La Parguera, Puerto Rico

After my workaway stay I rented a car and toured the island. I took back roads (avoided the toll expressways) and circled the island.

One of the highlights of my time in Puerto Rico was snorkeling. I brought my own fins, goggles, and snorkel (see everything that I packed on my Gear page) with me to Puerto Rico. I was able to snorkel while visiting Culebra and saw my first coral reef. Then when I was driving around the main island I stopped in a small town on the Southern coast called La Parguera. This is where the dive shops are located due to the great diving and snorkeling in the nature preserve off the coast. I didn't want to go with a group due to cost and already having my own stuff so my guesthouse host informed me of a water taxi service and suggested one of the mangrove islands to visit. The next morning I discussed my plans with the water taxi service, learned about the different mangrove islands, and was told it was either not safe or I couldn't go there by myself. I waited around for other people to go to lessen the fare, but by 9:30 I decided to just go alone as the morning hours are the best time to snorkel before people arrive. My boat driver told me where to snorkel and that it was safe there and that in a couple hours there would be lots of boats in the area. He dropped me off on my own private mangrove island. I spent the next several hours snorkeling around the mangrove islands while more and more people arrived. I was surprised by the amount of fish I saw, mostly small fish. I thoroughly enjoyed my time snorkeling and getting a glimpse of the underwater world. There was so much to see that I could have spent all day there. I highly recommend this area for snorkeling if you visit Puerto Rico.