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We were never fans of report cards growing up. A percentage or a letter used as a representation of who we are as people and what we might be capable of was largely useless. Whether our report cards brought us praise or groundings we found they weren’t really useful for telling our story, what we did right, what we did wrong and how could we could improve.

When the Healthy Reefs Initiative began the Mesoamerican Reef Health Report Cards 10 years ago, they wanted to create an understanding of the management of an ecosystem that sustains our culture, fisheries, coastal protection, and tourism.  The HRI completes these surveys to create accurate, science based knowledge to inform dialogue and collective management in the Mesoamerican Reef (MAR). Unlike our school grades that gave us meaningless percentages and letters based on performance, this report card teaches us where we are going wrong and how we can change for the better.

Ian Drysdale (Representative for Honduras in the HRI) and his team made our boat Pot Licker their ‘home’ for a week as they completed this years reef health investigation in Roatan. To the inexperienced eye it looked as though they had an obsession with PVC, slates, and rubber bands but we knew that although that may be true, it was their love for the reef that had those volunteers jumping 4-5 times a day to survey over 25 sites in Roatan alone. The heroes involved this year were a mix of students from mainland and local conservationists who gave their time, energy, and expertise to successfully complete this years survey. Each volunteer was trained through a program called AGRRA (Atlantic and Gulf Rapid Reef Assessment) who have developed a standardized assessment with the ability to be applied to many different reef types.

In understanding and comparing changes in benthic, coral, and fish indicators using this AGGRA method, the Report Card has been able to collect and compare data giving us a real long-term picture of what has been happening in our waters.

The chart to the left was taken from the 2018 MAR Report Card and represents the surveys conducted by the team to quantify our reef health. Honduras was given a 3.3/5 in the Reef Health Index and was one of the few areas surveyed to experience decline since 2015.

The majority of the volunteers had helped complete the surveys previous and were pretty well informed with the issues in Roatan. The week of the survey was sympathetically rain filled and added a lot of ambience to the disappointed faces, but this crew was much more interested in the positive aspects. On one of the last days we were huddled under the shelter of Potlicker, sharing sips of warm tea, to discuss just why we were experiencing a decline.

First off, they said, Roatan was doing a lot of things right.

Amazingly our coral coverage was some of the best in the Caribbean and that part seems to have held. The reason? Our Marine Park. The Roatan Marine Park (RMP) has been doing a heck of a lot more than putting in your mooring balls. They are patrolling, educating tourists, developing our communities and changing the way we use plastics. They do this through the continued support of sponsors, visitors, and community. Reasons to support them, in whatever way we can, whether it’s through donation or active participation is being proven by these studies, and it’s awesome.

What is not so awesome is that Roatan has too much macroalgae.

According the report card, this is our number one ‘Calls to Action’. It’s one of corals biggest competitors here, and it’s growing and spreading at a very serious rate.

Fleshy macroalgae in Roatan is blanketing areas of the reef, completely taking over the environment. In small quantities the aptly named ‘fleshy’ algae provides food and oxygen exchange, but human intervention has tipped the balance invariably in it’s favour. Wonderfully, their data, doesn’t just prove we have too much algae, it also tells us why.

Turns out, it’s shit. Not shit the expletive, shit the excrement. West End is the only area that adheres to fecal health standards in all of Roatan. Even the main city of Coxen Hole is only about 10% connected to it’s treatment facility. This doesn’t mean that there are little turds floating around everywhere else, but we as humans happen to excrete nutrients and those nutrients are changing the environment around our island.  With cruise ship traffic, tourism, and immigration increasing, the volume of defecation on our reef is also increasing. This provides the perfect conditions for macroalgae to grow.

In Half-moon Bay, they said they have seen and confirmed the improvement to reef health since the establishment of a wastewater system and all the houses aren’t even connected (although, that’s the goal!) . Only 15% of blackwater in the Caribbean is currently being treated, so it’s pretty cool that our little island is a part of that. If we can do it through the efforts of our community members, we hope that our grassroots example will spread and our island can be a role model in effective solutions.

To deal with the algae we already have they offered the possible solution of using reef weeders or underwater vacuums. These ‘super-suckers’ will allow us to fully remove the algae leaving space for new coral to form and suffocating coral to flourish. Hawaii has already been implementing these vacuums to increase reef health in their own areas and are open to sharing their knowledge in an effort to improve ocean environments around the world. 

The next step that is still being explored, is the re-introduction of our pointy little friends; the Long Spined Urchin. Our sneakiest and spikiest algae eaters were wiped out by disease in 1983 have seen very still seen very little comeback in our area. The team was very enthusiastic for re-intro as an option. Herbivorous fish numbers like parrot fish and blue tangs are up, but without our urchins feeding in the hard to reach spots, it’s unlikely the natural balance can be restored.

It was amazing to get involved with this years Report Card. Not only did we get to see some of the most enchanting dive sites in the MAR, we got to hang out with the important and amazing individuals who are working everyday to ensure the future of our reef. Although these solutions are simple, we know that implementing them is going to be a lot hard work. We look forward to helping these guys out as these projects move forward, channeling our love and knowledge into this world that we call home!

We just want to say a big thank you to everyone who is doing their part. When it comes to the environment and trying to save it, we get it, some of us weren’t born to be the heroes of epics but we all fight our own daily battle to improve the world around us and that is amazing. Each person has their own impact and we thank you for yours. We also want to thank all the organizations working with our communities planting coral, working with our governments and cleaning up garbage. It’s important and you are important.

Thanks Again, to Ian and his team for keeping the world up to date with our reef. This information will allow our guests and divers to engage with our island as they enjoy the beauty that we have been afforded through the efforts of many, and understand the work that they are doing. Thank you for showing us a world with solutions and a world with hope.

So long and thanks for all the fish!

If you want to learn more about ways you can help you can always contact us at [email protected] and we would be happy to answer questions about how you can get involved on your holiday. If you just want to come down and see some of the healthiest reefs in the world, check out our websites for package options. Our shop is located in Halfmoon Bay and we offer several conservation courses and complete regular Dive Against Debris course and volunteer dives. As always my source information is included in the page with links to the relevant sections.

Rachael Sorochan

Drinking and diving is a pretty serious no no, for obvious reasons. This blog post is not going to cover that today. What we’re doing today is more along the lines of diving for the sake of drinking. For those of you who have spent time around Coconut Tree you may know of a time-honoured tec tradition of leaving behind a bottle of wine on your final deep dive. The idea came from a couple of guests that had come down to us from Spain that had said where they dive, it was common for staff to deposit bottles of wine on the ocean floor, the purpose being, to improve the taste. Now the honest truth, we did absolutely no research into these claims initially, but the idea sounded cool so we decided to make it our thing too. 

The reason we followed the suggestions of these divers has some obvious inspirations. Discovering shipwrecked champagne and pirate rum are the things of adult day dreams. A bottle of Heidsieck 1907 sold for 275 000 USD at auction, and was one amongst over 2000 varieties discovered on a single shipwreck in the Gulf of Finland. Apparently some of them even tasted pretty good. A British ship sunk in the 1760’s is thought to be filled with bronze canons and gold coins, but it’s the thousands of litres of possibly undrinkable rum that has a lot of collectors vying for it’s recovery.

We know our bottles aren’t going to hold the same sort of history as that of a sunken ship, but the idea of it spending time stored in a place where few in the world are qualified to travel has its own set of mysteries. It’s cool of course but, was it actually as the Spanish divers said? Does it improve the taste?

One of the OG winemakers to experiment with this process was also from Spain, Raúl Pérez. He started by sinking bottles for up to 60 days in the bay near his vineyards which now sell for up to 138 USD a bottle. His company however, has reduced the amount of product put in the ocean after a huge amount of them spoiled in the sea (something we have certainly had happen to us, but more on that later). Viña Maris another winery in Spain has dedicated themselves entirely to underwater wine storage claiming the the “salinity has mineral nuances”. You can even book wine tours that begin with SCUBA excursions to see the underwater cellars. A Napa Valley wine company, Mira has bottles selling for 500 USD a bottle, the same bottle aged on land; 50 USD. The reason? It is said to mature the wine, turning “a 2009 into a 2007”.

So what is the science behind the oceanic benefits? Wine is ideally stored at 12.8C (55F), as it allows the wine to ‘mature’ at the correct rate, anything warmer can cause it to ferment too quickly and spoil it. The ocean tends to be cold and relatively temperature controlled depending on the locations and depths. Light is another big bad that can increase the rate of aging making the darkness of the ocean a bonus for wine storage. The final effect is oxygen, too much or too little can cause the wine to taste different levels of bad, 6ppm ( that’s parts per million for us non science folks) being the ideal amount. This appropriate oxygenation during the aging process is controlled by the cork (synthetic or natural), allowing only tiny amounts to pass through. The ocean has relatively low levels of oxygen so less should be diffusing into the liquid. 

It’s good to know that we weren’t crazy to follow this initial advice. We have experimented with varying degrees of success usually leaning towards the failing side. Most recently, on Valentine’s Day of last year Monty and Alex dropped a bottle at their favourite spot upon Alex’s completion of her Tec course. This romantic story contributes to the idea that in the end it isn’t just about aging a perfect wine, but about what it can mean to us and our relationship with the ocean.

It did get slightly less romantic when we brought it up and the wine tasted like ass. 

Why were we failing? Originally we assumed it was the sea water leeching into the bottles so we tried a mixture of duct tape and candle wax and the result; still the flavour of ass.

This is when we decided to embark on this research, if duct tape can’t fix it, what can?

We did have a suspicion that our water temperature might be a little warm for wine storage so we looked for examples closer to home. A Shipwreck from 1864 off the coast of Bermuda, the Mary-Celestial was the closest we could find. The bottles recovered apparently looked super cool but the taste was not so nice.

Master Sommelier, Paul Roberts was quoted saying;

“When we decanted it, the cork pretty much crumbled and you immediately knew the vast majority was now ocean water.”

The tasting notes apparently included words like ‘crabwater’ and ‘gasoline’. In fancy sommelier language, this was exactly what our wine was tasting like! Turns out, the water here, just as in Bermuda is too warm. 

Local wine expert and technical diver Lauren Schneidewind said;

“The wine would have cooked at 83F (28C), wine really does need to be stored at a much cooler 55F (12.8C).  Rum however, is made at hotter temperatures and has roots from hotter climates and can withstand heat better than wine”

Rum? Now, there was a thought. Flor De Cana is aged at the base of a volcano in Nicaragua so we imagine she was right about the heat. Lauren said she didn’t think that the rum would necessarily improve, but at least it wouldn’t spoil.

Camper English creator of the website Alcademics summarized a seminar held at the Tales of Cocktail event about how liquor and spirits age over time. He confirmed what Lauren had said that the rum would not begin to be effected negatively by temperature until about 37.8C (100F) but is ideally stored at 4.44C (40F). That, and the darkness at depth make our Roatan waters not necessarily the best, but definitely not the worst. For rum oxygenation in the bottle can cause an undesirable vinegar like aroma, so as long as we insured the bottle retained the manufacturer seal, all points to the bottle at the very least, remaining the same.

It may not be as exciting knowing that our unique storage method hasn’t created some sort of liquor revolution but that won’t take away from our tradition. It’s good to know now how these bottles will not just hold a little bit of our own history, but an enjoyable and drinkable beverage. It’s also not a bad excuse to buy a fancy bottle of rum in the name of diving. If our calm warm water is not perfect for wine storage for diving at least, it’s unbeatable.

To learn more about courses or discovery experiences check out our website. For more updates, photos, and videos from the gang you can follow us on our Facebook and Instagram.

Bonus Story

At the time of our initial experiments wine options were few and far between on Roatan, instead we decided to try Tree’s homemade mango ‘wine’. We took the clear moonshine-like Mango beverage and gave it a shot. The bottle had a plastic cork, it was stored at 18m (60ft) and was left there for 6 months. This would have been a lot easier back then as it was less likely to be discovered by other divers, that being the main reason that it’s our tec divers who have upheld it since then. Monty recalls the liquid going from clear to almost lemonade type turbidity. It also, significantly improved the taste.

We aren’t sure why it worked, mostly because we aren’t really sure what the chemical make up of Tree’s concoction was, but it did certainly inspire us to keep up with the tradition.

All sources used are linked in the section that is applicable. Thanks Again to Lauren of Roatan Wine Room for answering all my questions and the crew at the shop for arguing all the science with me. Alexandra HG, a big thanks for providing me with photo and fodder for these posts. As always thanks to those who I abuse for editing, I have an over use of comma problems. If you have any questions or ideas for posts you would like to see, don’t hesitate to contact us through our Facebook!

The decision to pursue a Dive Master Internship can arise in different people for many different reasons. For some it’s a bucket list thing, a way to prove something to themselves. For others it’s merely educational, or a great way to spend summer between semesters. For many this is a professional path, for those hoping to make a career of their passion. 

Whatever the reason for choosing to pursue their Dive Master, few will say they regretted the decision. You rack up on dives, learn a tonne, and get to experience the world of diving from a whole new perspective. 

So why are there still people out there waiting to give it a shot? Time, work, and feeling unqualified are just a few of the excuses we hear.

Instructor Rachael arrived back in 2016 with 17 dives and a huge case of imposter syndrome. “I remember receiving my PADI Dive Master Crew Pack the day before my orientation. I pulled out all the books and papers and spread them out on the bed in my dorm and thought to myself-How in the hell am I going to learn all of this in six weeks?”

Two years later she is a full-time instructor, with multiple specialties, and a whole lot of dives under her belt.

It’s not to say it isn’t hard work, because it definitely is. However, challenges bring rewards and that is what these internship programs are all about. We decided to interview a couple of our previous Trainees on what getting certified meant to them. We asked what their motivations were, what their experience meant to them, and where are they now. We hope that in reading the experiences of these bad ass individuals it will inspire you to look at these sorts of challenges, whether that be within the world of diving or just in the realm of adventure living as something you not only can do, but something you deserve to do.

Barra O’Briain a physician from Canada, definitely sticks in our mind as one of our keener DMTs. Barra first learned of Coconut Tree through his sons friend Taylor, who was completing his own dive master at the time. Barra was impressed with the skills and experience that Taylor was receiving and it didn’t take much to sell him on the idea.  

Barra said “I arrived feeling pretty confident in my skills, but quickly found how much I had to learn when it came to assisting other divers and the diving skills necessary for the task.”

His mentor was roughly the same age as his sons but Barra took it in absolute stride, humbly absorbing, listening, and learning from his Instructors and his peers. He added a wonderful dynamic to the group. 

When we asked Barra what he thought he got out of the experience he said,

“I now assist and work as a DM on weekends on a boat off the coast of British Columbia.  I am more confident in reading divers, assisting them, anticipating problems and dealing with them when they arise.  I am also a much better diver and confident in new and varied settings.”

Barra has been back to Roatan since and hopes to complete his full Tec Course at Roatan Tec Centre the next time he is back.

Meilin Mansilla, an architect originally from Guatemala, found Coconut Tree through a friend and came for the first time only to fun dive. When we asked her to tell her story, she answered so well that we think we’ll let her tell it herself.

“It has always been rewarding for me putting my heart and soul to make happen what I put my mind to. I’ve always had big dreams and have worked hard to make them come true which, is a strength but also a weakness. Setting my mind to achieve working for the best architect in my country was one of the most rewarding things I’ve done, but it also made me a workaholic.

I came diving one time to Roatan and that’s when it hit me, I wasn’t fully living my life. I was successful living my life by my vocation as an architect, but what about my passion? Diving fills my heart and makes it literally explode with happiness and decided I wanted that on a regular basis, not one or twice a year 

So, I quit my perfect job, I moved to the island and started my Dive Master to fill that emptiness of passion in my heart, that thirst of feeling alive and free; weightless. I have two jobs now, I’m a dive instructor and an architect and I’ve never felt more alive. Don’t get me wrong, balancing it is hard but nothing that is worth it is easy, it takes self discipline but I’m telling you: it can be done. ‘Balance it out’ I say, don’t forget to fill your heart with what passions you on regular basis and don’t forget to put into practice what other things you’re good at.”

Philip Zaki, from Germany will always be remembered as the guy who always wore shoes. To put him in perspective he’s the kind of guy that says international finance is ‘fun’. His long-term goal behind doing his dive master is to become a technical diver and has said that before embarking on the journey he really wanted to increase his dive experience. He believes firmly that there is no better way to learn something than to teach and share it with others

Secondly, he said “a DM internship brings me in a completely new work environment. Working in a b2b (business to business) environment in an office job myself, a b2c (business to customer) environment is a totally new experience for me and widens my view on such jobs. Let it be sizing people for their suits, estimating weights, or mopping the floor, there’s nothing healthier than some down to earth experiences if you’re coming from a place like I do” (he works in a big fancy office)

Lastly, he said he really enjoyed the camaraderie and being part of team. As a repeat solo traveler he says it’s a much less lonely way to do it.

Jina Gaechter originally from Switzerland, currently from wherever she desires, came to us to do her Dive Master for possibly the coolest reason ever. Jina and her family live aboard their sail boat traveling all over the Caribbean, literally letting the wind take them. 

Jina said, “First of all diving has become my passion the moment I started almost 15 years ago but, I decided to do my DM as soon as I changed my life style, which means living on a boat. I am surrounded by water everyday so why not learn more about what’s in it, and be part of it.

It’s like fireworks every time I go back down. With my DM I feel so much safer and more  knowledgeable, I see so many things and I am able to help people more. On boat life I have the opportunity to jump in everyday and it’s never the same because we move from one place to the other.”

Her facebook and instagram are quite literally #wanderlust. Not everyone has the energy or patience to live life on a sail boat, but we certainly enjoy keeping up with her adventures.

As you can see that the reasons behind the decision to do a Dive Master Internship are varied. These stories are only a small sample of those that we have heard in our shop. We have people come and do it during the summer in college and people who do it as a semester for credit in university. People do it in small bursts so that they can balance it with time off for work schedules and some people quit their jobs and leave everything behind. We have had trainees aged 18 to nearly 70. Whatever your reason is, don’t let your fears hold you back. It’s not really any one ‘type’ that choose to come down and have this experience. It’s the desire for adventure and for knowledge that brings these people together. When we asked Ivan Liaw, a DM from Singapore (Now working and living in the U.S.) we think he said it best.

“It’s our dedication to the underwater world and those we interact with that defines us”

So quit making excuses and take the plunge (see what we did there?). For more information on how to get started contact us at [email protected] or have a look on our website!

“There’s so much room for activities!”

               –Will Ferrell

If you hadn’t noticed, a huge portion of our posts have had to do with our series of make-overs. 

1. Our entirely redesigned front deck has improved diver flow, increased outdoor teaching spaces, and Feng Shui-ed our hang out zone. Coconut Tree is the first dive shop you see when you walk into West End we are smack dab in the heart of it. We decided that it’s about time our shop started to reflect the beauty that we are surrounded in.

Recently, we have had a lot of positive feedback and interaction via our Facebook content and we wanted to thank you all for keeping up to date on the goings on here at Coconut Tree. It makes us feel loved to know that our family throughout the world still holds us in their hearts. It has now become our goal to make sure that we keep up with posts and information to inspire, cure diving withdrawal, and generally brag about our piece of paradise.

Some of our followers however, have expressed the desire for a little bit more. In this world of two sentence blurbs and 30 second videos they feel as though they aren’t getting quite enough of our diving inspo. So for those readers old and new, let’s start off with a little review…

2. We moved the water facilities increasing the over all privacy and gear drying space. Moving the toilet to the back and making it a bit larger has been great. It’s now a bathroom/change room/art gallery/arboretum. We couldn’t bear to cut the tree down so it’s become part of the design! In rearranging the gear area we have also created a safe space for camera’s! Although, our regular followers know that more often than not, it doubles as a cat house. 

3. Now that the office is at the front, our guests are now greeted the moment they walk in the door. No more congestion! Gay and Alex really appreciate the better view of the ocean, though we all can’t seem to stop making jokes about what use to be in that space.

(it was the toilet, throne jokes abounding)

Jokes aside though, this has been great to improve our guest satisfaction. Increased storage and easy to read schedules, prices, and packages have only added to convenience.

4. A fresh coat of paint and new decor have left the upstairs classrooms open, airy, and bright. Photos by Alexandra HG Photography and board designs by the lovely Meg Jones are our splashes of colour and inspiration for student divers of all levels. With our new hand held tablets for videos we have been able to reduce our indoor classroom time, but it’s still nice to have a serene, resource packed, and above all- air conditioned learning space.

5. Pot Licker, looks gorgeous. This ex U.S. Navy boat has found a new life as the second of our two large boats. Primarily used for our Roatan Tec Center and Private Tours we decided to maker her look as bad-ass as she is. The addition of the dive flag was a particular point of pride. She certainly looks hot in her Instagram photos!

6. The next step. Our next project is the inside of the shop. Besides improving all around gear storage and spacial effectiveness we hope to create a small retail area for some quick essentials and of course, our fabulous t-shirts. Already we have created a fancy coffee (and tea!) station with all the fixings. In this space we also provide dishes and utensils for take out! No more styrofoam! The local businesses are now accustomed to us approaching with plates and declining plastic cutlery. Boo yeah to reducing our footprint.

Photographers are violent people. First they frame you, then they shoot you, then they hang you on the wall .   

     It isn’t just the outside we’ve been working on, we also have some pretty exciting stuff going on in our photography department We now have rental camera options! Only $30 for the day and the use of the camera is yours. The simple to use Canon SD550 is perfect for simple snap shots and budding photographers alike. Before the dive, one of our staff will prepare the camera and orient you on it’s use so that you can capture your experience through your own perspective. We do have SD cards available for purchase (only five dollars) so your pictures make it safely home in full quality. 

   If you don’t fancy yourself as a photographer on land let alone with complicated buoyancy manoeuvres, we have a photographer for hire! Alexandra Harper-Graham, you know the one who captures all those gorgeous photos on our Facebook and Instagram? Yeah, you can hire her to follow you and a friend around on a dive for only 50 bucks (only $15 per additional diver). She makes even the worst of us look cool underwater! Her images capture your experience and interactions with the underwater world in perfect clarity, contrast, and composure. 

   For those interested in continuing their education in photography, as always, we offer the PADI Digital Underwater Photography Adventure Dive and Specialty Course with Master Instructor; Scuba Ted. For those who know him, they know that he is rarely seen in the water without his camera and he is always excited to help share this passion with others. These courses are great for those entering the world of photography at any level and any digital photography device.

    If you have been particularly inspired by our content on social media, then you will be happy to know that Alexandra HG Photography is now also offering Photography Courses (with rental equipment). Alexandra’s course has been developed from 10 years of passion and experience in underwater photography and can be adapted to all skill levels. Whether you are an iPhone ‘Instagramer’ or are wondering about purchasing strobes Alexandra’s wealth of knowledge can help you on your journey. 

May your life be as amazing as your social media makes it seem

    Lastly, we are hoping to up our media content. With a little more dedication to this blog we hope to be able to interact with our guests both past and present to let them know a little bit about what we do and we are into.

    The content we share is going to be largely based on your responses. The goal is to create an online version of the spirit we try to foster in the shop. We want it to be about learning, sharing, and creating on our favourite subject; diving.

   So join us, follow us, or whatever it is the kids are calling it these days and we will do our best to entertain. Any questions? Comments? Queries? Concerns? Contact us at [email protected]