Hi from eastern NY - a question already...

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turtlecurls

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Hi! My niece, 9 turning 10, loved snorkeling in Cayman Islands this winter. She wants to go again for her birthday. So I came here hoping to get good snorkel location ideas a reasonable daytrip from our location near Poughkeepsie, NY.

A tough request... but any ideas are very welcome!!! I'm not dive certified so I'm sticking with snorkeling for the two of us.

Looks like a great site!!
 
Welcome to SCUBAboard!

Good Luck & Good Snorkeling.
 
flying or driving?

Compared to Cayman another equally pricey option is the BVI's - there are day trips to the Anegada marine reserve and many of the smaller islands just for snorkeling. We dove among some of the islands south of Virgin Gorda - at many there were snorkelers closer in snorkeling in the shallows. At places like Little Dix Bay or Mango Bay Resort that's all they allow there - the water is almost too shallow for boats. Everytime we took the dive boat into Little Dix - slowly and carefully - Turtles dove for the bottom. The captain said the whole area is like 10-20' deep. It's their private bay and expensive though - makes Cayman look reasonable.

Typically you fly into St. Thomas and take the fast ferries to the BVI's - takes about an hour. The ferry port is 5mins. from the airport.

There's also snorkeling at the world famous Baths on the south end of Virgin Gorda. Basically the whole island is Cayman expensive also.

There's decent shallow snorkeling off St. Thomas's East End. Sapphire Beach is one area where a lot of people - including cruise tours - snorkel. Coki Beach is another. There is some recreational drug use on Coki Beach but it's not overt. They also do Snuba there - tethered, surface supplied shallow diving - off the beach. You wear one of those bubble helmets. IDK what the age requirement is.

It's a 1/2 hr. car ferry ride to St. John where the snorkeling is so good they have snorkel trails at places like Trunk Bay. St John Snorkeling Caneel Bay is also supposed to have excellent snorkeling.

Parts of St. Croix also but IDK where - from there you can also day snorkel trip to Buck Island National Park - it's mostly all that's allowed there - limited diving.

There's decent snorkeling off Nassau also. Stuart Coves dedicates a boat just for snorkelers and they dive shallow reefs. Some are 6-10' from the surface. Coves also has those SUB vehicles - ride on bubble helmeted vehicles that you can ride near the bottom - they're tethered to the boat. But you have to be 12 and 5' tall for that. Downside with Coves is that although they offer free pickup, they're a 45min. shuttle ride away.

There's also several guided tours from Paradise Island (Atlantis mega-resort) that go to another nearby island for shallow snorkeling on 1/2 day trips. If you're a guest at Atlantis there's also Dolphin Cay - she might really like that. Swim with the Dolphins | Paradise Cay Bahamas | Atlantis Paradise Island
 
@Diversteve - that sounds so nice. Originally the idea is driving from home for a day trip.

If we do it, then maybe for next birthdays we can plan a trip. I take her older sister skiing every year, so I'm looking for a new idea for this niece. She's a homebuddy, so this year it has to be a drive.

I'm copying your info for my future reference!
 
That is a tough request. Day trip from where you are. One thought. Ft Wetherill RI. Check out this event. NEADC Annual Tropical Fish Rescue

This event is fun but you are going to have to prep your niece for the reality that New England snorkeling is just not going to be like GC. The plus of Ft Wetherill is that it has two protected coves and is set up for diving and snorkeling. Water temps get into the 70s late summer. Vis varies greatly. Some days 1-2 ft, other days 10-15. I have seen snorkelers at this event just wearing bathing suits, but a wetsuit may be more comfortable. The tropical fish event is a nice event that you and your niece might find interesting. Even if you do not see or catch any tropicals, there will be tanks where others will place their catches.
 
That is a tough request. Day trip from where you are. One thought. Ft Wetherill RI. Check out this event. NEADC Annual Tropical Fish Rescue

This event is fun but you are going to have to prep your niece for the reality that New England snorkeling is just not going to be like GC. The plus of Ft Wetherill is that it has two protected coves and is set up for diving and snorkeling. Water temps get into the 70s late summer. Vis varies greatly. Some days 1-2 ft, other days 10-15. I have seen snorkelers at this event just wearing bathing suits, but a wetsuit may be more comfortable. The tropical fish event is a nice event that you and your niece might find interesting. Even if you do not see or catch any tropicals, there will be tanks where others will place their catches.

That's a very interesting trip. It's still 4 hours from us, so I'm not sure, but I wrote to them to learn more. I'd think by Sept 28 it'd be quite cold in the water? With all their events for the day with the tropical fish, it would make up a lot for the difference from GC snorkeling.

I thought I saw online something about wrecks by NYC. I wondered if there's any shallow areas good for snorkeling?
 
That's a very interesting trip. It's still 4 hours from us, so I'm not sure, but I wrote to them to learn more. I'd think by Sept 28 it'd be quite cold in the water? With all their events for the day with the tropical fish, it would make up a lot for the difference from GC snorkeling.

I thought I saw online something about wrecks by NYC. I wondered if there's any shallow areas good for snorkeling?
take her to Dutch Springs ..It takes 1 hr 45 min from Yonkers NY and there is a water park there too where she can do a bit of snorkeling. Visibility is very decent for the area.
 
Water temps not a concern late Sept and early Oct. Best time to dive. Takes a while for the water to cool down. Good luck and have fun on whatever you decide.
 
You might check with your local dive shops or any on the coast that are near where you might want to go, to see what they recommend.
 
Thanks for the ideas everyone!! The Dutch springs link has a listing by a NYC dive shop that's anxious to sell the world on NY diving... so that's my next place to ask questions. (NYC is 2 hours from us.)

Any other ideas, I'm all ears. I can't believe the great info I've gotten so far. Thank you.
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