Diving in the East & the
Sites You Cannot Miss
Vieques, the small island off the eastern seaboard of Puerto Rico and best known until recently as having been used for target practice by the U.S. Navy has been getting a lot of press as of late. Even though it is almost twice the size of St Thomas, it only has about a fifth of the population, meaning there still aren’t any fast food restaurants, chain stores, or even traffic lights- and it boasts almost 18,000 acres of protected lands, making it an ideal destination for eco tourists looking for the road less traveled.
Just as the rest of Puerto Rico, however, Vieques is less known for its underwater beauty. This is not due to a lack thereof, but due to a dearth of SCUBA operators and scarcity of promotion of its great dive sites. We want to change that. The following are descriptions of a two of our most popular sites:
By Tania Puell & Arnaud Erhart
Patti’s Reef is a vast expanse of beautiful healthy reef 20 to 45 feet deep off Esperanza in the South of Vieques. Two large sand bowls describe a figure eight, dotted with a multitude of coral heads and encircled by a meandering atoll which is a pleasure to get lost in. Moray eels and nurse sharks hide in its overhangs, French grunts, yellowtail snappers and blue headed wrasses decorate its many crevices, and with a little luck you will spot an eagle ray gliding by. But the star player here is the coral. Elkhorn, staghorn, pillar, finger, star, brain, plate, sheet, and lettuce coral are all prospering with sea fans, sea rods and sea plumes gently swaying in the typically surgey environment. Thankfully, because of the shallow depth our dives here regularly exceed 70 minutes! Patti’s is threatened by invasive lionfish which is relatively new phenomenon in Vieques. We can use some help trying to eradicate them (Photo above by Arnaud Erhart).
18 - SEVENSEAS 5