The staff at Pancho's Diving Adventures are here to make your visit memorable. Take a few moments to meet our dive masters and boat captains. Before each dive trip, our dive masters meet with the divers to determine their skills and interests. Based on these discussions they suggest dive sites that are suitable to the training and interests of the group. Once the dive sites are selected, the boat captain takes the group to that site. Before beginning the dive, the dive master briefs the group on the depth and bottom time limits for the dive. They point out the kinds of coral formations and marine life they are likely to see at this site. Together with the boat captain, our dive masters help the divers suit up and enter the water. Once everyone is prepared, the dive master gives the signal to descend. As the dive progresses, our dive masters help the group locate and observe some of the more interesting aspects of the site - like toad fish and lobsters hiding under crevises, or turtles and rays swimming off the edge of the walls. When the time limit has been reached or one of the dive group has reached the air pressure limit for the dive, the dive master calls an end to the dive and leads everyone in the ascent and safety stops. The dive master and the boat captain together assist the divers in removing weights and equiptment and re-entering the boat.

Boat captains have an important role in Cozumel diving. They do more than just drive the boat. Because of the constant currents that sweep the island reefs, almost all dives are drift dives. This means that once the divers descend the currents move the divers over the reefs with very little effort on the diver's part. When the dive ends, the divers ascend and - magically - the boat is there to pick them up. No worrying about getting back to where the boat is anchored. Well, the boat captains are the ones who make that magic happen. They follow the bubbles during the dive and when the dive master sends up the 'divers ascending' flag, they are there to help the divers back into the boat.

Lets meet a few of our dive masters and boat captains.

Francisco Javier Uc Chan (Pancho)

Dive Master

Pancho is the owner and lead Dive Master for Pancho's Diving Adventures. He has been a PADI certified Dive Master for over 20 years, working with several dive operations on the island. Pancho's family comes from the town of San Felipe on the north coast of the Yucatan peninsula where he was first introduced to diving as a lobster and octopus dive/fisher.

Brandon Francisco Uc Marrufo (Francisco)

Boat Captain

Francisco has been certified as a boat captain since 2014. However, he has been part of the Pancho's Diving Adventures team since he was 4 years old. Over the years Francisco has developed a great depth of knowledge about diving. Francisco is a familiar and trusted face to a great many of Pancho's Diving Adventures guests. For him, safety is always his greatest priority.

Makumba

Our Boat

Although not technically a member of the staff, the Makumba is the primary dive boat for Pancho's Diving Adventures. The Makumba is a small, fast boat that can handle groups up to 8 divers. The smaller group size means less time getting divers into and out of the water and more bottom time diving. It allows for more personalized dive planning since smaller groups can more easily choose a dive site together. Come ride the mighty Makumba with us.