Hi Bruce,
Not an expert in the area but did spend a a couple of months in Honduras and Belize a few years ago. I was shore based so dived Corn Island (nice structures but not as good marine life wise), Roatan (good diversity, from juvenile fish inshore in the margroves, to all sort s on the fringing reef) and Belize, (where the barrier reef was fantastic).
Depends what you are trying to hit but if you are after corals and reef fish, you need to keep offshore. The big rivers in the area, like the San Juan pump out a fair bit of sediment, so the inshore is likely to be pretty turbid, limiting the the diversity of corals.
If you it s mangroves that you are after then obviously north of the San Juan is where to aim, but be wary with navigation there are a lot of shifting sand bar that can cause headaches.
If I was you I ll pull out a chart and look for pinnacles and reefs between the Bay Islands and Corn Islands in Honduras. With out knowing the currents better I d make the assumption that coral and fish recruitment is going to happen in this area so there is the possibility of finding some cool sites.
Alternatively an easier way would also be to check the liveaboards schedule and see where they dive and aim to follow their routes.
Hope this is somewhat helpful.
Erol
I'm putting together an itinerary for a trip to Honduras and Belize on a private boat in April - and was wondering if anyone knew of any areas that were difficult to access, off the beaten path or even the "must do" sections of both countries?
The main focus is the whale shark/snapper spawn at Gladden spit - but I'm needing to fill in some gaps around there as well - and looking for insight as to the best spots to hit.
We're considering not even diving Honduras - and spending the whole two weeks in Belize, but still not sure. Any advice/thoughts/experiences would be greatly appreciated.
Aloha,
Bryce
