I struggled to find the words to describe our February fun-diving trip to Utila: amazing, magical, special, outstanding. I know how it sounds, maybe a little over the top? Superfluous even? The hard thing is, that’s exactly what it was. Fantastic and above and beyond what we could have hoped for. 

It all starts with a good group, and as always, we had that in spades. We all came from different walks of life and even generations, but one thing united us, the love of diving. February on Utila is when the weather starts to clear up, the sun is out, but it’s not too hot yet, and everyone can feel the high season approaching. It’s a vibrant energy. The flow of folks tempted by turquoise waters and warm breezy weather grows weekly. It’s perhaps the perfect time to be in the Bay Islands. 

Sunday started off with a confined water session to get everyone back in the swing of things. Remember, if you’ve been out of the water for 6 months to a year you should sign up for a refresher with a diving professional. Even instructors do it. 

Then without delay, we went out that afternoon for our first open water dives. Everyone took to it like they’d never had a break. We were also lucky because we had 1-2 divemasters with us on all of our dives. Kristy, our resident DM, traveled down with us and Deb, who lives on the island, joined us on a bunch of dives as well. That’s almost a 1-1 ratio of pros to fun-divers. You won’t get that kind of attention on just any dive trip. 

The sealife also cooperated. All of the classics came out to say hi. We had rays, puffers of all shapes and sizes, eels, cowfish, upside down jellies, etc. But we also had one of the more elusive creatures come out in droves, SHARKS! Utila is home to nurse sharks and they’re always exciting to find. On our very last dive we found 3! They must have known it was our farewell dive. 

We were also super lucky to find a juvenile stargazer. Adult stargazers are super hard to spot because they bury themselves in the sand, leaving only a bit of their head and their eyes out so they can see passing prey. Juveniles however, bury themselves completely. Like many stargazer encounters, it happened by accident. Did I mention that stargazers are electric? The process of burying themselves produces a static charge which they hang on to and use as a defense mechanism. Truly an incredible creature. 

We rounded out our trip with a night on Roatan and dinner at the lovely Lily Pond House, which is always a lovely experience. We fed fruit bats, enjoyed drinks in the lounge, and dined on lobster. The perfect way to end such a beautiful week. 

Coming home is bittersweet, but the call of the islands is a joy in its own right, because I know I’ll be back soon. Will you join me for the next one? 

-Josh