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Dive Review of La Cueva Submarina Inc./NA in
Puerto Rico/Isabela

La Cueva Submarina Inc./NA, Jan, 2004,

by Jolene Eichorn, MN, USA . Report 1480.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations 3 stars Food 3 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 1 stars Shore Diving 1 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 1 stars
Advanced 1 stars
Comments Went to a site called Crash Boat (there isn't much of a boat to see). I was the only diver so Charles Aponte from La Cueva took me along with a friend of his. It was a shore dive. I got zero help, although the DM's friend helped the DM out. By the time I got suited up I was tired. Charles took off like we were in a race. The visibility was poor and I didn't want to get left behind so I struggled to keep up. We went under a dock where people were fishing and my leg got tangled in fishing line. I had to stop and untangle it and the DM had no clue that I was having problems. After I got the line off of me and started going again the DM came back to get me and evidently I wasn't going fast enough for him because he grabbed my arm and pulled me along. We saw what was left of a boat, fed the fish some bread, he took my picture and then it was a race back to shore. I was so exhausted I was afraid I wasn't going to make it, meanwhile the DM is already on shore and his friend is helping him with take off his equipment. Then I had to try to take off my fins with waves knocking me over - like I said I got zero help. The whole dive lasted 21 minutes, but he tried to tell me we were out there for an hour. Before going on the second dive I told him he is going way too fast, he needed to slow down. The next dive was to some caverns (Shacks?). I told them when I booked the dive I didn't want to be in any tightly enclosed areas, they told me these were big caverns - no problem. Once again, I got zero assistance with my equipment and this time we had to carry it all down a long flight of steps to the beach. We went to the caverns and the DM wanted me to follow him through a very tight tunnel. I didn't want to go, but it was like a maze in there and I didn't know my way out. I signaled I did not want to go, but he was not going to come back for me, so I had to follow. It was very tight and my hands got stung by something. There were only a couple of small fish in there, nothing else, so unless you enjoy being in caverns it is a waste of time. Total dive time 23 minutes. Afterward I had to carry all my equipment back up the flight of stairs with a bad knee and I was having a difficult time. Finally the DM's friend came back for me and asked if I needed help. It was the worst day of diving I have every had. However, there was a girl at our hotel that went with the same dive shop, but a different DM and she had a great time at the caverns. I thought about cancelling the next days dive out to Desecheo with a different dive shop, but I decided to go. I went with Oceans Unlimited in Rincon, my dive buddy was a diving instructor from Raleigh, NC. We were perfectly paired, went at the same pace and were out of air at the same time. Had a really good time at Desecheo, lots of fish, and then on the way back a pod of Spinner Dolphins chased the boat so the captain let us snorkel with the dolphins,they stayed around for about 40 minutes and the captain didn't rush us, he let us enjoy ourselves. He even went out of his way to see if there was a Whale Shark under the flock of gulls, but it was just fish. I highly recommend Oceans Unlimited if you are going to go diving in that area.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 101-250 dives
Where else diving Cozumel, Hawaii, Rotan, Dominica, Florida
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas surge
Water Temp 79-80°F / 26-27°C Wetsuit Thickness 0
Water Visibility 10-15 Ft/ 3-5 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile ?
Enforced diving restrictions None
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 2 stars
Small Critters 2 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics 1 stars

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 1 stars Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's 1 stars Shore Facilities 1 stars
UW Photo Comments None
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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