July 12, 1998 12:15pm

Last night we anchored one hundred yards off "Le Nicholas IV" for the night and accepted an invitation to dinner. I had spent the afternoon walking the beach of Cayo Alcatracito which is uninhabited except by wasps and iguanas. The island is very beautiful. Having it all to myself was a special and unique feeling. Later on "Le Nicholas IV," we brought the fresh mangos Alexis gave us in Cienfuegos and some beer. Danielle prepared pasta with a red sauce with lobster meat in it and some hogfish her husband had caught earlier in the afternoon.

Back on 'Defiance' we finished off our rum. The stars were brilliant.

		I took the kayak out this morning with an almost empty air tank and dove the shallows of the fringing reef. The Elkhorn Coral was magnificent and healthy. This snorkle area now bears the name, "Caya Alcatracito Fringing Reef". We left the sound at 11:00am for the next dive site about six miles southeast, near Cayo Boca Grande.
				Photo Courtesy of C. Pritchard

July 12, 1998 5:15pm

We decided to pass on the Cayo Boca Grande site. It looked as though the tide running from the sound and silt had fouled the visibility.

We continued on another eight miles to a spot near Cayo Grande that showed some unusual depth markings on the chart.

This dive was the best so far! I could see at the ocean floor seventy to eighty feet below, and when I arrived to check the anchor and attach the lift bag, I was awe struck at the terrain. Canyons and ravines of different depths and heights mark the ocean floor. They are not parallel - a bit unusual but lead to the wall starting at one hundred feet and with a virtual vertical drop. "Grand Canyons" dive site is worth seeking out!

After the dive we decided to turn around and start the journey back. We're five days out now and will dive out the tanks in the Queen's Garden and hope to be in Cienfuegos in three to four days.

Chris is amusing himself fishing for barracuda. When one is on the line he leaves it awhile. Other larger fish and sharks strike it and he pulls the remains up to toss in the kayak we're towing. Before heading into the sound tonight, perhaps we'll chum the water for sharks.

© 1998 John Petrak

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