Page 135 - Florida and the US Caribbean Isles

ISLA DE CABRAS - Isla Culebra “Snake Island”) is an island-munici-
pality of Puerto Rico. It is located approximately 17 miles (27 km) east
of the Puerto Rican mainland, 12 miles (19 km) west of St. Thomas
and 9 miles (14 km) north of Vieques. With a population of 1,818 as of
the latest census, it is Puerto Rico’s least populous municipality. These marine life is very diverse, including manatee, dolphins, green and
small islands are all classified as nature reserves and several nature
reserves also exist on the main island. One of the oldest bird sanctuar-
ies in United States territory was established in Culebra on February
27, 1909 by President Teddy Roosevelt. There are bird sanctuaries on
many of the islands as well as turtle nesting sites on Culebra. Leath-
erback, green sea and hawksbill sea turtles use the beaches for nest-
ing. The archipelagos bird sanctuaries are home to brown boobies,
laughing gulls, sooty terns, bridled terns and noddy terns. An esti-
mated 50,000 sea birds find their way back to the sanctuaries every
year. These nature reserves are protected by the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service.
ESCAMBRON - Dive site is one of the preferred locations for dive
training, as it may give almost any dive situation needed for any dive
class. Many reef fish may be observed.
PUNTA TAMARINDO – The site is located on Culebra, is somewhat
of the anti-tourist destination, harboring no large hotels or flashy va-
cation bells and whistles. The beaches are stunning stretches of white
sand, great for sunning, windsurfing and diving. You can access excel-
lent reefs at Melones and Carlos Rosario. The charming archipelago is
18 miles east of Puerto Rico’s mainland has no major hotel chains or
stores — and likes it that way.
CAYO ICACOS - is a small, uninhabited island off the coast of Fajar-
do, Puerto Rico. It forms part of the Cordillera Keys Nature Reserve
and is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Natural Resources
and Environment. It is a fifteen-minute water taxi ride from Fajardo.
The island is a popular snorkeling destination.
SAN SLIDE - A sand slide takes you down to 80 feet deep, forming
a semi wall with a large variety of coral, sea fans and sponges. The
hawksbill turtles, spotted eagle rays, barracudas, groupers, lobsters, ,
moray eels, cowfish, blowfish, and more. Little caves are the favorite
places of lobsters, puffer fishes, and eels.
PALOMINOS WALL - There are also several dive sites around a series
of small uninhabited islands—Palomino, Palominitos, and Cayo Dia-
blo, where white beaches lead to shallow, prolific reefs amongst calm
waters. Along with stingrays, eels, angelfish and jacks, very often di-
vers off the east coast see dolphins, turtles, manatees, and even some-
times passing whales. Puerto Rico’s Wall runs parallel to the south
coast, producing sites with shocking drop offs.
PUNTA TAMARINDO - Punta Tamarindo is a cape in Culebra,
Puerto Rico, situated between Punta Tamarindo Grande and Playa
de Magollo, and is also nearby to Playa Flamenco. Landmarks in the
Punta Tamarindo area include Bahía Tamarindo, Laguna del Flamen-
co and Laguna de Cornelio.
ARCH DIVE - Typically, visibility is Good ( 10 - 30 m). The average
depth is 15.2 m / 49.9 ft. To reach Arch Dive you have to do it By boat
This dive site is best suited for all divers.