Quizzing Experienced Snorkelers...

[Guest 2000]

Guest 2000, is this the general route to follow and return from the rock (not shown) via the same path? Is this considered the safe zone in terms of currents and deep enough reef so as not to get tangled up?

 

Fudge the image is not showing.

 

If you found it in this thread what was the post number?

[Razor_Poke]

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipPZA792kVYIkrYBkBBRlF-JzE4UpbEXsmis5ZQc/photo/AF1QipOGSp5mqj7Sr7P9THBjZE9E1VibMPtgXREtITkz

 

Try this -- I'm not good at this.

[Guest 2000]

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipPZA792kVYIkrYBkBBRlF-JzE4UpbEXsmis5ZQc/photo/AF1QipOGSp5mqj7Sr7P9THBjZE9E1VibMPtgXREtITkz

 

Try this -- I'm not good at this.

 

 

Hmm that didn't work either, I do not know why.

 

Is the image part of one of the posts in this thread? The post number is in the upper right corner.

[Razor_Poke]

Sorry it's my own pic that I drew on but I can't get it to work. BUT, post 259 will work. Basically, follow the green flags out through the kidney and then turn left and swim parallel to the beach working your way toward the rock.

[Guest 2000]

Sorry it's my own pic that I drew on but I can't get it to work. BUT, post 259 will work. Basically, follow the green flags out through the kidney and then turn left and swim parallel to the beach working your way toward the rock.

 

 

Yes, through the kidney following the sea side of the first reef in the direction of black rock, if you are comfy going out farther you can follow the second deeper reef back. I would recommend staying on the land side of Black rock, there are times the current will take you out and around the tip of the bay.

 

Another thing to consider, there is a very small current going from the kidney to the wall, you will find it just a hair more difficult to swim back to the kidney.

[Razor_Poke]

Yes, through the kidney following the sea side of the first reef in the direction of black rock, if you are comfy going out farther you can follow the second deeper reef back. I would recommend staying on the land side of Black rock, there are times the current will take you out and around the tip of the bay.

 

 

 

Another thing to consider, there is a very small current going from the kidney to the wall, you will find it just a hair more difficult to swim back to the kidney.

 

 

 

Thank you. Can't wait to get out there.

[kupers]

Love this thread!!!

 

 

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[jfeathe]

Sorry for the bump, but can anyone who has visited recently tell me how much a full snorkel rental is and if it's worth doing a guided tour (if they're even available)? There will be 4 of us so I don't know if that gives us any haggling power?

 

We're doing the Victor Bodden Fun'n'Sun Tour which stops at Bananarama for 2 hours.

[anonmom]

Yes, through the kidney following the sea side of the first reef in the direction of black rock, if you are comfy going out farther you can follow the second deeper reef back. I would recommend staying on the land side of Black rock, there are times the current will take you out and around the tip of the bay.

 

Another thing to consider, there is a very small current going from the kidney to the wall, you will find it just a hair more difficult to swim back to the kidney.

 

We were planning to snorkel the kidney area on our first cruise last January (on the Jade, where Roatan is the last port) but we were too worn out to do anything beyond just tendering to shore and hanging out in the port area for a couple of hours. Now we're booked on the Getaway for next January and Roatan is the first port, so we're very excited to try again!

[CAC104]

Wow! I have been on CC for years and love to snorkel and I just now found out about this thread. Now it is going to take me a long time to read through all the posts.:D

[rn01icu]

I'm not going on a cruise but will just be spending a week in West Bay. I love snorkeling and this has been the most informative info on the web by far.

 

Thank you all for wonderful posts!

[Guest 2000]

I'm not going on a cruise but will just be spending a week in West Bay. I love snorkeling and this has been the most informative info on the web by far.

 

Thank you all for wonderful posts!

 

Have a grand time!

[44Days]

My wife and I were lucky enough to enjoy some snorkeling March 15 at Tabyana Beach. We've snorkeled in many locations around the Caribbean, but this was my favorite and I thank those that gave advice to go here.

 

As a way to return the favor, I hope I can help others in the future, so I signed up here. Feel free to ask me any questions.

 

A few things I preferred:

 

• We did just the Tabyana Beach Party excursion, so we rented snorkel gear from the private dive shop adjacent to the beach. It was cheaper and we didn't feel tied down.
  
• Those dive shop employees would also go out with you and show you some great things if you asked. In fact, we didn't ask, they offered. Obviously they are angling for tips, but it was definitely worth it.
  
• The 1,000 foot drop off is not too far out. I have some videos of that I will hopefully get uploaded soon when I have more time.
  

For now, the link below is a six minute Go Pro video I took. I hope you enjoy, and to be frank, the video doesn't remotely do the snorkeling here justice.

 

[44Days]

I haven't yet got all the videos up (don't you hate when real life gets in the way?), but here's 3 more short clips.

 

Absolutely stunning parrotfish: ahDM1E9ZC8M

 

Massive parrotfish (video doesn't do this one justice with no scale reference, but it was 30"): TBGUWLX2mnE

 

Mixed species, beautiful reefs: ukHeBooDVZo

[44Days]

And the original 6 minute video, since I can't edit posts yet on this forum it appears:

 

TBGUWLX2mnE

[44Days]

Two more videos of this awesome place. The Drop Off (1,000 feet straight down), and a mini drop off with so many schools of fish.

 

_Z3gvu2vDtM

 

 

z2Ft4TzLWaY

[mitsugirly]

So...we are headed back to Roatan and have decided to do a Discover Scuba here on West Bay. After contacting a lot of dive shops, I believe we have picked one.

 

They state we will dive Mandy's Eel Garden. From what I can tell, this starts in front of Infinity, head in the kidney, then out to the open area running along the beach and then out along the outer wall then circle back around.

 

This is the only picture I could find that gives a "map" of it.

 

 

Has anyone done this?

 

Why do they call it the eel garden? Are there a lot of eels there? :D

[Guest 2000]

This is wonderful, you with be able to compare most of the space I snorkle with Maya Key. I know one of the days you were in West Bay you were not the least bit impressed.

 

It maybe worth while to ask on the Trip Advisor Roatan board, perhaps the divers know about Mandy's eel garden. I don't remember seeing any eels but you are going to be closer to the outter reef than I can get with a snorkeling.

 

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[mitsugirly]

This is wonderful, you with be able to compare most of the space I snorkle with Maya Key. I know one of the days you were in West Bay you were not the least bit impressed.

 

It maybe worth while to ask on the Trip Advisor Roatan board, perhaps the divers know about Mandy's eel garden. I don't remember seeing any eels but you are going to be closer to the outter reef than I can get with a snorkeling.

 

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Yeah, the last time we were there, it had been raining for a few days and the water was stirred up really bad. I know the further we got out the clearer it became, but we were also dealing with a 3 year old and this was her first time in the ocean and salt water. Although she did really well swimming around, she did give out easily and we'd have to throw her on our backs for her to rest while we continued to try to snorkel. We were not able to go out too far due to this and the safety of all of us.

 

 

I really hope we have a better experience this time around...I'm sure we will...how can we not. :)

 

The dive shop did confirm that the route I found was fairly close to the route they take us (they said entry was the same and then they go "left" at the wall. The route I found showed it goes left, unless they are saying left when looking at the map (which would actually be right when you are in the water).

 

 

Anyhow, they said it was known as eel garden because at 60' the sand bottom has the brown sand eels, but they could be seen at 40'. I'm not sure if we will actually go down that far, but it would definitely be neat to see if so.

 

 

[Melismass]

Yeah, the last time we were there, it had been raining for a few days and the water was stirred up really bad. I know the further we got out the clearer it became, but we were also dealing with a 3 year old and this was her first time in the ocean and salt water. Although she did really well swimming around, she did give out easily and we'd have to throw her on our backs for her to rest while we continued to try to snorkel. We were not able to go out too far due to this and the safety of all of us.

 

 

I really hope we have a better experience this time around...I'm sure we will...how can we not. :)

 

The dive shop did confirm that the route I found was fairly close to the route they take us (they said entry was the same and then they go "left" at the wall. The route I found showed it goes left, unless they are saying left when looking at the map (which would actually be right when you are in the water).

 

 

Anyhow, they said it was known as eel garden because at 60' the sand bottom has the brown sand eels, but they could be seen at 40'. I'm not sure if we will actually go down that far, but it would definitely be neat to see if so.

 

 

This made me laugh! I saw garden eels recently while diving in Hawaii. I didn't know what they were and the DM kept pointing at them so I swam over to get a look but they disappeared. I saw more in the distance so I swam toward them and again they disappeared. If you get close enough to get a picture of these guys, my hat will be off to you! I really hope you get to see them. In my 15 years of snorkeling and now diving, I never even knew they existed! Have a great dive! I cant wait to see your pictures. Also, I really liked the snorkeling off of West Bay. Ive been to pretty much the same places you have and I think you would like the snorkeling there. However, the last time I was there, I got tore up by some kind of microscopic jelly fish. I wondered why I was the only person in the water. I found out real quick! I have never experienced that anywhere else. That was a few years ago in February I believe!

[geeko1]

Maps typically have a scale in the bottom corner that you can use to measure distance with

[mitsugirly]

This made me laugh! I saw garden eels recently while diving in Hawaii. I didn't know what they were and the DM kept pointing at them so I swam over to get a look but they disappeared. I saw more in the distance so I swam toward them and again they disappeared. If you get close enough to get a picture of these guys, my hat will be off to you! I really hope you get to see them. In my 15 years of snorkeling and now diving, I never even knew they existed! Have a great dive! I cant wait to see your pictures. Also, I really liked the snorkeling off of West Bay. Ive been to pretty much the same places you have and I think you would like the snorkeling there. However, the last time I was there, I got tore up by some kind of microscopic jelly fish. I wondered why I was the only person in the water. I found out real quick! I have never experienced that anywhere else. That was a few years ago in February I believe!

 

Haha, that's a great story. I doubt we'll see any close enough to get a good picture (the zoom on my camera is the only draw-back on it). They said they are about 60' down and we can only go 40' down. But it sure would be neat to see!

 

 

We've been in the water and others have gotten the mysterious stings and welts before, but not me...even after being right there with them. I guess I'm lucky...or just too sour for them. ;p

[mindy2]

We have done several dive's at Mandy's Eel Garden. This is a great route going in and around the reef there. You are likely to see those garden eels, they are quick and from a distance just look like brown grass. We have also seen the larger green eels as well as the spotted eels. You might see a small ray, lobster and hopefully a turtle or two. We often sit in front of Infinity Bay and watch the Discover Scuba groups going in and out. That's what peaked our interest in diving several years ago. I'm sure you'll love it.

[mitsugirly]

We have done several dive's at Mandy's Eel Garden. This is a great route going in and around the reef there. You are likely to see those garden eels, they are quick and from a distance just look like brown grass. We have also seen the larger green eels as well as the spotted eels. You might see a small ray, lobster and hopefully a turtle or two. We often sit in front of Infinity Bay and watch the Discover Scuba groups going in and out. That's what peaked our interest in diving several years ago. I'm sure you'll love it.

 

Thanks for the description. Hopefully we will get lucky and see some interesting things. Is this route that you go in and out of this area considered the kidney shape referred to within this thread?

[mindy2]

Thanks for the description. Hopefully we will get lucky and see some interesting things. Is this route that you go in and out of this area considered the kidney shape referred to within this thread?

 

 

 

Yes, that's exactly right. Nice close dive and generally no more than 30ish feet if I recall.

 

 

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