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Dive Review of Bohio/Bohio Resort in
Turks and Caicos/Grand Turk

Bohio/Bohio Resort, Feb, 2007,

by Stanley Holz, NH, USA (Reviewer Reviewer 3 reports). Report 3888.

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 3 stars Shore Diving 1 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments The Bohio Dive Resort is a small, laid back, beach front hotel. There are two, two story buildings with 8 rooms each. There is the main building, which houses the reception desk, bar, and dining areas. There is also a small dive shop for rental gear, and a very small storage shed for dive gear. The beach area is very nice with a beautiful view of the western horizon. You are treated to a stunning sunset every evening.

We did ten dives with the Bohio dive shop. They use a 24' Carolina skiff, which can accommodate about 8 divers comfortably. Most times there were only 4 of us on the boat, plus the two DM's. Typical time to most sites was less than 10 minutes. Walls were impressive, and reefs generally healthy except for some bleaching in areas. We did hear Humpback Whales singing on several dives, which was a real treat.

The group did a trip to Gibbs Cay. This is a fun outing and you will have some very large rays brush up against your legs looking for handouts. We covered ten different dive sites during our stay. Aquarium, Alien Nation, MacDonalds, Finnbars Reef, Anchor, Black Forest, Amphitheater, Chief Minister, Coral Garden, and Library. Since the wall is only a couple of hundred yards away, most of these sites were literally just minutes from the beach. Because of this, all surface intervals were done on shore back at the Bohio. Equipment is stored in a very small dive shack on the beach. It has two rows of hangars for BCs and wetsuits, but not much else.

The routine on the boat was simple. Tanks were all on the boat, but we brought our own gear aboard every morning. Our group did our own gear setup and safety checks. We did see a couple of new divers during the week, and the DMs did help them with their gear. A large cooler filled with fresh water was on the boat, and served as our camera rinse tank. Two of us dove Nitrox. The tanks were at the dive shop every morning, with an analyzer and log book. Fills were generally right on, 32% with 3100-3200 PSI.

A 24' Carolina skiff is not a roomy boat. Even with just the four divers and two DMs, it felt cramped. One day, two other divers joined us and it really was cramped. The boat was equipped with a radio and oxygen. We always got a thorough briefing of the dive site and were helped into our BCs before entry. Entry was always a back roll off the side of the boat. Getting back on the boat was via a small ladder, hung off the back. Most dives started with a short swim to and down a wall. The walls here are impressive and teeming with life. I wouldnt say it compares with Bloody Bay Wall off Little Cayman, but it is very good wall diving.

The typical dive profile would take us down to 70 to 90 with a swim along the wall face until someone hit 1500 PSI. We would then turn around, swim back, and come up near the boat on a shallow reef, where we would stay until we felt like surfacing. Blowing off air in the shallows often turned out to be the most interesting part of some dives, given the amount of flora and fauna we would always see. My shortest dive was 45 minutes, but most went for a full hour. Water temperature was a consistent 78 F. I saw 77 once, and 79 once. Visibility ranged from about 60 to as high as over 100, depending on currents and wind.

At Alien Nation I heard my first Humpback whales. It was really quite eerie and exciting, once I realized what I was listening to. Their songs were surprisingly loud and varied from high pitched whistles to low grunting sounds. On at least four different dives, the whale songs were heard.

I wont go through each site, since most were very similar, so Ill just make some general comments. We saw turtles at many sites, and they let us get fairly close to them. I also saw lots of trumpetfish, large grey angels, trunkfish, and fairy basslets. Chief Minister was notable for several large fields of garden eels. Coral Garden is famous for its resident grouper, Alexander. Alexander will swim right up to you and wait to be petted. He has absolutely no fear of divers, and seems to seek out their company. Parrotfish were seen at most sites, but nowhere near the numbers seen in places like Bonaire. Barracuda were scarce, but the few we saw were huge. The reefs were generally in good shape. There was good color, but not as vibrant as what Ive seen in Cozumel. Some bleaching was evident in places, but it did not seem widespread yet.

The Bohio advertises shore diving. We didn't try it, nor did we ever see anyone shore dive. The area off the beach is very shallow, with depths ranging from 3 to 8 feet. Its mostly patch reef and, while suitable for snorkeling, doesnt seem to offer much for divers. Youd really have to swim out well over 100 yards to the wall to hit any good diving. There is a decent small, shallow reef about 50 yards offshore, and the snorkelers did have some fun out there. Closer to shore, the shallows host many juveniles.

Grand Turk is not really a tourist destination, except for the recent influx of cruise ship passengers. You go there to dive, and find a comfortable place to stay and eat. The Bohio is a plain and simple place to stay while visiting Grand Turk. You are on an isolated island with few amenities, and the resort reflects that fact. A fine beach, warm weather, and some great food, make the Bohio a reasonable choice for anyone planning on visiting the little island of Grand Turk.


Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving All over the Caribbean for many years.
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, dry Seas calm, no currents
Water Temp 78-79°F / 26-26°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 60-100 Ft/ 18-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Turn around and head back to boat when 1500 psi was reached. Otherwise, we could dive our computers.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales >2
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 3 stars Large Fish 3 stars
Large Pelagics 3 stars

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

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 2 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 3 stars Shore Facilities 2 stars
UW Photo Comments Rinse tank always on boat, but no tanks on shore at all.
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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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