Re: Coco's Island (land of many a buried treasure legends)
Hey Bran,
The last time I was on Cocos was back in '99. I spent 18 years sailing on NOAA research ships. One of our projects was studying whale and dolphin populations in the lower latitudes. When we were in the area we would anchor off Cocos for a little R&R. We would radio the rangers on the island, tell them who we were and what we wanted to do. Because we were a government ship, we could usually get permission to go ashore fairly easily. Even WITH permission there were some places we were not allowed to go. The whole island is a nature preserve and they don't want a bunch of people tramping around. I remember seeing several dive boats in the area. We would anchor on the (North?) side of the island. The water was pretty murky and HUGE sharks would swim past within a couple feet of the ship. I was told they were pretty safe since they were well fed. We'd launch a small boat and head to the beach. You had to wear shoes because the urchins were thick right up to the beach. A really muddy trail led from the beach, through the jungle, and up the side of a steep hill and toward the island interior. The rangers told us that, yes, pirates used to use the island as a layover point and that there had been several attempts to find treasure. Later, some folks tried to establish a colony on the island but it failed after just a couple of years. So, that's about all I know about Cocos. Except, that the best diving seemed to be on the opposite (windward) side of the island. Beautiful coral and clear water but strong winds. Hope this info helps.
Bosun Dave