Has anyone snorkeled in Alaska?

[Johnsdeere]

Despite that fact that my husband doesn't want to participate, I really can't seem to get snorkeling in Alaska out of my head.

 

Have you snorkeled in Alaska? If so did you enjoy yourself, where, what company did you go through?

 

I've been looking at www.snorkelalaska.com and was considering on using them in Ketchican.

[themons]

I haven't, but I met some people that did. It turns out that they saw nothing and that it was a waste of time.

[Johnsdeere]

That is truly dissapointing. :(

 

Thank you for sharing...

[Islandbear]

Why not just try it for the Halibut!;)

[rsldonk]

The water is certainly cold, so without a good 7mm wetsuit or preferably a drysuit, it just wouldn't be much fun. Even with the exposure protection, that just seems like a bit of a waste to me. I've heard there are some good dives there, but when you really question people about it, they will usually admit that a good alaska dive would only be considered marginal at best in other places. Never done it myself, as there are plenty of other things to do in Ketchikan that would be a whole lot more fun.

 

I'm also from Utah, so I get really sick of diving cold water, and so that may be part of why this would not appeal to me.

[BIG_Steve]

Why not just try it for the Halibut!;)

 

Smitty! A rim shot, please!!

 

Badda-boom, badda BING!!!

[bruce-r]

Have you tried searching in the Alaska port of call section? I know I've read posts there from people who did snorkel in Alaska. It seemed to me that their overall impression was more positive than what has been expressed in this thread so far.

[satxdiver]

I have been to Alaska several times both by ship and by air. I have never had the urge to get into the water to snorkel or scuba dive. I would not do it with even a dry suit much less a 7 mm wetsuit. There are scuba divers who cut a whole in the ice and dive however. It takes special equipment and training so don't do this at home!

[bruce-r]

I have been to Alaska several times both by ship and by air. I have never had the urge to get into the water to snorkel or scuba dive. I would not do it with even a dry suit much less a 7 mm wetsuit. There are scuba divers who cut a whole in the ice and dive however. It takes special equipment and training so don't do this at home!

This doesn't apply to diving in any of the ports cruise ships are likely to visit in the summer.

[satxdiver]

This doesn't apply to diving in any of the ports cruise ships are likely to visit in the summer.

 

I did not say it did. It was just a comment about divers who go into very cold water.

[LadyDivot]

We did the snorkel in Ketchikan with Mountain Point Snorkel (http://www.snorkelalaska.com) this past week and it was awesome! We saw schools of herring, tons of starfish, crabs, urchins and a couple of eels. The guides got sea cucumbers, urchins and limpids from the bottom for us to look at up close. The sea kelp was also amazing. You don't get that in the Carribbean. We got 7 mm wetsuits including hoods, boots and gloves. We did get wet, but it was fine. While were getting towards the end of the snorkel trip, a pod of three orcas (mom, dad and baby) swam up the channel about 50 yards away. It was fantastic! Mountain Point Snorkel was a very professional tour provider and the guides were very careful and knowledgeable. My DH and I would use them again. Hope that helps.

[RedHeadTexan]

We did the snorkel in Ketchikan with Mountain Point Snorkel (www.snorkelalaska.com) this past week and it was awesome! We saw schools of herring, tons of starfish, crabs, urchins and a couple of eels. The guides got sea cucumbers, urchins and limpids from the bottom for us to look at up close. The sea kelp was also amazing. You don't get that in the Carribbean. We got 7 mm wetsuits including hoods, boots and gloves. We did get wet, but it was fine. While were getting towards the end of the snorkel trip, a pod of three orcas (mom, dad and baby) swam up the channel about 50 yards away. It was fantastic! Mountain Point Snorkel was a very professional tour provider and the guides were very careful and knowledgeable. My DH and I would use them again. Hope that helps.

Never in a million years would I have thought my DH and I would be interested in snorkeling in Alaska, but after reading your review and checking out the link we are both wanting to do it! How was the visibility? Thanks for the review. :)

[LadyDivot]

Red - thanks for saying that. :D Frankly, you should have seen the looks we got from people when we said we were snorkeling in Ketchikan. If you decide to do this, you will get them too. Your visibility question is a good one - Ketchikan and most of Alaska is experiencing some amazing weather so visibility was good. If it's cloudy outside, you might not be able to see all the way to the bottom but it shouldn't be pitch black either. The guides bring up sea life so you can see it up close. In all honestly, the orca sighting doesn't happen every day, so there is a good chance we got really lucky. But if we got lucky so can you! I would recommend them with no hesitation. Enjoy and let me know what you think. When are you going to be in Alaska?

[RedHeadTexan]

Probably going to do Alaska in 2011 or 2012. Odd looks don't bother me...you should have seen the looks I got when I told people that we were doing a shark feed dive :eek:. Maybe I can convince DH to do Alaska next summer since snorkeling would be involved...:D

[yogi2929]

DH went snorkeling with the DDs and their two girlfriends last year in Ketchikan. (Brave man, four teenage girls.) They had a great time. Air temp was in the high 40's and rainy and the water temp was in the low 40's.

 

They were wearing full wetsuits complete with hoods and boots. The only skin exposed was the tops of their cheeks. They said within a few minutes in the water they were warm. At the end of the dive they were given warm water to pour down (into)their wetsuits.

 

In Sitka, check out the Surf Shop across the street from the Russian Church.