Snorkel or dive, Snorkel or dive, Snorkel or dive, that is the question? Having a difficult time to decide? If I dive, might see bigger sea life, but gotta go early and get my BC and weights. Feeling a bit lazy, planned to photo, snorkel it is. Did not want to go to the touristy inner reef. Wanted go to Glover’s Reef , one of the remote Cayes, (has a rustic resort with cabanas over the water, just to check out for reference) and a really unspoiled reef. The downside is a 2 hr boat ride. However the dive shop Splash, ( Polly’s recommendation) needed 6 to sign up, there was only me. The plan is go to the outter reef, Salt Caye.

Splash picked me up at my hotel. Drove to the dive shop and boat dock. Upon boarding the boat, it was WOW! A state of the art boat, had a deck in the back, so you could enter the water with a giant stride off the back, favorite entry. The boat had electronic stairs into the water off the back, fresh water tanks, and a fresh water hose that you could rinse yourself and gear. All the while, wishing I had gone diving instead. It was about an hour boat ride, very smooth.  Got to the very small beautiful and picturesque caye, dropped off the snorklers and then took the divers a short distance. In our snorkel group, there was a guide and 2 older ladies with little experience, I helped them some. We swam to 2 different parts of the reef. Got a few good pictures.

Saw a really large nurse shark. The many nurse sharks that I saw are 3-4 ft, this one was sleeping on a sand bottom at a cleaning station, fish eating bits from the skin of the shark. Swam back to the little caye. They prepared a lunch, barbeque chicken, slaw, potatoes and baked beans. Ate lunch, and talked to the divers.  After lunch, snorkeled to another part of the reef. Back on the boat and went to see the sea turtles and rays. Few minute boat ride to a sea grass area. As soon as the boat stopped, we could see the turtle swimming toward the boat. Divemaster said “go” and jumped in on snorkel. So mesmerized by this graceful creature, I kept snapping pictures, the turtle seemed to have chemistry too because it swam right toward me. Kept snapping pictures, the dive master had to intervene, because the turtle was getting really close. The turtle did bite one girl in the but or bum, as the British girl said, she thought it was the dive master! There was only a red mark though. Saw 4 manta rays, but they were deeper and pics not so good. As the turtle frolicked in the sea, he was joined by 2, slightly smaller turtles. Time to go…