We are desperately trying to get in touch with someone who runs a catamaran and snorkeling tour around Ambergris Caye. So far we’ve contacted three different outfits. It’s been a couple of weeks and we haven’t heard from two of them. The third was just contacted recently in response to some advice we received in our comments thread. But what are we going to do if these guys don’t contact us?

We’d like to book this tour and have piece of mind knowing we’ve lined something up for Sunday before we get there. It would be awfully inconvenient to try to scramble the night we arrive for an activity the next day. Most probably don’t have this problem as they spend the first day orienting themselves and absorbing the locale. But we’d like to maximize our fun and our trip.

So we’ll continue to pursue these different vendors and hope that someone replies to our pleas!

Liz is having no luck contacting any of the catamarans in Belize. I’m starting to wonder if these companies close down during the off season. It’s starting to become painfully clear that some of the downsides to going in the off-season will be fairly significant.

If you’ll recall, Liz had originally talked about Unity Tours but quickly decided we should go with Me Too because they offered the same package for a better price. Remember – we’re still trying to think budget. So far, neither outfit has responded to her emails. We’re not crazy about calling, but will resort to that if we must.

We did, however, get some leads on a couple of other boating services. A Good Samaritan offered some guidance in the form of a comment, to which Liz replied. Mary Toy of destinationbelize.com suggested we try some other options. To quote her:

For the catamaran trip Seaduced and Searious are both great and run day snorkel trips, or for a smaller catamaran I would recommend Geraldo / El Gato. They all go to Hol Chan/Shark Ray Alley and then on to Caye Caulker for lunch.

She did warn us further that, because this is the slow season, our options are largely hit or miss. So we’ll see what comes up. Neither of these options offer fishing, but they would give us the snorkeling opportunities that I am eager for. If we want to really stretch our budget, she suggested we contact a gentleman, Steve at fishingsanpedro.com who represents most of the fishing craft. But that’ll easily cost $200+ per person.

I don’t know why open water fishing is so expensive. What’s the difference between taking a boat full of fishermen out and a boat full of scuba divers? Diving usually costs $100 for the day. Fishing is exponentially higher. But it doesn’t seem as though the service is anything more substantial. Fishing crew set your bait and help you land the trophy, but dive master’s babysit the entire dive crew for the full time they are submerged – and, they must be certified to do so!

Well, Liz and I will figure out our boating trip. Or we’ll take kayaks out, a little fishing line and some hooks, and we’ll catch our own fish. Check back for a later post on this crazy scheme.

We didn’t get to kayak this last weekend. It was a scuba diving trip that took us to Rockport and led to another visit to North Shore Kayak. But we did get to stop in, say hello and discuss a little bit about kayaking, our trip to Belize and the possibility of purchasing some rides for next year.

While I was there, I picked up a new dry bag. I got a 10 liter Seal Line Baja Bag. I got this primarily to protect my new DSLR camera. I think that most of our gear is pretty waterproof with the exception of this and Liz’s Sony Webbie. The V.I.O. POV 1 and my Sealife are both waterproof (to a certain extend) but these other items might be vital to one or more of our planned adventures; particularly, the ATM trip.

We’ve already established that the ATM trip will involve some immersion (and possible submersion) in the walk to the cave and even within. Since it’s the rainy season, we can count on other wet days. And finally, we’re kayaking, snorkeling and diving. So yes, water is a constant. And I think that if we are to properly document this trip, we need to ensure that we have the resources we need.

The dry bag was a small investment, about US$17.00 towards preserving our gear and equipping us for the elements. Match this with the killer Marmot jackets and a few other waterproof items (like the dry box) and we should be all set!

I know this is a redundant topic, but I wanted to expand a bit more on it.

The mosquito problem in Belize. I hate, hate, hate mosquitoes. Ever since I was a child and my family would vacation in the Outer Banks, NC I have had an extreme irritation of mosquitoes. When my family would vacation, we would always rent a house with my mom’s sister’s family and her three kids. With Seven kids, two couples and my grandmother and her friend (6 adults) there wasn’t ample sleeping space in some of the houses. One year, I was deemed the “sun room” or screened in porch as my sleeping headquarters. Again, I dawned my bed as an air mattress all week. I woke up morning after morning covered in more and more mosquito bites than the night before. I had horrible itching for weeks after returning from the Outer banks and developed a deep hatred for the little buggers.

One day, as a teenager and later in life, I was reading through a Cosmopolitan offering tips for summer beauty. One of the tips suggest Vitamin B1 as a mosquito repellent. You take the pills and the scent your body emits from the pills wards off mosquitoes. I immediately went out and bought a bottle of Vitamin B1 from GNC. Ever since, I have always had vitamin B1 in my possession. The Vitamin B1 has worked for me and it has prevented huge red itchy bumps from camping trips and late beach nights. You have to start taking the pills a few days before your planned journey, but it does work. I have read recently a few forums of people being worried of taking Vitamin B pills being asthmatic. I can say, having asthma as a child and (fortunately) seem to be growing out of it, I have had no problems combining Vitamin B1 with my asthma. Another plus about the Vitamin B1 is that it enhances your energy and metabolism. Maybe I can contribute some of my slender figure to that? It’s not a diet pill but a natural energy enhancer/mosquito repellent. Again, a win win situation!

I have about 8 pills left in my bottle. This means I’ll be making a trip to CVS Pharmacy (I no longer shop at GNC) to pick up some more of these handy pills to start taking three days before Belize and to share with Courtney.

I learned a few things today that will help benefit me on my trip to Belize.

1. My Gorge Rafter water shoes are not as great as I hoped them to be. First off, the shoelace tightner broke. Also, they started to rust around the metal rings where the shoe laces are strung through. Lastly, after wearing them all day today while assisting Courtney and his friend Garrett dive, and then later walking around Rockport, MA- my feet are hurting so bad! They have blisters and they’re sore. And it does not help that they are closed toe shoes and the heat from today turned my feet into a boiling sauna when they were in the shoes. No fun.

2. I had my first snorkeling experience today! Just practicing for when I will have the opportunity to do it in Belize. I wanted to know what to expect. Courtney lent me his snorkel and goggles and I did it without fins. Courtney thought I wouldn’t be able to keep up without fins but he underestimated my swimming skills. I found snorkeling to be very fun and exciting. It gave me a peace of mind too because I have always been scared to touch the bottom of the ocean. I’ve been scared of crabs. And after snorkeling, my fears were proved valid about the crabs, but it also proved to me that they are more scared of me than I am of them! The crabs were plentiful! As well as lobster, and starfish and fishies. Next time I want to take some crabbing gear with me and bring home some of those tasty little fellows! I’m so excited to go snorkeling in Belize because the visibility will be better. I hope to see more fish than what I saw today in Belize.

I learned that I don’t necessarily need flippers, but yes, it’s still probably a good idea. I learned to overcome my fear of the bottom of the ocean and to dive down deep and pickup starfish off the ocean floor. I also learned that I should reconsider getting a new pair of shoes to wear hiking to the ATM and to wear on the catamaran. I cannot go wearing shoes that will give me blisters and make my feet sore. So again, the hunt is on for a new pair of boating/water shoes.