Liveaboard Diving in the Bahamas: the Best Dive Sites of Aquacat.

It’s impossible for me to give an adequate recording of all the dives we had on Aquacat. The program was quite intense and it started with 5 dives per day for the first 3 days, 4 day-dives and 1 night one. Then, as we come closer to the end of the trip, the number of dives is  gradually reduced to make sure that the people that need to take a flight immediately after the end of the cruise, are ready to take off and the no-fly time is 0.

If you go on every single dive, day and night, you will end up cumulating 29 dives. Not sure if any of my travel mates managed to do all of them, I was already exhausted after the 5 dives of the first day.

The crew informs us that there is a dive-related contest: the “feature creature”. Before each dive, the lead DM designates a marine animal and we need to spot it during that specific dive. Sometimes it’s very easy to spot them, if, for example, the DM picks a lion fish or a barracuda. When it comes to Molly, however, you can see that she is in love with tiny creatures, because what she picks is almost invisible and unlike her, we don’t lave a loupe. If you want to have an idea, try to find a Skeleton shrimp that lives on a seaweed or on a hydroid whose color it’s mimicking and then you’ll grasp the challenge.

As it is the first time I’m in this part of the world and I want to get the most of it, I decide to alternate the dives with the land excursions and see also what’s above the water. 

Each dive is preceded by a briefing with the DM. If you want to check the daily program, it is displayed on the whiteboard in the dining room. Thought the first dive is not that early (8.30 am), breakfast is at 7.00 am, so waking up at 6.30 am is quite hard. 

The very last dive of the very last day is at the dawn, to give us the possibility to contemplate how marine life changes as the night fades and the sun raises.

In the program on the first day we have the Blue Hole and I’m thrilled about it. It is the first time I dive in a sinkhole and I must say it is quite an experience. I swam in the Bimmah Sinkhole in Oman, but that one is not underwater, so the sensation is very different. It gives an awkward feeling being sorrounded by walls and not being able to see the bottom. The one we are diving in is about 90 mt deep. We go down till about 30 mt, explore the walls, and swim it its center, admire the sleeping turtle in a crevasse. I’m not convinced I like this kind of dive, probably I’m slightly claustrophobic. There’s nothing reassuring about it: it is cold, deep and dark. I’m not relaxed at all, thought I would have never missed it and I would dive there again. I keep on watching my computer and when I am 10 minutes away from the NDL, I start going up, as deco dives are not allowed. Even seeing the turtle swimming quietly towards the surface and the light  does not make me feel safe and it is only when I am outside the hole that I totally relax and release the tension. There’s a triumph of marine life outside the Blue Hole, so we swim among the corals. Stingrays and a giant moray are waiting for us.

The primary reason I’m here in Bahamas, are sharks. I try to go on shark diving at least once per year. After two times in South Africa, I moved to another continent to come and say hello to  Bahamian sharks. Bahamas is one of the best spots of the planet to see sharks. They are super protected for conservation reasons and because they significantly contribute to the economy of the country, as they attract divers from all over the world.

We see sharks almost at every dive and each time I see a shark I lose interest in everything else and stare at them as long as I can, sometimes a few seconds, sometimes a few minutes. A couple of times we are lucky enough to see them during the safety stop. The interest is not reciprocated. They ignore us most of the time, barely paying attention to us, keeping on swimming back and forth under the boat. 

For the shark feed dive I feel well prepared, as I did one in 2024 in Umkomaas. We are in Austin Smith and the shark feed dive is planned for the 30th of December at 16.00. It takes place on a wreck and the logistic and the preparation demand attention and discipline. 

Underwater, we stay on the railing of a wreck. The DM, Amy and Victoria, make sure we are well positioned before going back to bring the bait. They still need to fix it suspended on our heads as the sharks start arriving, attracted from the fish. They are not the only one interested: barracuda and groupers also show up, while we watch mesmerized the sharks taking big chunks of the bait at every bite, swimming around it over our heads. I divide my attention between the sharks and Victoria, who is up there, swimming among the sharks and filming. She is so close that a couple of times the sharks in frenzy bump into her. She does not show any sign of panicking and the sharks are not at all curious about her. 

Even in the sanctuary of Bahamas, there is evidence of mankind cruelty: one shark has a hook in his mouth and another one is missing the tip of his dorsal fin. As soon as the last bit of bait disappears, swallowed by a grouper, they disperse. A few linger a little longer, but when it becomes clear that the banquet is over, they swim away to their usual business. 

One shark dive was even more breathtaking than the shark feed dive: the one I missed.

We went on excursions to see iguanas, on one of the islands. We stayed there for a good while, playing with them, observing their pink spots, feeding them with grapes. The launch was full as many of us agreed to go. 

On the way back, we are still on the launch approaching the Aquacat, when we see Steph super thrilled. She is making big gestures with her arms and shouting. I can’t really catch what she’s saying till we get close enough.

“WE SAW A WHALE SHARK. PAUL GOT IT ON HIS CAMERA”.

I will never forget Ana’s disappointed look and comment:

“We were watching lizards, while they saw a whale shark”.

I would still recommend that excursion, though, as there’s no guarantee that the whale shark is waiting for you there. 

Note: the pics are not mine. I realized too late that the memory of my gopro was full, so all the underwater pictures are screenshots taken from the video realized by the Aquacat crew. Same for the videos.