Hi SD fans, and welcome back to the channel. COVID travel restrictions are
starting to be relaxed, with more and more destinations coming back on line, and we
are all longing to jump on an airplane and jet off to some tropical warm-water diving hotspot,
so to whet your appetite even more – or maybe give you some inspiration for a ‘must-dive’ trip,
I am going to be giving you a whistlestop tour of Cocos Island, showcasing some of the
fantastic marine life and amazing topside views that characterize this iconic destination.
Cocos Island. For adventurous divers, this legendary destination is right up there with
the likes of the Galapagos Islands and Malpelo. Located some 342 miles off the
Pacific coast of Costa Rica, it takes a solid 36-hour voyage just to arrive at this lush,
uninhabited island, which looks like something out of Jurassic Park when it looms into view. In fact,
it is often credited with being the inspiration for Isla Nublar.
Cocos Island National Park was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997,
and weather permitting, visitors are shuttled ashore from their liveaboards
to hike through the thick jungle interior and swim in the pools at the base of the many waterfalls.
However, the dramatic topside scenery is nothing compared with what lies beneath the surface.
Underwater, rocky pinnacles surround the island, and these are a magnet for big animals,
including vast shoals of hammerhead sharks, countless whitetip sharks,
tuna, manta rays and even whalesharks. Dive sites such as Manuelita, Dirty Rock, Alcyone
and Big Dos Amigos are just some of the hotspots spoken of in hallowed terms by experienced divers.
Alcyone is a 180-metre-long submerged mountain which reaches up to a depth of 23m.
It is often surrounded by mind-blowing shoals of hammerheads which can seem to be never-ending,
and you can sometimes see marlin and sailfish. Dirty Rock is a large island poking out
of the water off the north coast of Cocos, and it is also a popular hangout for hammerhead sharks,
as well as huge marble rays. Manuelita is another island off
the north coast of Cocos, and its northeast corner is the place to be. This sheer wall is
home to lots of whitetip sharks, more marble rays and enormous shoals of Creole wrasse.
Big Dos Amigos – yes, there is a Small Dos Amigos too – is a tiny islet off the west coast of Cocos
that features a 13-metre-high arch and an 18-metre pinnacle off the southeast side.
You get hammerhead sharks swimming between the arch and the pinnacle, and you will
be enveloped by gigantic shoals of rainbow runners, yellowtail snapper and bigeye jacks.
If you needed any more persuading that this is one location that should be on your bucket list,
the one-and-only Jacques Cousteau visited the island several times,
and in 1994 called it ‘the most beautiful island in the world’.
We have teamed up with Aggressor Liveaboards for this series of short video tours around some of
the world’s best diving destinations, and they have two vessels in-country, the Okeanos Aggressor
I and the Okeanos Aggressor II, which offer ten-day charters from Puntarenas in Costa Rica
taking in some of the best dive sites around Cocos. Expect to rack up 21 dives – all
ten-day trips offer seven days of diving. The Okeanos Aggressor I is 33 metres long,
and has 10 staterooms for its 22 passengers, while the Okeanos Aggressor II is 36 metres long, with
11 staterooms for its 22 passengers. Both have large salons, spacious sun decks, bar and grill.
There is so much more to Cocos than we have shown here, but it gives you a taster for this fantastic
diving destination. Have you dived Cocos Island? What were some of your most-memorable moments?
Leave your comments below, and if you have a question, fire away – if we can’t answer,
maybe someone in our community will be able to. Remember, if you enjoyed this video,
be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel,
and check out our ever-growing playlist for more informative, educational and inspirational videos.
As always, stay safe – and if you are going diving, enjoy!