Snokling Advice

[familycruiser01]

This sounds strange - even to me - but my bf says he can't snorkel because of his mustache. HUH??? Ok, since the majority of the excusions in Grand Cayman and Falmouth are snorkeling - anyone want to give input on this? I know he would love the colors and sights - but I don't want to go do something that he honestly can't do :( Any suggestions??

[marjosagb]

Use goggles that don't cover his nose

[SamFritz]

The first time I tried snorkeling I was really afraid I was going to drown. I was miserable the whole time. I couldn't put my face in the water without having my mask fill up with water.

 

Some people say that if you put some Vaseline on your mustache it will help to seal the leaks, but that didn't help me at all.

 

Now I shave the morning that I'm going. No problems.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk, please excuse all the typos.

[TEXASMUNK]

Get some Vaseline, coat the mustache, it will prevent water from getting in.

Or, grin and bear it, I have a brush and tolerate the small amount that does get in the mask, but also use Vaseline when diving.

[KansasK]

They tell divers to coat the mustache with Vaseline. My son shaved his mustache and kept his beard and dives and snorkels without a problem.

 

A leaky mask is misery for a snorkeler or a diver. You spend all your time clearing the mask.

[RCI Cruisers 004]

Trim the stash real short and use the Vaseline . I ended up buying my own gear which helped also ! lets just say the quality is better than what they offer you on excursions.

[Soundview77]

Use goggles that don't cover his nose

This is a good idea, I'm not critical of it, however, it works as long as you are comfortable breathing through your snorkel with your nose exposed to water and don't plan on going deeper than the surface, or you will experience "squeeze" in the goggles and may pop a few eyeball capillaries.

 

A properly fitting mask (most likely one that you own and bring with you), a trimmed mustache, and some vaseline is your best bet if you don't/can't do the goggle thing.

[jb008]

Another alternative is to use swim googles like you'd use as a lap swimmer, and then to add a nose clip if you have trouble keeping water out of said nose. With a snorkel though you should have enough air to clear your nose by blowing out... but might have some issues if you like diving down and then needing to clear the snorkel tube later.

[mom says]

The first time I tried snorkeling I was really afraid I was going to drown. I was miserable the whole time. I couldn't put my face in the water without having my mask fill up with water.

 

Some people say that if you put some Vaseline on your mustache it will help to seal the leaks, but that didn't help me at all.

 

Now I shave the morning that I'm going. No problems.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk, please excuse all the typos.

 

My husband endured the experience that you described. He was more than miserable. When we got back to the boat he had to lean over the side- the water just poured from his nose as his sinuses drained. He'd gotten a free (if unintended) sinus irrigation. It was extremely unpleasant for him.

 

Trimming his mustache and vaseline were little to no help. And he refuses to shave it off (and I agree with that). He's happy now to stay on the surface and just use swim goggles while I snorkle.

[paxriver]

I have a full beard and have snorkled in Hawaii and the Caribbean with no trouble. The masks I've been given came to just below the nose and had no trouble. Tell him to go and enjoy it.

[mjonis]

This sounds strange - even to me - but my bf says he can't snorkel because of his mustache. HUH??? Ok, since the majority of the excusions in Grand Cayman and Falmouth are snorkeling - anyone want to give input on this? I know he would love the colors and sights - but I don't want to go do something that he honestly can't do :( Any suggestions??

 

Hello, first:

I'm guessing the mustache may interfere with the snorkel mask creating an air-tight seal around his face

 

Secondly:

Where do you snorkel in Falmouth? I've been trying to find snorkeling excursions and the only one I can find is via RCI. There's others out of Montego Bay and stuff, maybe, but they don't appear to cater to Falmouth port.

 

What to do?

He may wish to buy a pair of SWIMMING goggles and a nose plug, and that way he can see, keep his nose plugged and just use the snorkel for air.

 

He could try to shave a bit of the mustache off under his nose as well, but may look funky.

[ehfl]

Some water will get in, but he can just blow out his nose to increase the pressure in the mask while tilting his face so that the water accumulates at the bottom of the mask where it meets his mustache. The water will be forced out the same way it came in. No big deal.

[cb at sea]

Maybe he doesn't WANT to snorkel.....if he's like me, we prefer our fish on a plate, with a sprig of parsley and fries!

 

I've tried it a couple of times....highly over-rated, IMO....maybe I just don't care! Who knows. Maybe he doesn't care, either! Don't force someone to do something they don't really want to do.

[bankofdad]

As others have suggested, trim the stashe and use vasaline. I have my own mask that I had fitted at a dive shop years ago, and it helps to reduce leaking since it fits right. Making sure the mask strap is at the right tension (not to loose) helps very much, too.

 

Sure, there can be some leakage, but it's easy to blow the water out and reseal. No big deal. If he really wants to snorkel, having a mustache is not an issue IMHO.