Roatan: A Diver's Eden

The Island of Roatan is located about 30 miles off the coast of Honduras. This diver’s haven is considered one of the world’s best dive destinations by most diving enthusiasts. The island sits between the islands of Utila and Guanaja and is the biggest in the Honduras’ Bay Islands. Roatan is approximately 37 miles long and less than 5 miles wide at its widest point. Although there has been some political strife in the past, the island is safe for divers and in fact, there are many dive shops that cater to visitors from all over the world. Americans are not only welcomed but encouraged to dive Roatan.

The Water
Water visibility around Roatan is consistently a hundred ft all year long. During the rainy season the vis can drop to 80 ft but it is rare. The water temperatures average in the 80’s and can drop to the high 70’s in January and February. Those are temperatures that no diver can really complain about.

The Landscape
The Island actually sits on the top of an underwater mountain range called the Bonacca Ridge. The ridge includes the other islands many smaller keys but the area around Roatan itself offers a diverse range of sea life and landscape to explore. One look at the crystal blue waters and the different hues everywhere speaks loudly of the many different depths a diver can explore.

The Dive Areas
Roatan is surrounded by a coral reef that contains nearly every species of coral that can be found in Caribbean Sea. Species of rare black coral and sponges of all colors and shapes will astound even the most seasoned diver.

The West
The west side of the island is where most people dive. Places such as the West End Wall which is an area that borders a deep blue abyss full of pillar corals, Azure Vase Sponges and barrel sponges, is sure to wow divers. This dive runs the gambit in depth with shallow divers enjoying the sea life on

the upper wall and deeper water divers enjoying schools of pelagics. The Enchanted Forest and Insidious Reef located just on the west side also provides adventure like you’ve never seen. Both dives are part of a larger reef associated with an offshore bank and the drop-off begins from a series of reef steps that drop to 70 – 80 ft.

These are just a couple of the west side site in an array of vastly different terrains.

The Northeast
The northeast side of Roatan gets the brunt of the weather so it tends to be less of a dive destination when the currents are strong however, once in a while the weather shifts and what divers will discover is that when it does, the Northeast offers some incredible diving. There are even some barrel sponges located off the east end of the island that are as big as refrigerators. Divers will not be disappointed if given the chance to explore this side of Roatan.

The Reef
Roatan is most famous throughout the world dive community for its reef. Seahorses, queen angel fish, stoplight parrot fish, blue tangs and much more all call the Roatan reef home and are welcoming to diving visitors. The reef rolls gently from
shore offering both snorkeling

and diving from anywhere on the island. It is a virtual undersea roller coaster that reaches out to sea with wild twists and turns only to suddenly drop off. Incredible wall dives with crevices, chimneys, and caves create a metropolis for sea life in the area.

The Trench
The reef’s walls which tides and ebbs with the sandy bottom does ultimately lead to a real adventure for advanced divers. The reef drops off dramatically into the Cayman Trench. Roatan is posed on the edge of the Cayman Trench which plunges thousands of feet into the earth and offers clear water from the deep as well as diversity in sea life found nowhere else in the world.

So if you are looking for adventure and always thought about visiting Roatan; put it off no more. The water is incredible, warm and clear while the locals beckon divers to come down and experience the best in world class diving.■