Have you ever been to one of those shark-feeding dives in the Bahamas where you all kneel in the sand and watch some mesh-suited guy feeding the fish? Well, if you're tired of aquarium diving and want to see the big fish this is the place for you!
At Caño Island you will encounter both pelagic (open ocean) and Pacific reef fish.
Many species are the same as in the Galapagos Islands.
If you like sharks you will see 2-meter long white tipped reef sharks, bull sharks and very occasionally hammerheads.
Depending on the time of year we see humpbacks, Orcas and pilot whales. Dolphins include Pacific spotted, bottlenose and spinners.
It is not uncommon to see manta rays leaping from the water and hundreds of lesser devil rays regularly pass by.
There are too many other fish to list here but many divers especially enjoy meeting the free-swimming moray eels, which are often 2-meters long.
Pirate Cove is a member of PIRA (PADI International Resort Association). Our sister company, called Caño Divers (www.canodiverscostarica.com), exclusively handles the diving for Pirate Cove.
Our divemasters are normally Assistant-Instructors or Instructors and we also offer special resort courses for those of you who would like to have a diving experience but are not actually certified.
Here are brief descriptions of a few of the dive sites:
Barco Hundido (Sunken Ship)
Depth: 15-20 meters (50-70 feet)
Skill Level: Beginner
We've never found a sunken ship here. This is a calm dive among various rock formations. If you stay in one spot the fish come and go. Generally you find sharks, mantas, Moorish idols and other smaller fish but also some good-sized schools pass through. This is a wonderful spot for underwater photography.
Bajo del Diablo (Devil's Pinnacle)
Depth: 15-40 meters (45-130 feet)
Skill Level: Intermediate
The waters at the pinnacle and surrounding canyons are populated with jacks, snappers, barracudas, puffers, parrotfish, moray eels and sharks (bull sharks occasionally at greater depths). Often giant schools arrive. This is one hell of a dive but sometimes there is fairly strong current.
Paraiso (Paradise)
Depth: 20 meters (60 feet)
Skill Level: Intermediate
This boring dive site is flat with a couple of ridges and a few rock outcroppings with very strong current. If you're unlucky you may see a few fish. But if you're lucky…
This is a place where enormous schools of jacks, snappers, and barracudas often pass by. You could find yourself in the midst of thousands of fish. And if you're really lucky you may witness the arrival of 20-30 sharks who like to party. You may think you've died and gone to heaven!
NOTE: Starting on the 17 February, 2012, the Costa Rica Goverment has closed the land part of Caño island, we can and we still do the diving tour at Caño Island but we can not land on the Island. We will have the first dive and then you can rest in the boat, drink water and eat fruits, then we will do the second dive, after that we will go for a picnic lunch to San Josecito beach and you can also enjoy this beatiful beach.