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The Cayman Islands are one of the few places on Earth where you will never catch a curious glance for walking down the street with a dripping-wet bag full of dive gear.
The moment I stepped off the plane in Grand Cayman I was greeted by a smiling woman who said, "I'll watch your bags, baby. You just go on across the street and pick up your car." When was the last time you heard someone say that at LAX?
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Peaceful Escape Rent a car and escape to the peaceful East End where all semblance of hustle and bustle disappears, then watch the sunset from Rum Point.. |
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1 Bloody Bay Wall (Little Cayman) 2 Stingray City (Grand Cayman) 3 The Capt. Keith Tibbetts (Cayman Brac) 4 Anchor Wall (Cayman Brac) 5 Three Sisters (Grand Cayman) |
The calm, clear West End has amazing sloping reefs and coral gardens just off the bustling waterfront of Seven Mile Beach. North Sound is home to famed Stingray City, offering divers personal encounters with hordes of stingrays. The East End is where you go to navigate swim-throughs packed with silversides and tarpon at sites like Snapper Hole and Grouper Grotto. Chances are you'll see a few sharks and rays too. But be sure to head back to West Bay to send your family a postcard from the town of Hell it's always good for a laugh.
The Brac has sheer drop-offs and world-class wall diving off two shores, plus the only diveable Russian warship in the western hemisphere, the Capt. Keith Tibbetts. Brought over from Cuba in 1996 and sunk as an artificial reef, the top of the ship sits only 40 feet below the surface, and the gun turrets help to maintain its warrior presence.
www.sportdiver.com/caymanislands
If Cayman Brac still isn't far enough off the beaten path for you, then you might need to get over to Little Cayman. As you touch down on the grass runway you'll feel any remaining worries fade away. The mangrove forests are perfect for kayaking, and Bloody Bay Wall, one of the top dive sites in the world, lies just offshore. This coral labyrinth is home to an unfathomable array of color and friendly marine life that encircles you the instant you hit the water. As divers, it's hard to find a more welcoming island nation.
