Sargassum

It is a rare sight on our beach as we have been invaded by gulf-weed. According to Wikipedia it can grow to several meters. In this instance it has taken over our entire beach. Usually a couple of guys bring out the shovels and rid the beach of debris. This incident calls for a backhoe which has been contracted to come clean the beach tomorrow.

In other news, Eimear from Ireland, Cole from Canada, and Zach from Florida have started their training towards becoming PADI Divemasters. For now, they are currently working on their Rescue course. And yes, we went out in the bay with all this Sargassum and surge. We did giant strides off the dock and avoided it on the way in. The viz is as clear as mushroom soup in the near swim-zone but clears up real good out in the far sand patches. Luckily enough during self rescue skills we came face to face with a Southern Stingray. 

Potlicker's days in dry dock are almost completed. She is being painted and will return to rotation in a couple of days sporting her new swim platform. 

The weather is a bit suspect these days. Then again we are still wearing sandals. We hope to see you sooner than later. Best wishes from Roatan. 

Paul Repka- Computer Genius or Beach Bum??

The story of Paul Repka begins on a sunny afternoon after a long day of diving, when a bald, bearded, biker-looking old guy walked onto the deck of CTD. As Will, our resident Course Director greeted him, all of the DMTs started wondering who this person was, who looked so completely out of place at a Dive Shop. Soon it was known he was to join the ranks of the DMT's, and so would become part of our little family.

Paul Repka. Old, biker-looking, bald and bearded..

Everyone suddenly had a question for him.

"Are you a biker?", "How old are you?", "Are you insane?"

As it turns out, Paul was just a regular suburban man, Milwaukee born and raised, (or Mwaukeeee, as he calls his home town), who decided to take a break from his consulting firm and spend a month or two in the pristine beaches of Roatan. A computer nerd who plays hockey, likes to fish, drinks like a fish, and in his free time he loves jetting off to somewhere in the Caribbean to dive, usually accompanied by his lovely wife, Peg. (sorry ladies, he's taken)

Paul and Peg, out in the blue.

He was not an amateur diver, being already certified as a PADI Rescue Diver, and now he was looking to Go Pro. But being a DMT wasn't going to cramp his style. First thing he did was to find the coolest house in West End and establish a home base. He then proceeded to throw a couple of parties there, which turned him into everybody’s best friend from the start. He was a great DMT, working as hard, and most of the times harder than everyone else to make sure things ran smoothly around the shop. A great and fun diver, he was ready to act whenever a customer needed anything, from spare weights to friendly advice.

Receiving his diploma from Will
after completing the IDC

But it wasn’t all fun and games. Paul was a man on a mission, and he planned to get as much out of the vacation as he could. In a short time he had a spear fishing license, and a Side mount certification. Pretty soon he decided he would start his IDC and get certified as an instructor. After a lot of hard work with Will, he aced his Instructor exams and was officially certified. He then proceeded to pop his cherry here at CTD and certified his first two Open Water Divers!

Repka and his first two Open Water Students

Three months after he arrived on Roatan, Paul was now a Dive Instructor, a known personality around the bars in West End, and all-round beach bum. After being declared mentally insane by his wife, he packed his bags and made his way back home, throwing a huge going away party that lasted for about a week.

A night on the town for P, Repka

A really cool guy, we all learned something from Paul and he learned something from all of us.

Everyone at CTD will miss him and hope he eventually convinces his wife of moving down here.


Here are some things the Staff at CTD had to say about Paul:

“Paul is  hilarious and a great lionfish hunting buddy”

Even underwater he never lost his groove

“Paul is the inventor of a new Side-Plop Open Water Entry, the Repka”

“Pauuuul??? Is always good for a laugh and provoked mask clearing practice a little too often”

At Sundowner's Beach Bar, where he spent most of his time.

“We will miss that Salope”

“Pauuuul? Obnoxious but funny, so he gets away with it and we love him”

Dinner party at Paul's

“Paul was a great person to have around the shop, always ready to help with a smile and a joke. Love You”

“Paul was the most beautiful Yaba Ding Ding Queen we’ve ever seen”

After seeing this photo, Peg (Paul's wife) started worrying about
his mental health and decided
he should get back to the real world

The Adventures of Chucky

Those of you who have done a Rescue Diver course with us in the last few years will be familiar with "Chucky".  For those of you who haven't taken that step (yet) Chucky, originally from Kazakhstan, washed up on the beach at Half Moon Bay during Hurricane Wilma in 2005.  Lost and alone, he was rescued by the Coconut Tree Divers crew.  Far away from home (and broke), PJ took pity on him and gave him a job as an assistant on the Rescue Diver course.  He isn't actually very good at it i.e. gets lost repeatedly, only to be found again somewhere on the reef by a succession of different rescue students.  Given all this, some people are surprised that PJ actually still lets him dive with us...

After 4 years, he has settled in quite well (he even started getting some of his own equipment - mask and weight belt).  These days, after work, he can be found enjoying his favourite drink at The Bar at Coconut Tree Restaurant with the rest of the crew.

Johnnie Walker Black Label

Half Moon Bay Weather Report: when are we getting A/C on the dock?

Recent Sightings: 

Seahorse @ Jolly Roger

Freeswimming Green Moray Eel @ Overheat Reef

Black Spotted Nudibranch @ Pillar Coral

Familiar Faces

Almost every week, and certainly every month, a familiar face reappears at Coconut Tree.  People come and go, but there are certainly many who return year after year (you know who you are!) - and they often seem surprised to see many of the same faces behind the desk or giving the dive briefings.  And then all the way from Oz, Jules appeared…

Ever elusive to the camera, we were not able to find a photo of Jules underwater...

After nine months of travelling in Central Asia, Scandinavia and Latin America, Jules arrived in Roatan ready for two weeks of sun, sea and a half-hearted desire to do a bit of diving. Her original plan was to refresh her dive skills, and maybe do a couple of fun dives . But, Jules didn’t count on falling in love with Roatan or falling in love with diving… 

Those few days turned into eleven weeks and Jules went from (in her own words) ‘a flailing air thief’ to diving five or six days a week, doing the morning two-tank dives and the odd night dive.  At Coconut Tree, Jules did a refresher course with Monty, and then completed her Advanced Open Water with Marco within her first week at the shop. She now has more than 70 dives in her Coconut Tree log book.

Jules said, “When I came here in November, I didn’t ever think that I would do my Advanced Open Water, let alone gain the confidence to do night dives, to enjoy deep dives or even complete a 74 minute dive. But, I did!  And, I definitely didn’t expect to spend eleven weeks diving, to talk diving or even buy some dive gear!"

So, what’s next for Jules? More diving of course…And maybe, just maybe, we’ll see her back at Coconut Tree to complete the much discussed Rescue Diver and Divemaster courses.

Recent Sightings:

5 Turtles (one dive) @ Half Moon Bay Wall

Criss-Cross Tritonia @ Shallow Aquario (night - it's very very small...)

African Pompano!!! @ Shallow SeaQuest (a first for Marco!)

Half Moon Bay Weather Report:

A beautiful day for diving, Potlicker is out at West End Wall

Hot in the sun, with the flag on the glass bottom boat only flapping half heartedly.