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Had a great time SCUBA diving with Octavio! - 11/12/2012 2:36:02 PM
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The Mermaid
Posts: 65
Joined: 9/11/2005
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Just wanted to share my wonderful experience diving last month with Octavio of BEYOND EARTH from Puerto Aventuras.
I met him at the gas station in front of PA for our cenote dives. I was about 15 minutes early, & he was waiting already, so unusual for Mexico. First day we did Grand Cenote & El Eden, absolutely gorgeous locations. Only one other diver besides myself, such personalized service, he lugged all my gear, made me feel so comfortable. Next day, he picked me up in Akumal where I was staying, & we dove Cenotes Angelita & Taj Mahal, 2 of my all-time-favorite dives.
Octavio is well-educated & well-spoken, fluent in English. Very knowlegable about Mayan culture, archeology, history, biology, & geology. Fun, warm, courteous, & professional. Takes great pride in his work. Prices reasonable. Extreme emphasis on diver safety & respect for the environment.
Next I wanted to get in some ocean diving, so Octavio kindly set me up with the dive shop at Bahia Principe, just south of Akumal. I was quite impressed with them as well. I found the staff at the shop to be amazingly friendly & helpful. Their boats are covered, which I really appreciate, being fair-skinned. Lastly, my divemaster, Carlos, let our small group of experienced divers enjoy nice, long dives; our first one was 61 minutes long! This means so much to me, as I only get to dive a few times a year & it's disappointing being made to ascend after only 25 minutes with 2000 lbs of air in your tank just because you've been grouped in with a newbie diver.
Octavio also found a terrific guide, Charlie from Chemuyil, to take me to visit 2 of the nearby biosphere reserves, Rio Lagartos & Sian Ka'an, both marvelous trips.
I'm already planning my trip back to the Riviera Maya next year, hoping to see more cenotes with Octavio & also head up to Holbox on his whale shark tour.
www.beyondearth.mx
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RE: Had a great time SCUBA diving with Octavio! - 11/14/2012 4:40:19 PM
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DeepBlueDiver
Posts: 2
Joined: 11/13/2012
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So, Rio Lagartos is worth the long drive? Did you see a lot of different birds?
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RE: Had a great time SCUBA diving with Octavio! - 11/16/2012 8:16:16 AM
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The Mermaid
Posts: 65
Joined: 9/11/2005
Status: offline
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Yes, the drive was absolutely worth it! Lotsa birds, very tame & allow close approaches. Saw ibises, spoonbills, eagles, ospreys, flamingos, cormorants, herons.
The ruins at Ek Balam are a great side-trip.
Also, I got to try a new beverage from a street juice vendor on the way. It was a blend of pineapple, celery, & cactus juice; sounds weird, but it was marvelous & very refreshing on a hot day. Second only to the dragonfruit juice I like to get near Coba!
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RE: Had a great time SCUBA diving with Octavio! - 11/19/2012 11:11:36 AM
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whitecat
Posts: 115
Joined: 7/27/2010
Status: offline
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Rio Largatos and Sian Ka'an sounds like a good trip. Can you say a little more about it? Hours and prices?
Thanks
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RE: Had a great time SCUBA diving with Octavio! - 12/6/2012 6:49:10 PM
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The Mermaid
Posts: 65
Joined: 9/11/2005
Status: offline
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I believe that the Rio Largartos tour boat was $65 US for a 3 hour trip, & that the boat holds about 6 people. The boat captain was excellent, motoring pretty close to the birds, then shutting off the engine & floating even closer for amazing photos.
For more info, I recommend emailing my terrific guide, Charlie Cuevas from Chemuyil at:
charliemusicdive@yahoo.com
His cell is 984-132-1493.
Or contact Octavio at his website listed above.
Have fun!
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