Sunday morning we had brunch at the Deep End. We wanted to show Reggie the great snorkeling right off the beach there. The power had gone out that morning and we soon discovered why when we drove to the entrance of Green Cay Marina, where the Deep End is located. Someone must have hit a pole earlier in the morning and really destroyed it. It looked like the WAPA (Water and Power Authority) crews had to replace TWO poles, actually.

Fortunately, the restaurant has a large generator. Unfortunately, it was not large enough to allow the toilets to be flushed and there was all manner of stuff in all of the toilets I tried to use. I informed the surprised bartender of this fact and hoped that Troy (the restaurant manager) was able to correct the problem. Anyway, brunch was good, but there were a few other tables ahead of us and the poor waitress seemed to be in over her head (”in the weeds” is the saying used in the industry), so it took a while. Reggie and I each had a veggie omelet and Michael had the eggs benedict.

When we were done, we walked just a few yards over to the entrance of the water. The beach is not one of those long sandy stretches that you think of when you think “Caribbean” and I have described it as being “nothing to write home about”, but there’s a little sheltered dipping area protected by a breakwater composed of huge boulders, and a narrow entrance to the right, by the jetty which separates the beach from the boat entrance to the marina. There are lovely coconut palms and cabanas and chairs for rent by non-hotel guests.

We got our snorkeling gear on and swam out a short way and took a left. It was cloudy at that point and the water was murky. We hoped it would clear up once we got farther out. It did, a little, and we got to see a lot of fish. We even saw and followed for quite a ways, a little hawksbill turtle. To the west, in front of the Tamarind Reef Hotel, there’s a very cool spot with beautiful swaying sea fans and soft corals. The multicolored fish darting in and out of openings in the reef remind you of a thriving aquarium. But it’s so much nicer to see the fish in their natural habitat. There were so many fish, I couldn’t name them all.

We ventured farther west, beyond the rocky point which separates Tamarind Reef area from Shoys. The sea fans are usually gorgeous there, but it was pretty rough and the current was strong and we didn’t go far enough to see them. It was Reggie’s first time out and we didn’t want to have him overdo so soon. So we turned back and had to work pretty hard to get to calmer waters where we didn’t have to fight so much. I saw a large coral rock which seemed to have a coat of fur. We could see the “hairs” moving with the currents, especially when we dove down for a closer look. Reggie saw a trumpet fish and thought it was some sort of sea snake. We have seen a lot of them in this area in the past.

I started getting cold, so swam back in and the guys followed me as well. I think we had been out there for close to an hour. There’s just so much to see in a small area. Gotta love this place!

We dried off, the guys got drinks, and then we walked around to see if we could find some iguanas. Sure enough, on the other side of the watersports shack, there were three of them. One was older and extremely colorful. He had all sorts of crests and flaps and things decorating his prehistoric-looking body.

After Michael took a few pictures, it was close to time for Reggie’s Panthers to play their first game of the season, so we went our separate ways for a few hours. We would meet later in the afternoon to get the Pickled Greek ready for our “Welcome Reggie” party that evening.

Tags: St. Croix

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