbling waters, hard and soft coral gardens, and a few organisms new to us all! One side of the island is the wild side, open to the full forces of the great Atlantic, the other has protected waters and reefs, a dramatic place. Varying whale species come to visit but it is also home to pods of the legendary sperm whale! We also very enjoyed the dolphin visits, the frequent turtle encounters, the littlest frogfish, sea horses, well - it is magic under water but also above, waterfalls, mountains, valleys, emerald pools, warm water natural spas…we had a wonderful time!