I enjoy reading about all your snorkeling adventures on the GC forum. Lots of good advise too. My family of six adults who love to snorkel will be staying at the villa 'Far Tortuga' in July and heard the snorkeling off their dock is some of the best on the island. Is that true and have you ever snorkeled in that general area? Also when you get to the reef from there, can you snorkel on the back side of the reef or is it a deep dropoff ? What about the current beyond the reef itself? I am very curious as to what we will be seeing and the depth of the water in the sound itself going out to the reef. Thanks for your insight! Jim D.
AnonymousHey Jim,
You picked a great house for a snorkel base on North Side. I love the set-up of Far Tortuga, plus the name kind of hits home.
The snorkeling there should be good. I have not snorkeled directly in the waters off Far Tortuga, but I have down the road, about 1 mile closer to Rum Point. I was just picking out some spots that looked promising from shore. The fish were plentiful, but coral was lacking at that particular spot. The barrier reef was a bit too far from the shore, so I didn’t get to explore, but a little closer to Driftwoods is pretty good. I can’t recall if there are any cuts in the reef nearby the house, but the reef breaks-up a bit over that way so there probably are. You you might try looking on Google Earth to possibly ID some prior to your arrival. Chisholm’s Grocery is a searchable land mark and the house is a little east of there.
The back side of the reef can be snorkeled, but it will depend on the conditions. I usually stay on the in-land side unless the water is placid, no desire to become a reef ornament if the waves or currents are unfavorable. There are some drop-offs in that general area and you can sometimes see larger fish coming in and out with the tides. If you get tired of the area, you are within 10 minutes to some other excellent areas as well. My current favorite is Barefoot Beach. Hope you have a great trip!
!!!
