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Mike's Dive tips

All three of the Cayman Islands are known for their amazing dive sites, and Little Cayman is absolutely no exception. Bloody Bay Wall is world famous, and year after year visitors fly to this small pristine island to witness the myriad of marine life surrounding it. Southern Cross Club houses, amongst other things, a full service dive shop where you will find Mike Schouten in a job that many envy.
 
Mike was born and raised in Leiderdorp, a small village in the southwest Netherlands. His family lived right next to the Rijn river, and so he spent a good number of weekends sailing with his parents. From an early age he discovered a fascination with the water and all the little critters that inhabited it. On holidays he could usually be found donning a mask and investigating the nooks and crannies under the sea.
 
When Mike turned 14 he joined a dive club in the Netherlands, got his first technical certification over the winter (brrr…..) and began diving in earnest in the spring. He was young and on a strict budget, so equipment was a mixture of rented and borrowed with very few pieces that were actually his. The first dive was an interesting experience – the wind was icy, the water was the colour of lead and his wetsuit was the wrong size. Water started seeping in the minute he began, he lost a fin and his mask merrily filled with liquid. “Wow!” he thought, “This is GREAT!!”

Up until the time of his required military service, he travelled on most Sundays to the south of the Netherlands to dive in Zeeland. When he finally had to sign up, he had the good fortune to join the Marines, which stationed him in Curacao of all places. Whilst there he made his way through certifications to eventually become qualified as a dive instructor.
 
After completing his service Mike decided to pursue dive instructing full-time, managing to get a job on the Greek island of Zakynthos. From there he moved to Israel, the Seychelles and a variety of other countries before making his way to Little Cayman and the Southern Cross Club.
 
Working in Little Cayman is basically like working in paradise for Mike. He lives under the sun, works in the sea and enjoys the friendly, relaxed atmosphere that surrounds him there. He has his hobbies in his leisure time, but really it almost all feels like leisure time when you’re in a job like his.
 
He likes variety in his sites, and so doesn’t have any favourites – after all, it’s difficult to choose in Little Cayman! He recommends the swim-throughs of Lea Lea’s Lookout, the schools of Chubs around The Mixing Bowl, the ruggedness of Jackson Bay and the sheer drop of the Great Wall East and West. During most dives the well-camouflaged pipe horses and decorator crabs are the intriguing creatures to spot.
 
Take a short flight staycation over to Little Cayman and the Southern Cross Club for the weekend, and see what you’ve been missing on and around this stunning sister island. Once Mike gets you hooked, you’ll become a regular visitor for life!    WH

Southern Cross Club – (345) 948-1099
southerncrossclub.com