March 19 - 26, 2005
Warning: Most of the photos on this page are much larger in resolution than on other pages. Dial-up users will not be pleased with how long it takes to download them. I'll reduce them when I get the chance.
Having done nothing but land-based dive trips since 1996, I decided it was time to take another live-aboard trip. I was very fortunate to find a group of divers primarily from the Wilmington, DE area that take live-aboard trips almost every year. I filled an open spot on their charter of the Peter Hughes Wind Dancer in Tobago. They were a wonderful group of divers, and they've rewarded my good behavior on this trip by inviting me to travel with them again next year to Belize.
The diving in Tobago was great, although a weather system parked in the Caribbean made for some interesting diving conditions at times. The captain and crew went above and beyond the call of duty trying to find us reasonable conditions to dive in, but it proved to be quite a challenge. I dove in some of the fastest currents I've ever been in, but also saw some of the most beautiful coral and sponges I've ever seen. I also saw my first spotted eagle ray and hammerhead shark while diving. I'd love to do another dive trip there hopefully when the current isn't ripping quite as badly as it was this trip.
Below are some above-water photos from the trip. Place your cursor over the thumbnail to read a caption and click on it to enlarge.
We arrived in Tobago on Saturday the 19th and immediately headed up to Speyside on the northeast side of the island known for its great diving. Normally the Caribbean side is calmer with less current, but an unusual weather system was causing rough seas on that side of the island. We spent two days diving in Speyside before attempting to head over to the Caribbean side.
Around 6:30 a.m. on the 22nd, we headed out around the north side of the island to try to dive on the Caribbean side. We headed for a dive site known as The Sisters which are large rocks you can see in a photo below. The dive was wonderful despite a pretty impressive surge and current, and I saw a spotted eagle ray and a hammerhead. We did one dive, and then Captain Brian told us we had to head back to Speyside due to bad conditions forecast for the Caribbean side. We were rockin' and rollin' on the trip back, and at one point we lurched so badly that people sitting in chairs on the Lido Deck were knocked over, and bodies and chairs were flying everywhere. For much of the rest of the trip, people sat on the deck or hung onto poles to prevent a repeat. Luckily, the seas calmed down rather quickly. We did some more diving in the Speyside area, and then went down to the southern tip of the island where we stayed for the rest of the trip.
Below are just some miscellaneous shots of the boat, the crew and divers.
After five days of diving, a large group of us took a land-based tour of the island with our tour guide Ray. We drove up the Caribbean side of the island and then traversed the island and came down the Atlantic coast side.
This first set of pictures was shot as we drove up the Caribbean coast.
We then stopped at the Arnos Vale Waterwheel, a remnant of a 19th century sugar factory on the island. They've built a restaurant on the site where we stopped and had lunch.
Next we went on a tour of a rainforest, and hiked to waterfall.
The last stop on the tour was Fort King George which was built in the late 1700s. The fort has been very well-preserved, and views from it are incredible. It's well worth a visit.
After the tour, it was time for our last meal and night on the boat. It was a fun night featuring a fork trick and a bottle of champagne for the newlyweds (Carrie and Dom)
And then there was the last day. We had to be off the Wind Dancer early in the morning so the crew could ready it for the next group, so we went to a hotel on Store Bay where we hung out until it was time to go the airport. When Joe, Klo and I went for a walk, we stumbled upon a pen with chicks that had been colored for Easter. I've heard of dying eggs, but dying chicks?
