Monday, March 16, 2009

The Finale in Roatan

Well Day 5 was also a tough one! We had this day planned and packed with activities (we actually just make up an itinerary as we go but it became a full day).

Travis and I have been eying the water with it's composed aqua blue water all the while one of the best barrier reefs in the world was beckoning us to it's humble abode. We, as any good moth drawn to the light, took the plunge and went scuba diving on Friday with the fine folks from Anthony's Key Resort.

Now let me set the stage a little here. I was open water certified to dive back in 1996. Certifications do not expire and as any school boy would do on the playground when he wants to play I told them that I could play even though I hadn't dove in 13 years! Travis was certified in Thailand and has dove a couple places like Australia and such but it had been about 8 years for him. To his advantage, he is a Fireman in Huntington Beach and plays around with similar equipment as oxygen tanks and masks...

We buddied up and had a blast! Now before we left, Hector our dive master had us get in the water right there off the boat before we left. Even though it was only about 10 feet of water it was very unsettling stepping off the back of the boat into the water. Let me paint a little picture for you... you have a +/-30lb tank on your back, a constricting wet suit, about 20lbs of weight strapped to you and all this extra gear on you and I am supposed to flipper walk to the edge of the boat and just hop in with out looking like an idiot in front of an audience of professionals.

The dive was a ship wreck dive taking us to a grand total of 130 feet (which I think is deeper than my Open Water Certification allows me to dive...hmmm...). I felt like I was in one of those National Geographic documentaries. We progressed from there to the reef which must have been 70 or 80 feet high. It was just stunning to see this wall of coral, growth, fish and sea life! Loved the whole experience!

Trav and I went back to the hotel and picked up Rod and Beni and headed out to a family members home for a wonderful lunch. All week we had talked with Roni about going out on his speed boat and after lunch at his place he invited us out. The water was a little rough but we had to go anyways.

Does any speed boat buffs recognize the above symbol?

Fountain is the name of this speed boat that falls in the price range similar to that of a loan I would get on a $200k house! Again I say it... we were treated like royalty. We took out the 40ft speed boat and saw some different places and one time reaching a speed of 70mph. We had a grand ole' time!

Finished up with a lovely dinner to close our Friday night.

Day whatever... the last day for me. They were doing a birthday party this afternoon with all of the family and meeting all of the uncles and cousins that had hooked us up over the week. I unfortunatly had to head out on a plane for home.

But before I left I had just one last thing to do. I ended the trip with a Canopy Zip Line Tour Saturday morning. After 12 stations I "zipped" off to the airport to make my journey home.

In all it was a phenomenal trip. I love everything about it and am excited about the next trip to come! Thanks to all of you who have followed this blog and my trip!

Nothing But Love,
Scherba

1 comment:

brian c. berry said...

next time if you need someone to carry your backs, pack your lunch, and fetch your coffee... I'll be your caddy for a chance to do this stuff with you. Such a cool trip. Oh... and I'm super jealous of the scuba diving. Shannon and I spent a few ours in Roatan and in Belize on our cruise a couple years ago. This stream brought back some great memories and sent me searching for my old pictures. Look forward to the next time our paths cross. Give our love to Cass.

Brian