USVI-On-Line

Thanks for reposting! I am excited to try next week. Anybody else on island next week hit me up if you want to try it as a group. I am thinking Hawksnest or Maho end of the week.

Lexcat,If you don't have a divelight you might be able to rent one there.I bought a used one on Ebay for 35.00 a few yrs.ago.Not a bad price for something you don't use very often.Good luck and enjoy! Parafins

"crackling sound"

We definitely noticed that constant Rice Krispy sound upon snorkeling at Salt Pond Bay. We both described it as a high pitch static but Rice Krispy is very accurate, indeed. Difference is, we heard the sound during a morning/noonish snorkel and wondered what it was...come to think of it we heard it every time we snokeled anywhere except for the deep waters approaching Waterlemon (where I was so scared that all I could hear was my pounding heart!) are you sure that shrimp are the source? Seems awful loud for such a small creature!

I've always been told that the rice krispy sound is the fish munching on the coral.

From a popular snorkel site on the web:

Crunching of parrot-fish
Parrotfish are perhaps one of the noisiest inhabitants of the reef. This fish has a strong beak that resembles the beak of a parrot, giving it its name.

Parrotfish feed off Algae and coral, will scrape algae from the surface of the coral, creating a scraping sound so loud that you can hear it when you swim nearby underwater.

You can often also hear the crunching or grinding sounds of a nearby parrotfish chewing away at coral skeleton trying to get at the coral polyps inside.

Man I love to snorkel but I don't think I would enjoy night snorkeling. I know that adrenelin rush I get when I see something big when it pops in front of me when I wasn't expecting it in the daytime. I don't think I would be able to relax enough to enjoy it. I will stick to the pool at night with a drink and all my travel buddies thats scary enough for me Anyways thanks for reporting about this keep us informed on the sightings.

One of the reasons that I tried night snorkeling was that I wanted to get my money's worth out of my trip.Once the sun goes down,the last thing I want to do is sit in front of a t.v. I can do that at home.One other reason - the night life of the reef is a bit different than during the day.Yah,it's a bit scary at first,but I discovered that it's so worth it.That's why I encourage the forum to give it a try.You have to take a few extra safety steps {dive light,glow stick/lantern on the beach,and general idea of the reef layout.} but it might be another activity to enjoy while you vacation on the rock. Be safe and happy snorkeling!! Parafins