Snorkeling on the east coast

[sgj]

I'd like to take my 8 year old snorkeling friday the 15th somewhere on the east coast- a birthday plunge! Which is the best place to do this north of Key Largo? (I live in Tampa, and driving down south of Miami is just too long)
Thanks

 

[MikeJacobs]

I'd like to take my 8 year old snorkeling friday the 15th somewhere on the east coast- a birthday plunge! Which is the best place to do this north of Key Largo? (I live in Tampa, and driving down south of Miami is just too long)Thanks

I used to enjoy snorkleing just south of the Commercial Blvd. pier - as close as you can get to it legally - right off-shore. The reef there is only 9 - 13' below the surface and the coral is honeycombed with lots of life. I've seen large nurse sharks, turtles, rays and even a big green moray eel on that spot. Just go slowly and keep your eyes roving the "horizon" as well as directly below.

This is the "snorkleling path" that is written about but it's long since been overgrown. Somebody has even dropped rusted out toy cannons, though they may be buried by now. Boats don't come in that close because of the pier.

The reef is just at the can-bouys at that point (about 100 yards off-shore) so you need a flag to take advantage. Even for an 8-year FISH I'd suggest a LARGE float so s/he can hang on to it if tired, and a snorkle vest wouldn't be a bad precaution either.

Watch the weather - it's very calm today and clearing but we have another hurricane on the way and shore visibility deteriorates rapidly.

 

[sgj]

I used to enjoy snorkleing just south of the Commercial Blvd. pier - as close as you can get to it legally - right off-shore. The reef there is only 9 - 13' below the surface and the coral is honeycombed with lots of life. I've seen large nurse sharks, turtles, rays and even a big green moray eel on that spot. Just go slowly and keep your eyes roving the "horizon" as well as directly below.

This is the "snorkleling path" that is written about but it's long since been overgrown. Somebody has even dropped rusted out toy cannons, though they may be buried by now. Boats don't come in that close because of the pier.

The reef is just at the can-bouys at that point (about 100 yards off-shore) so you need a flag to take advantage. Even for an 8-year FISH I'd suggest a LARGE float so s/he can hang on to it if tired, and a snorkle vest wouldn't be a bad precaution either.

Watch the weather - it's very calm today and clearing but we have another hurricane on the way and shore visibility deteriorates rapidly.

Thanks for the reply. Where is the Commercial Blvd pier?

 

[MikeJacobs]

Thanks for the reply. Where is the Commercial Blvd pier?

Of course... we dive the area so often that we forget to provide directions... sorry.

It's also called Angler's Pier.

Find the Commercial Blvd. exit off of the turnpike or I-95 depending on which way you come. Commercial Blvd. is 4 exits north of I-595.

Once you've found Commercial Blvd., the rest is easy. Drive west until you hit the Atlantic Ocean. You can park at the pier and then enter the water just south of the lot. There is also good parking one street south of Commercial Blvd., but bring a lot of quarters - I think you get about 15 minutes for one. The street name is Datura.

To get directions, plug the following address into Yahoo or MapQuest. This address is actually two streets south of Commercial but it will get you in the right area: 4200 El Mar Drive, 33308.

There are lots of restaurants in the immediate area, so you'll be able to make a day of it. The paring does fill up in the afternoon, so mornings are best.

One more thing - the conditions are often better in the mornings. The afternoons almost always pick up a bit but not too bad for an average 8-year old swimmer. If you want to make sure you come on a CLEAR day, just watch this board because we get all excited when it looks like a great shore diving day - and this is where a lot of us shore dive!

 

[Trisha]

On that note...
Mulligans is on the corner of Commercial and El Mar Drive and serves a great $2 breakfast until 2:00 pm. They began to know us by name after two weeks!
If you want to avoid the parking hassle on Datura Avenue (which is the only thing I don't like about the dive site) then check out the motels along El Mar. We used Beach Apartments Motel and would do it again.

The Lauderdale-by-the-Sea beaches have showers but no restrooms. Morning dives were sweet! Afternoons get a bit adventurous for scuba, but my daughters and I enjoyed taking floats and tubes out and playing in the waves. On the Snorkel Trail and first reef you need to bring a shovel to do a 15-ft safety stop!
Good luck!