As many of you know, I love snorkeling on the best reefs in the world. If I was allowed to dive, I would, in fact, I talked to my doctors so many times about it, I thought I’d finally get an approval, but no such luck. Silly seizures! You have to make the best of what you are handed and I can see so much wonderful sea life just feet under the water. And that is exactly what I did in Belize!
One of the top reefs in the world and so close to home (relatively), Belize snorkeling is fantastic. Ambergris Caye was the perfect place to stay for diving and snorkeling. When we arrived, we knew what we wanted to do, but hadn’t made any reservations – no worries, our hotel helped with it all. Talking to the hotel clerk, he found us a half day for Travis to dive and me to snorkel and a full day for us both to snorkel together. I had no idea what I was in for the next 2 days!
Day 1 – Snorkeling
I was deciding if I should do the half-day snorkel, as Travis was on a different boat diving, and wow was I happy with my decision to go. With only about 15 of us on the boat, it made for a fun time! I love a smaller group so I can go off by myself a bit and find secret little places. We had three areas on the reef we snorkeled and each one magnificent in its own way. Of course, those that have read my other articles know I wanted to see turtles, my favorite. At the first area, we jumped in to a beautiful reef area and tons of colorful fish. With just a few of us, it was easy to swim around by yourself. As I went my own way, I heard someone yell “turtle!” I quickly popped my head up to see where and swam over as quickly as I could. There he was, just tooling around. I was so happy that within 10 minute, I saw my favorite sea animal – but things got even better.
As the morning went on, I swam along looking at gorgeous, colorful fish and coral, when suddenly I saw a shadow coming under me and I realized it was a big ray! How majestic it looked swimming gracefully through the water. I followed from above for some time thinking I could stay up with him, but when he grew board of me, he quickly swam out of sight. Wow – that was my first ray I saw snorkeling – he was fantastic! The day did not disappoint, and I saw more turtles and rays as the trip went on. I thought to myself how fun snorkeling was in Belize and I hadn’t even gotten to the full day yet. I had no idea what was ahead. And for any of you divers, Travis had an amazing dive, where he saw reef sharks circling around him! I’m actually scared of sharks, but I wish I could have seen one so close. But the trip wasn’t over, maybe I still would get a chance 😊
Day 2 – Snorkeling
As the next day came, I was so excited for another day on the water! This time it was with a family owned dive company and it was just Travis, our guide and me! Being just us made for the most amazing snorkel trip. If you have the chance, definitely do it, as it made for one of the best snorkel experiences!! Our guide was the brother of the owner and spoke with a heavy creole accent. At over 60, he was just doing this for the love of doing it, which made it even more of a special experience. He was having such a great time and that in turn, made it even better for us! He knew all the names of fish, where to find them and my favorite tip of all, and rub seaweed in your goggles to keep them from fogging up!
Our first jump in did not disappoint. We immediately saw tons of fish! With Travis and I being great swimmers, our guide was able to get us all over because we could keep up with him. With just the three of us, I could really swim around and get to see so many amazing things. As I swam around I saw a really large shadow approaching. My heart almost skipped a beat for a second as I realized it was a shark. Then just as fast, I wanted to see it closer. I quickly started swimming faster to get a better look. At some point, I realized I was following a shark, my most feared creature! I couldn’t believe it! I had seen a shark and didn’t have a heart attack, didn’t die and was actually trying to get closer to it! LOL I could only laugh at myself as I realized what an amazing fish it was. Once he swam into the distance, I just wanted to tell Travis I saw a shark. I’m sure he wasn’t as impressed, as it was a nurse shark, but it didn’t matter to me! I was so proud of myself for not freaking out!
As the morning went on, our guide purposely brought us to an area known for manatee. In fact, he brought us there early to get a better chance to see one. I saw them in Florida but never swam with one. As he slowed the boat, he spotted something in the water. We looked and didn’t see anything, but he told us to jump in, so of course we did. As I put my head in the water, I wondered if I would see the big animal and to my surprise, he was right there! Wow – he seemed so large and I couldn’t believe he was so close. We followed him for some time as our guide said at some point he needs to come up for air. As we saw him making the way to the surface he came up right in front of us. I could have reached my arm out and pet him – but of course we didn’t. It was a magical experience swimming with this gracefully manatee. He didn’t seem to mind us swimming around him at all. It was truly a wonderful moment that I will never forget! But the day didn’t stop there. E didn’t seem to mind us near him
As the day continued, we saw amazing fish, turtles and beautiful rays of different kinds. Then we came to shark alley, known for nurse sharks. Now one shark is one thing, but my heart was pounding in anticipation of being in the water for a bunch of sharks. As we slowed, we spotted them almost immediately. Our guide threw some fish in the water to get them to come close and told us to jump off the other side. For someone terrified of sharks, it was a little overwhelming even with nurse sharks. But I jumped right in and swam to the other side of the boat. There they were, tons of nurse sharks ranging in sizes. I couldn’t believe I was actually in the water with sharks! Now I understand they aren’t great whites, but for me this was a huge deal! They didn’t bother us at all and we were able to swim around with them. What a day! Just knowing I could overcome this fear was a huge moment for me. Maybe next Great Whites – or maybe not!
Oh, and I can’
t forget one part of the day. The last spot we jumped in was known for an eel. Our guide knew exactly where he usually hung out and how to coax him out of the area he liked. He was a deep army green and slithered through the water. Our guide was maybe 10 ft below us. We were watching the eel from a distance and dove down to get a closer look, when all of a sudden, he found us quite fascinating! Maybe he was a she, as I think she had a slight crush on Travis, as she tried to kiss him. Although Travis may say bite. The only thing I regret is not getting a picture of this newfound love affair.
What an absolutely, fantastic two days! After being to the Great Barrier Reef only six months prior, I have to say the reef in Belize is right up there, and possibly may favorite to date! If you are from our side of the world this is a great option for snorkeling and diving so close to home, on one of the world’s best reefs. I highly recommend making the trip. It will be worth it!
Happy Travels! 😊