Is it worth getting into snokeling in New England?

[ScubaSarus]

Snorkeling is a great way to get into diving. Get good snorkeling gear; a good mask, booties, open heel fins. Then you can see how you like the water up here and use this gear to eventually take up diving with.

All the tropicals I saw last weekend were in the shallows of Ft Wetherill were the vis is usually clear.

I personally like body boarding fins for snorkeling but you can't really SCUBA dive with those

 

[Lursxt]

That's me! I've got kids and my wife doesn't dive either!

 

[large_diver]

It just takes a little hunting to find fun spots. The key is find rocky/reefy areas where critters are apt to hide.

I've done quite a bit of snorkeling with my kids in RI (starting at age 6 or so), where the water is warmer...at least later in the summer....you can last for quite a while in just a bathing suit or a rashgard/surf shirt

The fun part is watching the kids get excited even when they see the smallest fish or crab....the kid excitement level gets even higher when you see bigger stuff like striped bass, tautog or large spider crabs. You also get that same diving "movie star" thing going if you snorkel on a beach where there are other people around - kids always come running up to you as you emerge from the water wondering what you've seen and how you survived....

Now that my kids have "braved" New England snorkeling, I am looking for forward to snorkeling in the Red Sea with them next month (Egypt).....80F water temps and lots of colorful fish.

Good luck!

Chris.

 

[MASS-Diver]

There's plenty of great free-diving to be had in NE. Try Brant Rock in Marshfield on a day with a west wind.

 

[paulthenurse]

Give it a try. What have you got to loose? Worst case scenario, you spend the day at the beach, get some sun and go swimming. A no-lose day if ever there was one.

PTN

 

[mfalco]

There's plenty of great free-diving to be had in NE. Try Brant Rock in Marshfield on a day with a west wind.

Brant rock is like torture if you are looking for lobsters. It is loaded with 4 1/2" bugs with eggs, and a bunch that are too big. That being said it is probably a great place for snorkelers to look for lobsters because it is nice and shallow.