Argo Sept 26 – Oct 6, 2022 | Cocos Island Trip Report

“Diving in Cocos is incredible. We saw 2 baitballs with tunas, sharks and dolphins. The tiger sharks are huge. So many fish, schools of eagle rays, hammer heads, mating marble rays, and just an infinite number of white tips. Overall ghe trip was amazing. I will recommend it to all my friends, and specifically the Argo.  You guys are so professional. Great to see it. Keep it up.” –Gil & Eyal Bar Tsion, Eilat, Israel

We set sail from Puntarenas with a group of divers from the United States, Costa Rica, Israel, Mexico and Germany. The crossing was a little choppy, but overall it was fine. Our first day at Manuelita Channel we saw three different tiger shark including an enormous pregnant one measuring just over 5 meters! Glancing at her from a distance looked like a juvenile whale shark. We also observed about 8 eagle rays in formation and a huge school of bonitos trying to escape from blacktips that were lazily chasing them.

On day two we did our first dive at Punta Maria, where we observed some Galapagos near the pinnacle – which was full of marine life including several species of fish, white tips and marble rays. The second dive at Dirty Rock was active with hammerheads coming in close to be cleaned, as well as a group of 4 eagle rays and at the end of the blue a school of about 50 hammerheads. 

Our third dive at Pajara was comparatively quiet, with some endemic fish from the island, some moray eels and a seahorse. 

Back at Manuelita Channel on day 3, we encountered a strong current which caused the jacks to protect themselves by clinging to the rock –  there were thousands of them, and once in the channel we found 2 tigers and some eagle rays swimming together against the current. 

Small Dos Amigos was very active with hammerheads, Galapagos sharks and a tiger. Although we had a strong current, we managed to observe an active cleaning station. For our second dive, Dos Amigos Grande was on fire as we found a school of about 20 hammerheads in front of the arch and along with them a huge, completely black manta ray, as well as some fish inside the arch and some marble rays passing close to us. 

On day 5 we started by diving Alcyone. Tuna were hunting together with blacktips and almaco jacks. In the distance we saw silky sharks, Galapagos sharks and hammerheads. Back in Manuelita Channel we saw a massive cloud of jacks practically attached to the cleaning station, and once in the sand we found ourselves face to face with two huge tigers that swam very relaxed against the current. Meanwhile, above the divers a beautiful mobula ray passed overhead.  

Day 6, Dirty Rock gave us a wonderful sendoff with hammerheads and Galapagos that passed in front of the station, two eagle rays and at the end a school of about 50 hammerheads in the blue.