PegNDerek's Snorkeling
Where intelligent life returns to the Sea
Christmas Cove, St.
James Island, USVI
Captain Nautica Power Raft Shore Excursion out of St. Thomas
Ship: Millennium (Celebrity Cruises)
Sailing Date: December 29th, 2002
Date of Snorkel: January 2nd, 2003
Equipment Availability: we have our own which we take with us, but snorkels, masks, fins and vests are provided on board the power raft, along with a large clear plastic “dry bag” in which to put towels, shoes, outer wear, etc…
Water Access: Short Ladder over the Side of the Power Raft
This was the first of two stops that we made on the Captain Nautica Power Raft (really a glorified speed boat—The Ocean Rider) Excursion out of St. Thomas. It was a good spot, but the second stop (Honeymoon Bay on St. John’s—see our review) was better for snorkeling.
Christmas Cove is actually a private beach that Captain Nautica pays a fee for so that they can provide a snorkeling spot for this excursion. We were clearly warned to stay off the beach, and the number of long-spine sea urchins as one approaches the beach makes getting out of the water undesirable anyway!
There are some rocks to one side of the cove where the snorkeling was excellent—very shallow with terrific visibility. We saw and photographed plenty of the usual reef dwellers and some Trunk fish—a first for us. They were hard to photograph since they prefer to stay on or neat the bottom, but their triangular body shape is very interesting and unusual.
There is also a long underwater shelf that runs along the front and other side of the cove for about 300 yards. The water was deeper here (about 7 to 10 feet), but visibility was excellent. We saw a both a good quantity and a good variety of fish here, plus a lot of babies at this time of year. The corals were disappointing—not well developed and lacking in color. Damselfish predominate and we were “attacked” a number of times by Damsels defending their algae “gardens”—always a treat!
We were told that we would see Southern Sting Rays off the shelf. We did not. Guess they had had their fill of tourists during the morning excursion!
One word of WARNING: While speed boats are a terrific way to get from one snorkeling spot to the other, this one was extremely uncomfortable. There was virtually no padding on the benches where one sits along the sides of the boat. The over-grown adolescent who drives the speed boat likes to hit every wave as hard as possible for the maximum roller-coaster effect, including cutting behind passing boats to take advantage of the waves in their wakes. This is lots of fun but very hard on one’s butt as the boat roars into the air and flops back down!
Snorkeling Grade: B
