The Snorkeling:
Over 40 years ago small groups of people had discovered this calm bay in southern Kenya where conditions to snorkel were excellent, water calm , clear and generally anybody young or old could have a great time. The bonus of some islands dotted around, and a sandy pit stop in the middle which is now the infamous Kisite island , was the icing on the cake. Even non swimmers could join and have a good time.
Over the years even the dolphins of this area have accustomed themselves to accompanying the dhows that ply to and from the marine park, and even in the wasini channel directly opposite the Shimoni Reef Lodge. This familiarity has extended to swimming around snorklers in the marine park, and its quite normal to have groups of dolphin playing around the boat at anchorage in Kisite , or even swimming around people in the water. Add to this the turtles that move up and down the shallow clear fringing reef as you swim, the myriad of reef fish surrounding the coral life, and different depths to explore, Kisite is truly a unique and fantastic snorkeling and day trip on the water and under it.
There are other locations to snorkel, such as off the fringing Pengutti islands on the approach into the marine park, but most of the established tours do not visit and stop here, so its an ideal place to explore as a private group. The snorkeling is not as good as in the fishing reserve, but the location, privacy, and uniqueness of the location makes up for this. All operators and boats are generally well equipped with snorkel equipment, but if you have a personal mask and fins, there is nothing like your own gear for comfort.
The equipment we provide aboard the boats include silicone masks snorkels and fins. The crews will accompany you into the water if you are not confident or this is a first experience. It’s really simple, and soon you will see what this great experience is all about.
You can jump straight into water from the boats or take a dinghy to the beach and enter gently into the shallow blue sea from a sandy bottom. The fringing reef of Kisite Island is the main snorkeling area and changes as you snorkel along the reef. Coral crevasses hide giant grouper, and coral heads jut out form the sand covered with lots of colorful fish. The sandy bottom is home to many different rays and moray eels. Often turtles just laze on the coral and sandy bottom.
Dolphins often swim along the edge o the island as well, and if you are a good swimmer, you can keep up with them in the deeper water.
The sandy island of Kisite is totally exposed at low tide. Depending on the tidal range this island shows less or more of its sandy base and you can walk and relax on it as well in between the snorkeling.
