So, the idea of hitting the ocean blue with your snorkel, mask and flippers sounds like the perfect past time, but you’re not the best swimmer in the world. Don’t worry you’re not alone. There are plenty of folks out there who aren’t the best swimmers, but still enjoy the fun of snorkelling without putting themselves as risk. To find out more about improving your swimming and snorkelling skills read on…

Tips on improving your swimming skills…

If you’re not the strongest swimmer in the world, and you think you should brush up on your water based skills before you try snorkelling, then take a trip to your local pool. Head to a swim for all session (not the adult swim with lanes), and have a splash about. You’re not there to swim length after length, just use this time instead to get used to being in the water.

If you’re not so confident, start out in the shallow end and have a swim about. Dive down under the water, and see what it feels like to be down there. Once you get a little more adventurous, hit the deep end. Again, try diving down, and then swimming on the surface with your head under the water. This is what you’ll be doing when you’re snorkelling, so the sooner you get to grips with it, the better.

Hitting your local pool with your snorkel…

Before you turn up kitted out in your snorkel mask, snorkel and flippers check that you’re okay to use them at your local pool. Some pools may ask you to come back at a certain time to test out your snorkelling, so be sure to check this out first.

So, once you’re in the pool slip on your mask first and see how it feels to be swimming with your face in the water. Next, it’s time to try out that dreaded snorkel. It’s best to try this in the shallow end first. Simply kneel down, with your head submerged and try breathing through your snorkel. Make sure the pole is out of the water, and try to breathe as normally as possible.

Once you’ve got the hang of both the mask and snorkel, try swimming with them on. This will take a little time to get used to, but trying it in the pool is totally safe, just make sure you don’t bump into anyone when you’re testing out your new snorkelling kit. 

After a while, you’ll have built your swimming and snorkelling confidence up enough that you’ll be ready to test your new skills out in the ocean.

The biggest draws for any snorkel holiday are of course the majesties that await you beneath the ocean blue. The vibrant colours of the fish, the extensive growths of coral reefs, the other animated sea life, and hulking giant turtles; yes, there are no shortage of natural wonders to be seen. Yet if your eyesight isn’t exactly blessed as being perfect, without a prescription snorkelling mask you could be robbed of one of the most wondrous experiences of your life. 

The premise of a prescription snorkelling mask really isn’t anything much different than the very same kind of lenses you would find in one of your regular pair of glasses. What you are able to do is take the same prescription and then when you are all set and ready to order your snorkel kit you pass that information along and the rest is all done for you and shipped out as a regular order.  Because there are so many people that need a little boost from the help of an optician a large number of masks are able to be adapted for your specific needs. You then aren’t going to be limited in the makes, designs, or colour choices by any means; you won’t have to worry about being stuck with a ‘nerdy’ pair reminiscent of your school days when the kids may have called you ‘four eyes’.  Prescription snorkel masks look no different outwardly and no one would ever even know if you didn’t say anything.

From there, you then would make sure that your mask fits and is adjusted in accordance with the same standards anyone else would use. You want one that is snug enough so that it is adequate at sealing around your face and preventing any water leakage, but at the same time you don’t want something that is so tight you will be left with a headache. A great way to test the seal of your goggles is to take the mask, without putting the strap on your head, and suck in through your nose until you feel the suction, if it sticks it fits! If the mask stays put and is comfortable for you to wear, you’ve picked a winner.

Mother Nature may not have blessed you with 20/20 vision, but thankfully we live in modern times that are able to make up for any such oversights. So no matter if you are young or aged, near-sighted, far-sighted, or have just plain crummy vision you no longer have to miss out on all of the sea creatures that fill the snorkel masks of your friends and other family members. After all, a snorkel dive without the proper kind of goggles to ensure that you can actually see is kind of like trying to run a marathon in a pair of slippers.

While those vibrant coral reefs may be stunning to look at and behold with the eyes, you should do well to adhere to the old adage, “look but don’t touch.” Sadly, the damage inflicted to these beautiful and natural works of art are startling when you learn that over 35 million acres of these coral reefs have been damaged or destroyed by the hands of touchy feely scuba divers. In fact, while coral reefs are being protected by select nations worldwide, these efforts have not been enough to curtail the fast destruction of the coral reefs.

Already being fragile by nature, coral reefs are home to an array of different sea life. Among their crevices and growths you can find many fish, sea anemones, and other crustaceans who have made their homes there. But the coral is a living entity itself, and while just like any other life form it grows over time, but the rate at which it does so is quite slow. In fact, it takes hundreds and thousands of years for the coral reefs to create the intricate networks we see today. Each year a coral reef may only add a mere 5 millimetres to itself, and that can be quickly ruined by a human hand or accidental kick.

Coral reefs are most notably being destroyed by snorkellers looking to take home a bit of the splendours of the ocean with them, unknowing boaters who break the reefs when setting down their anchors, and by those who accidentally may tread on or kick them. Along with these threats, there is also pollution with harsh chemicals, fertilizers, sewage, and toxic wastes that when dumped into the sea kill the coral reefs along with the other sea life.

So what can we environmentally snorkellers and scuba divers do to preserve what precious coral reefs we still have today? Well the simply answer is to not touch the reefs and be careful not to get too close and accidentally kick their formations. But along with this, if your are boating be certain that you aren’t dropping your anchor onto the precious coral below. Further, there are plenty of organisations and causes you can support to help protect this sea life. The Reef Environmental Education Foundation is one of these, and they sponsor plenty of volunteer opportunities to restore this coral reef formations. So next time you are taking a dive, stay off the coral!