It is just amazing how Roca Partida can surprise you with so many wonders at the same time!!
The magic of current in Roca Partida. While some divers find it uncomfortable, with a good jumping point everybody can enjoy the show and the benefits that a good current in Roca can give us without struggling.
This week was AMAZING. Thousands of cotton mouth jacks, big eye trevallies, and schoolings of creole fishes were in the frame for some crazy shark activity. Galapagos sharks passing by, Silvertips hovering and getting cleaned, and many whitetips. Massive yellowfin tunas were hunting, swimming super-fast only a few feet away from the divers. These tunas passed so close and fast that it was a bit disturbing at times.
The advantage of a strong current is that it brings oxygen and nutrients into the water. Sharks can breathe easily because water enters their gills effortlessly and abundantly. In Roca, we can see all the benefits of the current in a wildlife environment and enjoy them as divers!
My Spectacular Underwater Experience at Roca
Many times, I have heard divers and my colleagues talking about this fantastic event that occurs in Roca at the end of the season – the migration of silkies. This year I could see it with my own eyes and it was by far more spectacular than I thought.
It was a wallpaper of yellowfin tunas passing in the blue. And after that, the silkies came. They were 50-plus silkies swimming all at the same rhythm. They were not afraid of the bubbles and they passed by us so close. Also, there was a small bait of barriletes swimming very fast.
Every group had its attitude and speed. A communion of species going north. Healthy ocean. Nature can be so perfect. Roca Partida shining. I think that architects, urbanists, artists, and designers, people who work in the cities should come to see this show of beauty and organization. I love my job so much! Roca always surprises me.
A Memorable and Haunting Surprise from Deep Down Roca
This one surely takes the cake among all my diving off Roca Partida.
It was the last dive after two days of diving in Roca Partida. We had seen so many kinds of pelagic sharks and other fishes by this time that by the end of the second day, some divers decided to rest and skip the eighth dive.
We jumped on the skiff ready to say goodbye to Roca and as soon as we felt the water, the silkies approached us. We stood with them at 18 m and unexpectedly heard a song very similar to that made by dolphins, but there was something different about it. It was super loud also.
As a reaction to the noise, a big group of small yellowfin tuna crossed in front of us very excited and making a spectacular show by the way they swam. After that, a not-so-large group of very big yellow-fin tuna came and spread into two groups just in front of us. That moment was magic, I just felt the life all around me and my group in the soft and bright light of the afternoon.
Suddenly, one false orca came from the surface and crossed in the middle of us just 5 m from me. The whale crossed so close that I could see the detail of his belly bottom and the strength in his movement. But in a blink of an eye, it just disappeared going deeper and getting lost in the dark blue.
That moment just overtook me and all divers in the group were looking at each other trying to understand what had just happened.