I haven't been able to get back into the water for a couple of years. I'm really hoping this will be the year I return to Jersey Wreck diving but for now, snorkeling with my Grandson is good enough. David has become quite a swimmer. When you combine that with a deep interest of sea life and marine animals you end up with a natural snorkeler.
The first time we went snorkeling in June of 2022 at Discovery Cove. Their snorkeling lagoon is large. The bottom is full of features and can get deep in some areas. There are lots and lots of fish and in the back there is a glass wall between the snorkeling lagoon and shark tank.
Although David did the dolphin encounter he preferred to be in the snorkeling lagoon. He put on the gear and took off, never missing a beat. It was amazing seeing him interacting with the fish, especially the rays. There were so many rays.
The next real opportunity for us to go snorkeling was in January of 2023 on Tortola. We visited two sites. At the first site we were required to enter the water from a drop down ladder. His transition from enclosed lagoon to open sea was seamless. He was swimming here and there, pointing out all of the fish.
We went into a sea cave which wasn't too dark and we saw lots of fish. After that we went here and there again looking at the Parrot Fish chomping on coral and the multitude of other fish darting around.
After David settled down a bit we went back into the sea cave. This time he slowed down and relaxed. I showed him Glassy Sweepers, Fairy Basslets, Squirrel Fish and even a juvenile Spotted Drum with its sweeping top and bottom fins.
On the way back to the boat I was able to show David some Yellow Headed Jaw Fish. I went down and showed him how they back into their holes.
At the second site in Tortola we tied up at a dock and walked down the beach for a walk in entrance. Right away David saw two green sea turtles, one of which stayed around eating while we all watched. David also spotted a small brittle star which we stopped and played with. We changed locations and saw another turtle and some squid.
The next day we on an excursion to Trunk Beach on St. John's for a beach snorkeling experience. It was actually a National Park and had information about fish and underwater features on underwater plaques. Although there weren't as many fish Barbara spotted a Spotted Moray Eel. David loved that. It was just swimming around the small coral and sponges, out in the open.
There were a few areas we could have explored but David became more interested in playing in the sand and mini-surf, which was just fine.
