Need advice on snorkeling in Fla

[Larry Grenier]

I'm just a beginner. I've read a little about the Dry Tortugas being good for snorkeling and scuba (Accessible by plane or boat SW of Key West). Any other suggestion, perhaps a little more accessible? I'd prefer the less-crowded places.

[scubadude]

Key Largo is not hit near as much as middle and lower keys....and key largo also avgs under 25' in depth....so it would be excellent for snorkelling As far as Dry Tortugas goes...Im not sure about the park itself cuz I have been there for the past 3 years but it has always been outside of park boundarys (diving...not snorkeling) but I will say that the tortugas is some of the best diving I have ever seen in Fl. and I have been to alot of places in FL.!! Also Ft. Lauderdale/Dania area is great diving and a few great spots for snorkelling. I highly recommend the book "Diving guide to underwater florida" by Ned DeLoach .....should give you all the info you want...Good Luck

[lifestudent]

Hi.

I started the thread "Where's are the best places to snorkel in the FL Keys" on this bulletin board.

Based on my recent experience (1/19-1/21/02) and only experience in the keys, here are my choices based on the 3 places we snorkeled. We used charters since I don't have access to a boat and didn't want to hire a private boat (>$100 for a half day):
1. Key West - especially Rock Reef which had not only a large variety of fish, but the corals were the best of the 3 places. Avg reef depth was 4' with channels to 25'
2. Pennekemp - it had the largest variety of fish as well as large schools of blue and purple tangs. Avg depth was 15' with avg reef depth 5-7'
3. Looe Key - it had many fish and was the least populated with other folks. Avg reef depth was 5-7' with channels avg 25'

As to Dry Tortugas, I did not get to go although I wanted to. I read in my Atlanta paper that the Park Service had suspended all snorkeling at the fort due to 2 shrimp boats crashing into the fort during a storm on 1/1/02 :eek2:. The suspension is in effect until the boats are removed which should be sometime soon. :( I read and also had it confirmed by the Key West charter captain that the wall of the fort is the best place for seeing coral. So please call before you go. One charter leaves Key West at 8 AM and returns at 5 PM, so you won't want to tie up an entire day without getting the snorkeling/diving you want!

BTW, the Park Service limits the number of folks visiting Dry Tortugas daily to 300. So it should definitely have only a few number of snorkelers since many folks only go to see the fort and the birds that nest there.

BTW, the water temp was 72F so a full length wet suit is definitely recommended.

I hope this helps.

Bob

[ranaman]

I would check into the state parks like Long Key in the upper keys or Bahia Honda in the middle. Both these sites have nice patches of sponges and gorgonias. There are also a few scattered coral heads of star and brain coral. Water is about 3-6 feet deep. You won't see elkhorn or staghorn corals but there is a good variety of fish if you look around. You can just swim a 100 yards or so from shore, no boat needed. It has been several years but people have always seem to be spread out.