Dispatches from the Patriot Scuba 2012 Roatan trip-my last trip with Patriot Scuba (at least for the time being).

After an absurdly early departure from Washington which, amazingly, went off without a hitch, we had a layover in Atlanta. Desperately in need of caffeine, I ran into my friend Mirta in line for coffee. Seeing her felt like an appropriate bookend for this journey. She was on her way home to Roatan after visiting family in Italy with her new daughter. For many years Mirta has run the dive operation at a fantastic little resort called Las Rocas, which is tucked away at the quiet end of West Bay Beach on Roatan. Almost eight years ago, after a rough patch in life and on my first vacation in way too long, I wandered up to the dive shop at Las Rocas and asked Mirta if she had any room on the boat that morning. I was immediately made to feel welcome and within a few days of diving, and of not doing anything too stupid underwater, like family. The ten days I spent diving at Las Rocas mean a great deal to me as they really changed my life, and for the better.

The staff instructors, Willie and Arturo, both still good friends, were a blast to dive with and something of an inspiration. They are both extremely skilled professionals, but what got to me was the fact that they were doing what they loved most, doing it very well and sharing that enthusiasm with their customers. As Willie used to say, they were living a rich man's life without the hassles of getting rich. I had a good job, but I couldn't claim that. After I got home I spent the next few weeks in a bit of a fog, part of me not having returned to "normal" life at all. My head was still largely in Roatan, so I made a fateful decision to join it there. I called Mirta and asked if she would be willing to take me on as a Divemaster candidate. After two months of very hard work and very big fun, I came back to the States with my Divemaster program complete and, as they say, the rest is history.

Arriving in Roatan has always had the feeling of coming home and
this trip is no exception. The Patriot group couldn't be nicer, with dive experience ranging from beginner to expert. And CoCo View never disappoints. Nora met us at the airport and in no time we were comfortably set up in our rooms and getting ready for the mandatory checkout dive. Our days here include two boat dives per day, but on the way back in to the resort one can do what is called a drop-off dive where the boat drops you off at the end of one of the two house walls so that you can swim directly to the resort, usually with a stop at the Prince Albert, the excellent house wreck. The house walls, CoCo View wall and Newman's wall, are healthy and thriving. The Prince Albert was a freighter and can be very well enjoyed from the outside. For those with the training and experience, it also makes a wonderful penetration dive, either into the wheel house or from hold to hold in the main body of the ship. I have always loved diving wrecks and coming back to the Prince Albert is like seeing an old friend.

Over the past few days we have seen eels, rays, lobsters, toad fish, lion fish, crabs large and small, sharks, sea horses, puffer fish, blennies, gobies, cleaner shrimp, squid, octopus (octopi?, octopodes?, who knows)- you name it! John has been busy teaching up a storm with AOW and several specialties in the mix. I've watched-and I always love seeing it on these trips-as people get better and better and more comfortable underwater. Our guide, Eddie, has the most amazing set of eyes on him. He can spot the smallest, coolest animals without, apparently, even trying. On Wednesday we took a special three tank trip to the East end of Roatan where we dove the rarely visited and therefore pristine reefs there. The East end has hardly any development so we seemed to have the whole world to ourselves. After two great drift dives we had lunch and then swam to a tiny deserted island to pursue our private Robinson Crusoe fantasies. The dive operation here at CoCo View is really first rate, and we ended the afternoon with a nice wall dive and then a ride back on the fast boat to the resort. Wednesday's happy hour featured live music and half priced drinks, though a few intrepid souls denied themselves in favor of a night dive in search of the elusive nocturnal octopus, which was quickly located. The shore diving is unlimited and available 24/7-a dive glutton's delight. And for that reason CoCo view does attract plenty of dive gluttons.

The resort itself is simple but clean, well run and completely oriented to divers. The buffet meals are delicious, plentiful and varied and the staff will go out of their way to make sure everyone is satisfied. A couple of people in our group have special dietary needs and they have been met with the best of humor. People come back here year after year-the record being 120 visits by one person. Now that's a satisfied customer! My wife, Colleen, likes to describe it as an Adirondacks lodge plopped down in the Caribbean. Our rooms are on stilts over the water and we each have chairs and a hammock on our private deck.

But alas, all good things must come to an end. On Friday, slightly worn from a busy week of diving, night we had a rum punch party at the bar with a fantastic local guitarist. The guy could really play and had some serious rock star moves. Saturday morning came all too soon-bleary and thankfully rainy. Less than perfect weather makes leaving a little easier to take. After breezing through security and a wait in the lounge, we boarded the flight north and back to the normal world. Many thanks to Jeff and Merial for making this trip a reality. But above all, many thanks to Colleen, Victoria, Faith, Jose, Jennifer, Tim, Joanne, Earnie, Bret, Mike, John & Constance for being such great dive and travel companions to one of my favorite places on Earth. Let's do it again sometime!

-Miko