Snorkeling in Sitka?!

[adventuremom1970]

Hi! My family is booking a trip with Norwegian Cruise on a 10 day in August.  We want to go on as many aquatic adventures as possible!
There are a few items we have been looking at: kayaking, whale watching, and fishing.   One thing that stood out was snorkeling!? In Alaska?! Has anyone done it?
We saw one in Ketchikan as well!

Another cruiser sent me a link to Selkie Snorkels webpage and the gallery looks amazing. 

My questions are:

• Has anyone done this before? Or even been in the water?
• Is it cold? 
• Is it safe?
• If you have done it, what have you seen?
   

[adventuremom1970]

Replying to this thread as I found some good stuff on the Ketchikan website:

https://www.snorkelalaska.com/about-the-tour/
 

[wolfie11]

Not snorkeling, but diving, and it's amazing.  Lots of critters.

[hawk1972]

In September on the NCL Sun my wife and I (63 and 68) did the dry suit snorkeling excursion in Sitka in the afternoon after we spent the morning in town and it was lots of fun.

 

The suits go over your clothes and they also give you a fleece union suit to wear under the dry suit. It fits snugly at the wrists, ankles, and neck and keeps 99% of the water out. I didn't feel cold in the water.

 

We stayed close to shore in a rocky cove and mostly saw starfish and some fish. It was very safe with two guides.

 

I recommend it if you're looking for something different. 

[adventuremom1970]

Amazing, I think we will do it.  Thanks everyone.

[Richardandco]

Hello, wondering if your dry suit getup allowed for any diving below the surface or not. Does the operation provide any weights? Understandable if they would not offer that kind of thing. My wife and I have our own drysuits but would need to rent belts. 

 

Thank you for your advice,

Rich 

 

 

On 4/7/2023 at 1:04 PM, hawk1972 said:

In September on the NCL Sun my wife and I (63 and 68) did the dry suit snorkeling excursion in Sitka in the afternoon after we spent the morning in town and it was lots of fun.

 

The suits go over your clothes and they also give you a fleece union suit to wear under the dry suit. It fits snugly at the wrists, ankles, and neck and keeps 99% of the water out. I didn't feel cold in the water.

 

We stayed close to shore in a rocky cove and mostly saw starfish and some fish. It was very safe with two guides.

 

I recommend it if you're looking for something different. 

 

[Richardandco]

From my experience diving in California, a good 7mil wetsuit is important, but also knowledgeable understanding of conditions etc... Looks like Selkie Snorkels does a shore snorkel in shallow water. Thanks for sharing. Looks fun. 

[hawk1972]

15 minutes ago, Richardandco said:

Hello, wondering if your dry suit getup allowed for any diving below the surface or not. Does the operation provide any weights? Understandable if they would not offer that kind of thing. My wife and I have our own drysuits but would need to rent belts. 

 

Thank you for your advice,

Rich 

 

 

 

No, we didn't get any weights. We were in pretty shallow water, just 10 yards or so off shore in a Reef area. Don't know if they had any to rent. We booked the excursion through NCL.

[SightCRR]

Make sure you read up about the crab boat tour in Ketch and note that you are likely at Wards Cove in Ketch. Grandson did snorkeling in Sitka booked w/ HAL and enjoyed it. Just told you everything I know about snorkeling. Forgot to add to check youtube as just about every AK tour will have someone that did it besides all the ad ones that you can skip. Snorkel Sitka - YouTube sightcrr. 

 

Edited May 19, 2023 by SightCRR

[adventuremom1970]

19 hours ago, SightCRR said:

ill have someone that did it besides all the ad ones that

Oh wow! thanks for sending that video, those anemone colors really pop out in the water!  Does anyone know if the ones in the video are the dry suits? They look more like wetsuits to me.

"One of the coolest things I have ever done is snorkeling in Sitka - right up there with riding camels at the Great Pyramids of Giza"

My family and I are so excited!

[SuzWillCruise]

On 5/20/2023 at 2:25 PM, adventuremom1970 said:

Oh wow! thanks for sending that video, those anemone colors really pop out in the water!  Does anyone know if the ones in the video are the dry suits? They look more like wetsuits to me.

"One of the coolest things I have ever done is snorkeling in Sitka - right up there with riding camels at the Great Pyramids of Giza"

My family and I are so excited!

We’re doing some of the same research that you are!  We didn’t get enough hits on YouTube to answer all of our questions, but we did see a video about dry diving and there are two different types of dry suits. One is made of neoprene, so yes … it looks like a wet suit.  Those are generally sturdier per the man in the video, so it makes sense that it would be the preferred choice of a shore excursion company (the suits are also expensive.)

[SuzWillCruise]

On 4/7/2023 at 5:04 PM, hawk1972 said:

In September on the NCL Sun my wife and I (63 and 68) did the dry suit snorkeling excursion in Sitka in the afternoon after we spent the morning in town and it was lots of fun.

 

The suits go over your clothes and they also give you a fleece union suit to wear under the dry suit. It fits snugly at the wrists, ankles, and neck and keeps 99% of the water out. I didn't feel cold in the water.

 

We stayed close to shore in a rocky cove and mostly saw starfish and some fish. It was very safe with two guides.

 

I recommend it if you're looking for something different. 

 Is there a place to change or are you putting the gear on in front of the whole tour?

 

We just watched a video (but it was older so we don’t know if it was the same company), and one young lady stripped down to her string bikini bottoms in the parking lot before putting on a warm under layer.  We might not have much time to visit Sitka before/ after our tour, so I need to plan ahead to balance comfort vs modesty!
 

Thanks!

[Richardandco]

Looks like Selkie Snorkels has an indoor area for changing, photos at the bottom. https://www.selkiesnorkels.com/testimonials

[zackarykeef]

We snorkeled in Ketchikan, and it was amazing. We snorkel every cruise, and it was awesome to see such different flora/fauna in Alaska compared to what we typically see around the Caribbean. We could even hear the orcas echolocating underwater! Incredible experience.

 

We had wet suits. We brought out bathing suits to change into and were provided all the gear--full body wet suit, neoprene gloves and booties, and a balaclava-type head piece. The only part of our body that was exposed was the small area around our mouth, as the mask covered the rest of our face. The water didn't feel cold at all with that. Bathrooms/changing rooms were available.

 

10/10 would recommend!

[hawk1972]

On 5/29/2023 at 12:19 PM, SuzWillCruise said:

 Is there a place to change or are you putting the gear on in front of the whole tour?

 

We just watched a video (but it was older so we don’t know if it was the same company), and one young lady stripped down to her string bikini bottoms in the parking lot before putting on a warm under layer.  We might not have much time to visit Sitka before/ after our tour, so I need to plan ahead to balance comfort vs modesty!
 

Thanks!

We all put on the dry suits in the same room. I just wore some sweatpants and a t-shirt and we wore fleece onesies over that and then the dry suit. They have to help you with the neck and getting it zipped up. Nobody stripped down to their underwear or anything.

[adventuremom1970]

On 5/30/2023 at 8:09 PM, zackarykeef said:

We snorkeled in Ketchikan, and it was amazing. We snorkel every cruise, and it was awesome to see such different flora/fauna in Alaska compared to what we typically see around the Caribbean. We could even hear the orcas echolocating underwater! Incredible experience.

 

We had wet suits. We brought out bathing suits to change into and were provided all the gear--full body wet suit, neoprene gloves and booties, and a balaclava-type head piece. The only part of our body that was exposed was the small area around our mouth, as the mask covered the rest of our face. The water didn't feel cold at all with that. Bathrooms/changing rooms were available.

 

10/10 would recommend!

What time of the year did you go? Wondering if the wetsuits or dry suits would make a big difference?

Hawk, how did the drysuits feel?  Were you mobile?  We've never used one before!

Do either of you have photos from the trip?

[hawk1972]

3 hours ago, adventuremom1970 said:

What time of the year did you go? Wondering if the wetsuits or dry suits would make a big difference?

Hawk, how did the drysuits feel?  Were you mobile?  We've never used one before!

Do either of you have photos from the trip?

We were there in early September. We stayed warm in cold water. No photos. Dry suits were a little bulky but no problem swimming.

[zackarykeef]

11 hours ago, adventuremom1970 said:

What time of the year did you go? Wondering if the wetsuits or dry suits would make a big difference?

Do either of you have photos from the trip?

We were there early-mid June. Was not cold at all...we had (per the crew) and unusually nice week. Not a single drop of rain, and it was mostly 60s-70s.

 

I can't find any photos at the moment (I think they were never backed up from my old phone 😢), but if I find some, I'll be sure to share!

[LEMJMcC]

What's the typical water temperature?  Are suits really needed?  I've only snorkeled in the Caribbean and around the Keys.  I have swum in the ocean off Jekyll Island in November though with no issues, though I tend to have a high tolerance for cold.  

Just curious.