Big Beard trip to Buck Island - recommend?

How is the snorkeling at Buck Island? We are going at the end of November. Has anyone taken Big Beard's tour there? Is Buck Island a must see? Do you get time to walk around the island and take some trails?

We have snorkeled in almost every Caribbean island as well as Kauai so wondering how it compares?

I went in November 2010 right after a hurrican so the actual island par tof Buck Island was pretty banged up and the sand eroded. Basically, with the Big Beard tour, they take you to Buck Island and anchor so you can practice snorkeling. I may have had exceptional circumstances due to the hurricane, but we didn't get time to explore. We practiced in the water, went ashore if we wanted to for a little bit then moved on to the actual reef to snorkel.

I havent been to the other palces you mentioned, but I thought the snorkeling here was great and would highly recommend it. Be warned though, it is quite a ride across St Croix, probably 40 minutes if I remember correctly, to get to Big Beards.

How is the snorkeling at Buck Island? We are going at the end of November. Has anyone taken Big Beard's tour there? Is Buck Island a must see? Do you get time to walk around the island and take some trails?

 

We have snorkeled in almost every Caribbean island as well as Kauai so wondering how it compares?

We did this and had a great time. Spent our time snorkeling and sitting on the beach.

I was at Buck Island last December and wrote about it in my blog if you want to read about it and see plenty of pics: http://travelshopgirl.blogspot.com/2012/01/buck-island-half-day-sail-st-croix-usvi.html

I was at Buck Island last December and wrote about it in my blog if you want to read about it and see plenty of pics: http://travelshopgirl.blogspot.com/2012/01/buck-island-half-day-sail-st-croix-usvi.html

Thanks for the great blog! Very informative.

We took Big Beard's tour last Feb (2012) and are considering doing it again this Feb when we are on Brilliance. The following is what I had put in our journal last year.

Taxi takes about 30 minutes to get to Christiansted. Big Beards catamaran was nice trip out to Buck Island. Stopped at a great beach on Buck to get novice snorkelers practice, then went around the corner of the island to snorkel at the reef where there is an underwater trail with markers to point out various corals and fish you might see. From there to a beach on St. Croix for a BBQ lunch of mahi mahi, burgers, dogs & chips. Rum punch was second best of the cruise.

The underwater trail is OK but not spectacular. Saw some large barracuda which scared my DW but they didn't bother anybody.

Was the island that you had the bbq on private? I had read both that its on a private island and others said its back on St. Croix for the BBQ?

Thanks!

Was the island that you had the bbq on private? I had read both that its on a private island and others said its back on St. Croix for the BBQ?

 

Thanks!

Lunch is back on St. Croix, but it feels like a private island. What I mean by this is that there are no other hotels, restuarants, or buildings within sight. They bbq in an area pushed back within the mangroves where a number mongoose and a few cats hang out for any leftovers. While the crew is cooking, you are free to lounge on the beach and enjoy the views or can hang out on well shaded benches where they bbq.

Lunch is back on St. Croix, but it feels like a private island. What I mean by this is that there are no other hotels, restuarants, or buildings within sight. They bbq in an area pushed back within the mangroves where a number mongoose and a few cats hang out for any leftovers. While the crew is cooking, you are free to lounge on the beach and enjoy the views or can hang out on well shaded benches where they bbq.

G beards was great. Buck island was good

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We enjoyed this excursion two weeks ago. This was our experience:

We had opted for the full-day excursion with Big Beard. We found the excursion hosts on the pier, who put us in a van to take us to the boats. Some of those on the van were doing the full day, and some were doing the half day. Be aware that the taxi drivers are known for wanting to take you there via the scenic route, which annoys the crew because it makes them arrive late.

We arrived at the dock and were directed to the appropriate boats. The half day group headed out first, used the motor for the trip over to Buck Island, and arrived ahead of the group doing the full day excursion. Our crew was Mike and Mike. We sailed over to the island, where a brief snorkeling tutorial was provided. We had a little while to explore Buck Island before proceeding to the reef. I think they try to allow the half-day group time to complete their snorkeling before taking the next group over.

On our way to the reef, which is on the opposite side of the island, we spotted a family of dolphins off the side of the boat – something our crew told us very rarely happens. (Once every couple of years as they described.) We were all thrilled to watch as the dolphins swam alongside the ship, close enough to get amazing photos. Then the captain said, “If you want to jump in with them, go ahead.” It was difficult to get close to them in the water; you could actually view them better from on the boat. But it was still exciting to be swimming in close proximity to completely wild dolphins.

After our impromptu dolphin swim, we proceeded to the reef for some of the best snorkeling I’ve ever experienced. It was on par with the barrier reef in Grand Cayman. There were swells in the area that had negatively impacted the snorkeling on other islands we'd visited, but the visibility at Buck Island was GREAT. The water was CHOPPY. We each got inflatable vests to wear. I usually pass on life vests, because it prevents snorkelers from being able to dive down for a closer look. But the reef was very close to the surface, no need for diving. And the choppy waters made me really appreciate the flotation device!

After snorkeling, we boarded the catamaran to sail to another private beach where we would have a BBQ lunch and rum punch. Yes, the beach is on the mainland, but it is also private. It was clearly raining on the mainland, so we floated out in the water for a while, playing games and drinking rum punch, waiting for the rain to pass over. When we arrived at the beach, there were only a few rain drops remaining. Our crew whipped us up a great lunch of burgers, hot dogs, veggie burgers and grilled Mahi Mahi. We ate lunch and watched the mongoose scurry around in the woods.

Initially, we wondered if we’d made a mistake booking the full-day, rather than the half-day excursion, because it didn’t leave us time to explore other parts of the island. But we thoroughly enjoyed the day and were ultimately really pleased that we’d opted for the full-day tour.

I definitely recommend.

We enjoyed this excursion two weeks ago. This was our experience:

 

We had opted for the full-day excursion with Big Beard. We found the excursion hosts on the pier, who put us in a van to take us to the boats. Some of those on the van were doing the full day, and some were doing the half day. Be aware that the taxi drivers are known for wanting to take you there via the scenic route, which annoys the crew because it makes them arrive late.

 

We arrived at the dock and were directed to the appropriate boats. The half day group headed out first, used the motor for the trip over to Buck Island, and arrived ahead of the group doing the full day excursion. Our crew was Mike and Mike. We sailed over to the island, where a brief snorkeling tutorial was provided. We had a little while to explore Buck Island before proceeding to the reef. I think they try to allow the half-day group time to complete their snorkeling before taking the next group over.

 

On our way to the reef, which is on the opposite side of the island, we spotted a family of dolphins off the side of the boat – something our crew told us very rarely happens. (Once every couple of years as they described.) We were all thrilled to watch as the dolphins swam alongside the ship, close enough to get amazing photos. Then the captain said, “If you want to jump in with them, go ahead.” It was difficult to get close to them in the water; you could actually view them better from on the boat. But it was still exciting to be swimming in close proximity to completely wild dolphins.

 

After our impromptu dolphin swim, we proceeded to the reef for some of the best snorkeling I’ve ever experienced. It was on par with the barrier reef in Grand Cayman. There were swells in the area that had negatively impacted the snorkeling on other islands we'd visited, but the visibility at Buck Island was GREAT. The water was CHOPPY. We each got inflatable vests to wear. I usually pass on life vests, because it prevents snorkelers from being able to dive down for a closer look. But the reef was very close to the surface, no need for diving. And the choppy waters made me really appreciate the flotation device!

 

After snorkeling, we boarded the catamaran to sail to another private beach where we would have a BBQ lunch and rum punch. Yes, the beach is on the mainland, but it is also private. It was clearly raining on the mainland, so we floated out in the water for a while, playing games and drinking rum punch, waiting for the rain to pass over. When we arrived at the beach, there were only a few rain drops remaining. Our crew whipped us up a great lunch of burgers, hot dogs, veggie burgers and grilled Mahi Mahi. We ate lunch and watched the mongoose scurry around in the woods.

 

Initially, we wondered if we’d made a mistake booking the full-day, rather than the half-day excursion, because it didn’t leave us time to explore other parts of the island. But we thoroughly enjoyed the day and were ultimately really pleased that we’d opted for the full-day tour.

 

I definitely recommend.

I am so glad to hear you enjoyed it!

Just a heads up that Big Beard's has encountered dolphins for the past three mornings in a row on their half-day sail. Videos are on FB. Going to be there March 13th and crossing my fingers that the good luck continues!

Just a heads up that Big Beard's has encountered dolphins for the past three mornings in a row on their half-day sail. Videos are on FB. Going to be there March 13th and crossing my fingers that the good luck continues!

The dolphins are pretty plentiful this year, it's nice to see. We've also had some humpback whales in the area lately.

Anyone do this lately?

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