{"id":4167,"date":"2019-02-19T23:33:12","date_gmt":"2019-02-20T07:33:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/?p=4167"},"modified":"2020-02-22T15:29:07","modified_gmt":"2020-02-22T23:29:07","slug":"snorkeling-phi-phi-so-many-sharks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/2019\/02\/snorkeling-phi-phi-so-many-sharks\/","title":{"rendered":"Snorkeling Phi Phi — So Many Sharks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two of the six of us here in Phuket are snorkeling fanatics, so today our group will split and have different itineraries. At dinner, we can catch up on our various adventures. <\/p>\n

Tuesday, February 19, 2019<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I offered Geneva choices of snorkel tours to various islands, and she insisted that I make the final call. Ultimately, I settled on a day trip to the Phi Phi islands with Offspray Leisure<\/a>, which has excellent reviews on TripAdvisor, and whose schedule didn\u2019t have too much \u201cbeach time.\u201d<\/p>\n

A van picked us up just down the sidewalk from the hotel at 7:30AM for the hour-long drive to the pier. We ended up with about six in our van after navigating down the West coast of Phuket through Patong Beach to Karon, and then Eastward to Chalong pier. Just outside a convenience store, Giles Howle, the owner of the company, welcomed us enthusiastically and pointed us toward coffee and bathrooms. Soon our entire group was together and Giles introduced us to our on-boat guide Chris, a friendly Texan with several years of experience around Phi Phi.<\/p>\n

Because the tide was high, we only had a short walk down the pier before we reached our speedboat. As we left the pier, we looked back and spotted the Big Buddha on the hill, a good landmark to find our way back to the harbor (in the unlikely event that any of us needs to drive the boat). As we reached the open ocean, unfortunately, despite the calm winds, the ride was pretty bouncy and my perch was a bit uncomfortable. A couple opposite me had the same issue of being gradually jiggled down the bench toward the back of the boat. We did our best not to fall on anyone.<\/p>\n

After about 30 minutes we reached our first stop, a protected cove on the West side of Mai Thon island (Ko Maiton). In a way, it was a practice spot to fit and get comfortable with our equipment, especially for those who were using Offspray\u2019s mask, snorkel, or fins. The corals here looked quite beat up, but there were plenty of fish. We had about a half hour in the water before getting back on board, which was a reasonable amount of time to explore this spot.<\/p>\n

\"\"Phuket's Big Buddha, from Offspray Leisure speedboat<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Offspray Leisure speedboat at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Moorish Idol at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Indian Redfin Butterflyfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Sergeant Major fish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Sergeant Major fish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Golden Rabbitfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Checkered Snapper at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Checkerboard Wrasse at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Lined Surgeonfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Parrotfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Blue-Spine Unicornfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Black-Spotted Pufferfish at Ko Mai Ton<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/div>