Better than being in an Aquarium

Swimming & Snorkelling

We are sitting in a National Park called the Tobago Cays. Out the window to our starboard side is the island called Petit Tabac. For those Pirates of the Caribbean fans this is where Johnny Depp & Kiera Knightley were marooned. The gaff rigged sailboat above was also in the movie.

The Cays are world famous for its amazing snorkeling. As we were heading off in the dinghy this morning for a snorkel we had a turtle sighting. So Jenessa, Alex and I high tailed it out of the dinghy to see it. It was a Hawksbill Turtle, they are common in areas around reefs where there are grassy areas. We were able to swim and follow it around until we tired. It was quite interesting to see how easily it glided through the water. It turned out that there was at least five in the same area. And according to Aunti Kelli a bunch of turtles are called a rafter, bale or a role. Turtles are air breathers and come to the surface usually three times in a row when they require air. This makes them fairly easy to see from a boat.

Besides the turtles the highlight of snorkeling so far here in the Cays has been:

Goldspotted Snake Eel - Jenessa & Donna spotted one that was about 24” long. They live in shallow burrows under the sand and eat small crabs and crustaceans. The book that we were reading about them says they are not aggressive and have gentle inquisitive natures. It is known as a Sea Snake, but actually there are no known sea snakes in the West Indies.

Tarpon - While snorkeling at Petit Tabac at about a depth of 10 feet we were surprised by a Tarpon that must have been about 3 – 4 feet long. He wasn’t very interested in us so he didn’t hang around long for us to see him for long. Tarpon grow to a length of 8 feet and are considered a game fish here.

Scrawled Cowfish – We have spotted a few of these interesting fish. They have these funny looking appendages that look like horns over their eyes. Their bodies have wonderful almost iridescent squiggles running all over it. They grow to about 18 inches. The ones that we have seen have been between 10 to 14 inches.

Trunkfish – Are fairly common, but always fun to see. They have very triangular shaped bodies with small tails. They seem like they are very inefficient swimmers.

Barracuda - Jenessa and I spotted one when we were snorkeling around a small island. She almost drowned me by trying to hide behind me. They really are non aggressive, but do have an impressive set of teeth.

Lots of Spadefish, Squirrelfish, Tangs, Blenny, Damselfish, Butterflyfish, Goatfish, Trumpetfish, Basselet, Grunt, Wrasses and Parrotfish

The other amazing sight here in the water is the variety of corals. Just in this small group of islands there is Elkhorn, Sea Fan, Pillar, Finger, Brain, and Staghorn. There is also a variety of sponges like vase and tube sponges.

Swimming here is like being in a gigantic aquarium. I apolgize for no photos, but we do not have an underwater camera. Up to now, I thought it wasn't worthwhile having an underwater camera, but I wish we did now.