Scuba Dive the Bat Islands, Costa Rica

The perfect getaway for the experienced diver is the majestic blue water around Costa Rica. Costa Rica is an island rich with outdoor adventures. There is plenty to see and do whether you are on land or exploring its beautiful water wonderland.

Costa Rica offers travelers a magnificent rainforest, interesting volcanoes and gorgeous beaches. The underwater world and marine life is also quite amazing. The Bat Islands which are found off the coast of Costa Rica are a beautiful and exotic place to experience the underwater world of Costa Rica. The Bat Islands are located about 30 miles out to sea off the coast. A boat ride will take you out to this majestic dive site and on the way to the islands you may even get the first glimpse of what awaits in the crystal blue waters; dolphins, turtles and during the right season whales. The location of these tropical islands allows for the amount of marine life that can be seen in its waters. The Bat Islands tend to be a gathering place for many different marine life and fish that normally do not exist together.

The Bat Islands are located off the point from Santa Rosa National Park which is important to the Islands for the history, ecology and geology that it holds. Some of the original hacienda buildings were preserved for historical value and turned into a museum. In addition to the historical preservation of the buildings the national park also has a dry tropical forest and provides shelter to many plants and animal species. The sea turtles use this park to leave the waters and come to shore each year to lay their eggs.

The Bat Islands are a hot spot for experienced divers to come explore. The waters stay around eighty degrees year round. The outside air temperate holds a steady 85-90 degrees year round with low humidity. Water visibility can range from 30 to 100 feet depending on the tide, where you are diving and the currents that tend to be quite unpredictable. The waters are nutrient rich which will also create an attraction for the marine life which can cause problems with the visibility.

Visibility for the Bat Islands can vary from twenty feet to one hundred feet depending on the strong currents and the waves. The waters will never be void of giving you an experience to remember. A diver will be able to witness huge schools of fish especially snappers, eagle and grunts. The occasional manta ray and often encounters with a bull shark that will swim by too.

Divers familiar with this dive site know that the area “Big Scare” off the Bat Islands is the place for an adventure with many Bull Sharks. This area attracts a lot of marine life including manta rays, marlin, sail fish, and huge schools of fish such as ladyfish, jacks, snapper, spade fish and many more. The bull sharks are the main attraction at this spot. Bull sharks are very full-bodied with a snout that is more rounded. They have small eyes compared to the other shark species which gives the impression that they do not use their vision as a hunting tool.

For the underwater photographer these waters hold a majestic world. A photographer diving in these waters will have the chance to capture various moray eel species which include the Snowflake, White mouth, Zebra, Jeweled and others.

 
This location is not for the new diver. Most tours which take you out to this dive site will ask each diver if they are experienced. This dive brings you into a world surrounded by Bull Sharks, Tigers, and Black Tips. The diver’s entry to the water is typically a back roll with a cleared mask and deflated BCD. The boats cannot anchor to the bottom, which is only about 50 foot, so they drift above while the divers get a view of the sharks. Divers have the option of continuing down the wall of the reef which gives a diver depth to 140 feet. The dive itself is not a difficult dive but the entering and exiting for the diver can be more difficult and divers should be in good physical shape. There are also overnight excursions being offered through tour companies.

The Bat Islands are a fantastic dive site and guarantee an experience that will never be forgotten. The diving at this site is unspoiled and a diver can even expect to see caverns, bridges, sponges, corals and mass amounts of fish! Divers come from around the world to the majestic crystal blue waters of Costa Rica. The dives are incredible in these waters and there are many tours to help you chose the perfect dive site that will fit into time constraints, budget and experience level.