Deck Repair at Cenote Muchachos

When the oxygen did not show up on Saturday, we knew we were out of luck as far as diving the rebreathers until Monday or Tuesday. The good news is it arrived this afternoon so we will be back in the cave tomorrow!

Sunday, we had a relaxing day and decided to head over to Casa Cenote to see what the big Sunday BBQ was all about. It is kind of funny, because there are a few places now that advertise "Sunday BBQ". We had never had the one at Casa Cenote so we headed over there for a late lunch early dinner....man was that good. Ribs, pork loin, beef brisket, beans, pasta salad, and bread....plus margaritas. And the best was the entertainment....watching the shenanigan's of the owner is always a good time. He usually befriends the good looking female tourists. This time there were people there working on some sort of photo shoot and they convinced one of the "good looking female tourist types" to pose for some photos. In a bikini, on a lounge chair in the ocean. It was like watching a soap opera live. Here boyfriend was there too. Like I said, it is always entertaining at Casa Cenote.

This morning, since the oxygen hadn't shown up yet we decided we would go to the Ranch and replace the boards on the platform.


Before Photo of platform. And in process of being fixed photo.
We still have about 6 more boards to drill and nail. Or John does, when it comes to these type tasks I am the gopher and tool bringer....it works out etter that way...hahaaaa.



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Hopefully our gas will be blended for tomorrow's dive, so we can continue with the exploration.
If not, no idea where we will dive...but the doubles are filled!!! So there is always a back up plan.

Karen and John

Punta Allen

There was no diving today. Tanks were not filled and ear was having serious issues. We decided to head to Punta Allen for lunch. We have tried many times to visit this fishing town, but each time for one reason or another we turn back. Reasons like, we are probably going to run out of gas, we will never get there, and I didn't realize it was this far....are the usual reasons. Today when I said, "how far is it" ...he said...."We are going to have lunch in Punta Allen, and then we never have to go there agian"!! As we passed not one, but two federal inspection stations the words to another Jimmy Buffett song, started repeating in my head......they go something like this.." we had only come for chicken, we are not tha ganga plane". In the song he goes to Jamaica for lunch and they shoot at his plane. Anyway, we did not get inspected in either station.


We finally made it to Punta Allen after about an 1.5 hours. Punta Allen is cool because it is actually a point between two bodies of water...the sea and a really big lagoon. The area is known for fly fishing and other types of fishing. The rode runs between both bodies of water.

We got to the town and had passed what we thought maybe a cool restaurant right before town. Since we didn't see anything promising...we may not have gone far enough...we turned around and stopped at a place that had a sign indicating a restaurant and bar. It was a true find.

It is called Costa del Sol. We were the only people there but it had a beautiful view of the sea. As we walked up to the restaurant, for a minute, I had thought John has lost his mind. He picked it so we had to go with it. They had a really big rooster walking around the grounds, 2 small chihuahuas...one with a sweater, some parakeets in cages, and an awesome view of the ocean. You can see there was a dichotomy going on...but agian, you have to go with it. We ordered coca-lights (diet coke in Mexico) and I asked in Spanish what they had for lunch. Instead of a menu the senorita rattled off a bunch of dishes in Spanish. Again, I am glad for the Rosetta Stone lessons. We ordered pescado a la planca (not sure if I spelled it right but it is grilled fish). Oh my was that one of the best meals ever!!! When you are in a fishing town, you just have to order the fish...those are the rules :) More about the meal....it came with tortillas, rice, avocado, black refried beans, a pickled cabbage salad, grilled onions, and a special salsa served with arm wavings and warnings about it being muy caliente. John nick named it the black death, because it had been roasted down to a black color and death because of it being so hot...but it had a great flavor. Kim would love this stuff.


Here is the website in case anyone ever finds themselves in Punta Allen.
http://www.costa-del-sol-sian-kaan.com/services

And here are some pictures:

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This is what the rode looked like a majority of the time.



Fly fishing on the lagoon side of the road near Boca Paila.






John on ocean side of bridge.




Lagoon side of the bridge, with all the sand flats.



Tomorrow, no diving again. I think we will rebuild the platform at the Ranch.

Karen and John

Survey of new line now up to date

Today John and I went diving......ears smears....needed to get in the water. We had a few goals on this dive: set 2 stages for Fernando, take GPS coordinates from cenote Kotamundi, survey the new line that has been layed. We accomplished all of our goals. This time our dive was 4.5 hours. We made some adjustments that worked out much better than the previous dive. When we came out of the 4 hour dive earlier in the week, we were completely exhausted. So first things first, today we actually had a pretty substancial breakfast at Don Cafeto's, a restaurant in Tulum. Hot cakes, eggs and tocino (bacon)....yummmy!! On the earlier dive we did not eat breakfast at all really, just a cereal bar. That made all the difference in the world. I read an article about diving and blood sugar levels, that when they get low you can lose focus.....yeah that is me after about 3 hours of diving...have a hard time following the line on a scooter, make bad decisions...that sort of thing. John felt much better after this dive too.

Second, we dove much slower, after the other dive my lungs hurt because when you over exert on a rebreather it is like sucking air through a really small straw....and it is hard on the lungs. Going slower is better.

Third thing is we decided to take the scooters further than we have before....we took them all the way up to the beginning of the new line. Since it was just John and I, we decided to see how much a PIA it would be to push them through the small stuff in order to use them in the bigger sections, especially coming out aginst the flow. Oh yeah, it was worth it!!! On a side note, John has been diving the mini-Gavin scooter that our friend Craig helped to modify. For our non-diving friends, that is a minature version of the long body Gavins we usually ride....it is just smaller.

We added the survey info to the map, and it is really cool. Very exciting.

We also previewed portions of the video that are being put together for the documentary on Mexico TV. If I can figure out how to post some segments here I will. It is pretty cool. Ernesto, one of the guys working on the documentary, filmed some interview portions in our room tonight. Fernando and John did a good job, I got camera fright and basically just stood there. I hope they cut that part out. Plus I had crazy cave hair, since I had not had a shower and it was filmed after our dive today. The funny part is on the video of Fernando in the cave, the scooter says Karen C....hahaaaa!

Since Fernando is out of oxygen and just about every tank he owns needs to be filled, we are taking tomorrow off. My ear will thank me! Maybe we will head to Punta Allen or go see some other ruins....not sure yet...but I will take the camera.

Karen and John

Xel-Ha Ruins

The plan was to go survey the new cave this morning, but at 9:45am our tanks were still not filled, we knew it wasn't happening. Normally that would be no problem, but since we planned on a 4-5 hour dive we didn't want to be getting out of the water at 5 or 6 since it would be dark. Also, it would be nice to give my ear another day off.


So we headed to breakfast at Turtle Bay Bakery and then decided we woudl visit the ruins at Xel-ha. They are located right on 307. The entrance fee was only 74 pesos for both of us and we spent over 2 hours walking around. There are two cenotes on the site. One is right by the Jaguar house and rumor has it there is cave, some human bones, and an altar underwater. Unfortunately it is off limits to divers and I think snorkelers also. Either Danny or Robbie had gotten permission to dive there but I don't remember who told us about it...I think Danny.



Here are some photo's:







And here are the two cenotes: A smaller more remote cenote and the deep cenote near the Jaguar house and assorted structures.








Tomorrow we survey, our tanks are filled, gear is ready, and we are rested.

Karen and John

Immigration Saga Continues

On Wednesday, we knew we would not be diving because we were beat up from the previous days dive. We decided to head to the immigration office in Playa Del Carmen to hopefully finalize and turn in all the paperwork they have requested. John has made a comment that morning,
"We will hopefully get through step 1". I would soon find out how true his statement was.

Remeber, they stamped John's FM3, retired Mexico resident visa, in the wrong spot at the border and we have been trying to get it taken care of. This was our 5th time to the office in Playa. It looked promising as we got past the first official, I'll call him the paperwork monitor, and we actually got a badge with a number and made it into the next room....wooohooo! Things were looking up. After a short time they called our number...amarillo cuatorce-yellow 14...and we were at the window talking to the next official. She was stamping every copy.....things were looking promising. We had all the necessary copies, letters and documents filled out and then they said......" It should be ready in 3 weeks". We were definately not prepared for that!!!

OMG! Those of you who were with us during hurricane Wilma, may have observed a slighly more escalated scene when they told us our seats were not available on the plane out of the country...and we were holding tickets. That was the time, I snapped like a twig, head spinning around while pounding on the ticket counter of US Airways, screaming..."NO, BUT WE HAVE TICKETS!!!" I have no recollection of this but unfortunately there were witnesses. John informed me that when I repeated the sentence...blah blah blah...3 weeks" he was afraid I was headed in the same direction. I informed them that we were leaving on Sunday....to which the official said..."go see my friend at the front desk to get another set of forms to leave the country." John had some questions, but he thought he had better get me out of there or he would never see his FM3 again!

So back to the front desk again. The official paper monitor pulled out the additional form, letter, requirements, and deposit form that we would need to complete in order for John to leave the country prior to his FM3 being completed. We took all the paperwork, walked out, and I got a bit twirly ( wigged out). And after that we got back in a cab (that is a whole other logistic story even to get to the immigration office because Playa Del Carmen is a complete zoo), back to the parking lot where the truck was and headed South to Tulum. I quick lunch stop at Lol-Ha, a restaurant on the beach in Akumal brought things back down to a Defcon 4. You know that poppers and one mango margarita were involved.

Now to figure out what the heck we are going to do....but I think we need to mull it over for a bit!!

New line in Camillo....finally!!

Today finally, John, Fernando and I set out to see if there is more cave to explore where we left off last November. This is actually the first time we pushed the cave this trip. John and I were on the rebreathers and Fernando was on open circuit. There was 5 stages (tanks) set up for him and 3 safeties (tanks also but the plan is only to use them in case of an emergency) for John and I. To give you some perspective...on open circuit Fernando used all 5 stages and a half of his back gas. We used one stage (in rebreather lingo it is called a drive bottle). The dive was 4 hours and 5 minutes long. We laid over 1000 ft of new line and we turned the dive at 2 hours.....and the cave is still running!!!

We scootered near cenote Kotamundi (about 45 minutes in on scooters), dropped the scooters and swam the remaining distance. That was a really long swim, especially with the drag from the rebreathers.....it is kind like giving 2 big people piggyback rides except underwater. I need to mention there is some flow that takes you into the cave so you have to swim against it coming out.

The new portion of the cave is really nice, lots of decorations and stalagmites (the one's on the floor). One portion looked like a small army of different heights as far as you could see. .... I know, no camera so they didn't really exist.

The thing about a 4 hour dive, is that you have to keep your mind under control. For example when your mind says, " You are 2 hours from getting out of here" ....you have to remind yourself very quickly that this is fun, the cave is beutiful, not many people see this stuff, and pull yourself together...and do it quick". That usually works and the uncertainty is beaten back down.

The shooters were not there, which was good. There was a new target hidden behind some bushes....a picture of a lady in a bikini. They had shot her full of holes. Sick and wrong, but kinda fully. Must have gotten bored with the silohoutte targets.

Tomorrow we are taking the day off to return for the 4th time to the " Oficina de Immigration". Hopefully this time we will have everything we need and they won't keep changing the requirements. More on that later. Plus we probably won't be able to walk tomorrow so we wouldn't be up for another 4 hour dive anyway. On Thursday the plan is for John and I to survey all the line that is left....and maybe add some new!

Wish us luck!!! We come home on Sunday so we want to get 2 more dives in Camillo before we leave.

Karen and John

Carlos Santana...not quite, but I got your attention

Hoy es Domingo (today is Sunday). John did his first dive with Fernando! My ear is improving greatly ( I am self medicating ...luckily it is easy to do down here), but I wanted to hold off one more day. The film crew arrived from Mexico City this morning, so John, Fernando and the film folks went diving in Camillo. John and Fernando did a set up dive for tomorrow. They were mostly setting Fernando up, since he will be on open circuit and we will be on rebreathers. I say we because, hell or high water, I am going diving tomorrow!!! The film crew only had today , tomorrow they are filming a new conservative approach to lobster catching that is conserving the reefs around this area. It was introduced from Belize and does not use nets but rather has the fisherman catching the lobsters by hand....we know what that is like. California style. So anyway, they only had today....so I was not in the documentary...John and Fernando were. Fernando kept trying to convince me to just "go into the entrance and be filmed". But to me if I did that I would risk not diving the following day or blowing out an eardrum, so I had to keep assuring him that it was fine. He said, "you are part of the team, you should go". No really, it is OK was my response.

John, Fernando and the team left at 10:30 and I stayed behind. I didn't want to sit out in the jungle for three hours :). I had an enjoyable relaxing day, working on Spanish, going to Pollo Bronco (the best chicken place in Tulum), taking a nap, and breaking down the rebreather. I was like the local travel assist person sitting alone in Pollo Bronco. People kept stopping to ask me questions. Maybe they figured if I was eating there, I must be local...hahaaaa. Questions like, "How long to you think it would take me to walk to the Tulum Beach" or " How long would it take to walk the entire beach", or " Is this really good chicken?". Kinda funny.

For our diving friends, I also enjoyed listening to Troy's briefing to some customers he was taking to Gran Cenote and Calavera. Troy is a Canadian who works for Fernando a portion of the year; he just arrived a few days ago and today was his first day back at work for Fernando. He was lamenting about the harsh winter in Canada and was glad to be back at in Tulum for some beach time. He was sheet white when he arrived a few days ago...today he was very tan. Totally funny if you know him.

John and Fernando returned and I heard about the dive; the set up was complete and they were able to get footage. We will supposedly be given a video of the work bebfore we leave...which is cool. We go diving tomorrow...hopefully to add new line.

So when the heck is she going to get to the Carlos Santa part? :) This is for Kim and other Santa fans out there. We were going to have dinner at Ginger in town. Which is a fabulous restaurant with really really good food....specifically seafood. It is located on the south side of Tulum...of course, being Sunday, it was closed when we got there tonight. So we opted to try Charlie's tonight. John did not particularly like the restaurant before, but it has redeemed itself, which is great because I always liked it. It was pretty crowded and a band (singer plus guitarist) were warming up. The meal was great, pollo con mole, margaritas, sopa de lima and tacos de pescado. The band played many Carlos Santana tunes and the guitarist played a Santana solo that was awesome. They guy was not more than 23 years old but he was really really fabulous. The set included Abraxus, Black Magic Woman, and a guitar solo I can never remember the name of...along with some salsa stuff, Gloria Estefan and a few English tunes adapted with a salsa beat. Really fun. Plus the lady singer had a really awesome voice (john wants me to write Kick A$$ voice, but I won't do it :)!! We will hit that place more often...plus it was cheaper than alot of the places we have been frequenting!

Tomorrow we plan for the end of the line in Camillo. The shooters are supposed to be gone tomorrow...we will see. Today they were absent, which worked out well.

Karen and John