Snorkelling

We travelled primarily along the north coast of the island. The southern 3/4 of the island is tidal flats and creeks accessible mostly by boat so we didn't go there at all.

Most of the northern coast is protected by a reef as much as two miles off the beach. Inside the reef is shallow. In fact, I kayaked 1.5 miles out to the reef from our villa and never found water over 8 feet deep. Trying to turn around in the breakers I got tipped over. It was waist deep! I did see places that were probably good snorkelling but wasn't prepared for it. Having a boat and maybe a guide would have been nice.

On our second trip, we did snorkel two sites from a boat. These were some of the better sites we saw. Unfortunately, there had been a period of rough seas before this trip which chased many of the fish from shoreside locations.

Here's a brief review of the locations we tried.
Click on the photo icon to visit the location in our photo album.

Pelican Cay
	This is a small island 1/2 half mile off Bambarra Beach near the town of Bambarra. A sand bar connects it to the beach and you can walk there at low tide. The surface of the island is jaggedly eroded coral limestone. Along the north edge you can see fossilized sponges. A shallow reef surrounds the northern side of the cay. You can touch bottom in most places as you view the reef. A strong current was flowing; I couldn't get around the island the first time because I didn't have my flippers and was going against the current. Try circling the island counterclockwise.
	The family at Pelican Cay.
Ferguson Cut
This is about midway along the north coast. Take the Old Bay Road (the dirt road that parallels the highway) and look for markers tied in the trees. Beware of parking too close to the beach. You might get stuck. I did. Coral heads lay inside the reef a few hundred yards off the beach. Here I found a live Queen Anne Conch. One brain coral maybe 5 feet across. Lots of what was probably Fire Coral. Some of our party saw a large barracuda. On our second trip to Middle Caicos, we snorkelled one of the coral heads just inside the reef near Ferguson Cut. These pictures are from that dive.
	I saw this conch directly below the boat as soon as I jumped in. It gave itself away by moving as I watched. From the plane flying to Middle Caicos, you may see a square stone wall lying under the water. There is also one east of Bambarra Boat Landing. These are conch corrals. Captured conchs are placed inside to keep them alive. They can't climb out.
	This small nurse shark didn't cause quite the excitement that the large adult I saw at Samuel's Landing did. In fact, it seemed quite afraid of me. Even as I approached on the surface, it turned to hide among the rocks.
	Another wary reef denizen.
Half Creek
	The site of an old fish packing plant. Take the new two lane limestone road just before you get to Lorimers on the east end of the island. Getting into the water may be difficult. To the left before you get to the plant ruins is a sandy bay that may be easier than the way we went. High tide makes it easier to enter the water. This location probably had the best coral we saw. West of the point the water is deep enough that you can glide safely over the sights below. We saw a small cuda here also.
Samuel Landing This is one of two beachfront boat landings east of the town of Conch Bar. The waterfront is rocky along most of this shoreline but the boat landings each have a sandy beach maybe thirty feet wide. One afternoon we saw a boat cleaning something here. We returned an hour later to snorkel. They had been cleaning Conch. Here the bottom consists of grassy knobs under four feet of water. These knobs overhang sandy channels about 8 feet deep. This was our son's first snorkelling (he's 10). My wife was towing him around. I was slightly ahead of them when I saw at least 4 feet of shark tail out of the corner of my eye. He was headed away from me at the bottom of a sandy channel. I never saw the front half of him. We left calmly but quickly. I later identify it as nurse shark by the white diamond shaped marking at the tip of it's tail. It was 8 or 9 feet long and probably attracted by the conch cleanings. I know they are harmless but the idea that he had seen me first, checked me out and was leaving even before I noticed him gave me the willys. When we returned to Samuel's on our second trip, we were rather disappointed. Rough seas had churned up sand making the water murky. We ventured out further and approached the rear of the reef. It was mostly a rocky wall with not much to see.
Stubbs Landing
	This is the other landing near Conch Bar. Here there is a rocky formation marked by bouys. Lots of fish hiding under the overhangs. Also territory of a 3' cuda. We floated motionlessly while he had a staredown with the three of us for a minute or so.
	Swimming further out from Stubbs you approach the back of the reef. The reef forms valleys with overhanging formations as in this photo.
Bambarra Beach
	East of Ferguson Point, the reef curves out far from shore. Snorkelling here, you'll find mostly sandy/grassy bottom and not-very-colorful fish.
Blue Horizon at Mudjin Harbor
	West of Conch Bar. We snorkelled from Hidden Beach which is accessible only through a cave in the cliffs. It was a challenge to get off the beach since a line of shallow rocks lies just off shore. At the East end is a sandy channel past the rocks. Not much coral but probably the largest fish we saw. There is reportedly a wreck along the rocks some distance from the beach. I never found it; it's either gone or I didn't swim far enough.
Gamble Point
	We walked a mile east from Bambarra Beach Landing along what I called the Lunar Sidewalk. Near the point is a man-made rock tower with an Osprey nest on top. There were chicks and a parent in it as we walked by. We had heard this was a good spot but could not reach anything that was worth the long hike. At the time there was a very strong current that kept us from getting around the point to the reefs. The reefs off Gamble Point are accessible from boat. We were able to dive them from Dolphus's boat on our second trip.
Highas Cay
	We hired Albert Robinson, a local fisherman, to tour the creeks between Middle and North Caicos. In the past, Middle natives used to walk across this area between the islands to buy food on North. I found a conch and Albert caught five more plus a lobster.
Identifying The Fish
	There are many fish identification guides available. I haven't really figured out how to use them yet. Too much time passes between when I see the fish and when I try to look it up. And trying to take photos is even harder as you can tell from the relative scarcity of fish in the pictures on this page. In this photo are two specimens of a fish that was distintive enough that I could identify it. Black and white stripes around its neck separate the body from its blue head. Well, guess what. It's called a Blue Head. Reminds me of the bird I saw out of my living room window. A large black bird with a yellow head. Rushing to my Peterson's Guide to North American Birds, I find that it's a ... Yellow-Headed BlackBird.
The islands are notable for conch and lobsters. Mostly we saw empty conch shells on the bottom and lobster heads washed onto the beach. With fewer that 300 locals, it's hard to imagine overfishing. We didn't see many live conch or lobsters but I'm sure there is a steady supply. I think the best spots are just a well kept secrets. In fact, learning from the locations we visited on our second trip, I'd say the good locations are far off shore. There are lots of barracudas and there must be a substantial food chain to support them.