Snorkeling in Alaska

[KansasScrapper]

We will be there the first week in July. There is an excursion and they provide a wet suit. Has anyone done this or gone snorkeling in Alaska in July? Is it still to cold???

[dfitz]

My first thought was brrrrrrrr ... but then curiosity got to me and I googled. Found this: http://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/alaska.html

Looks like July water temps in Anchorage, expect 58 ... in Juneau expect 52. If land temps are warm, it might feel good.

 

My husband does not like to be cold, he has surfed since he was a kid, and now in his 50's still surfs the Pacific Ocean, Central Coast of Calif ... he wears a wetsuit, I think he says water temps here at home are in the 50's ... I think if we were going in July, I'd have to try it just to see how different the underwater world is in AK :D There are different types/thicknesses of wetsuits too, so I'd guess they have appropriate gear in order to offer it as an excursion to the public w/ all the US regulations.

[KansasScrapper]

I know we really want to try it, but I get cold very easy. It is an excursion through Princess in Ketchikan. It is $99.00 pp. Would you do it???

 

Stay toasty warm in your state-of-the-art, ¼-inch (7mm) wetsuit complete with hood, boots and gloves as you hover among Alaska's diverse and colorful marine life. Thanks to a Japanese current, long summer days and the lack of glaciers in this area, water temperatures reach a surprising 65 degrees Fahrenheit in summer.

[dfitz]

I know we really want to try it, but I get cold very easy. It is an excursion through Princess in Ketchikan. It is $99.00 pp. Would you do it???

 

Stay toasty warm in your state-of-the-art, ¼-inch (7mm) wetsuit complete with hood, boots and gloves as you hover among Alaska's diverse and colorful marine life. Thanks to a Japanese current, long summer days and the lack of glaciers in this area, water temperatures reach a surprising 65 degrees Fahrenheit in summer.

 

Hi Wendy,

How long do they let you go out for the $99? I would totally do it, myself, but I love snorkeling, and we tend to like hands on, active excursions ... if the water temps are really 65 degrees, plus a wetsuit, you should be warm enough. My husband is out of town for work during the week, but I'll see if I can get a hold of him for info on a 7mm wetsuit ... for some reason, I think he uses a 3 or 4 mm wesuit for surfing in our oceans, but I could be wrong. There are hoods, booties, and hand glove type things all made out of wetsuit material also ... wonder if they provide those for people who might get cold more easily ... maybe see if you can find out who the company is that takes you out and get more info direct from them.

I'll get back to the thread if I get more answers for you about the wetsuit.

~Denise

[dfitz]

couldn't resist googling a little before heading off to bed :)

I googled "ketchikan snorkeling" and a lot of sites came up.

Just remembered, there's also an undershirt type thing surfers use to wear under their wetsuit ... mostly to stop chaffing, but I think my husband also feels it helps keep him warmer

 

guess it's ok to copy/paste this review here

http://www.yelp.com/biz/snorkel-alaska-ketchikan

Snorkeling in Alaska? No, to get in the water we didn't have to chip through ice with an axe and ward off polar bears. The water was about 65 degrees when we were there in August - so that's actually pretty comfortable when you're wearing a wet suit. The only part of your body exposed is your mouth, and although your mouth is a little cool for 5 minutes, you quickly warm up. In fact once you're out of the water you're a little overheated in the wet suits so I passed on the complimentary hot chocolate they serve you in the Snorkel Alaska shack.

 

So, the snorkeling part. They gave us equipment (upon my request they even gave me a prescription mask with 25% magnification which was perfect - I only wear glasses to drive). My husband and brother-in-law got 14-16 pound weight belts so they could dive deeper but these weren't heavy enough. At Mountain Point we had a group of about 20 of us and three guides. They stopped us from time to time to point out what we should look for at certain places (starfish, sunflowers - my favorite, hermit crabs, harmless mini white jellyfish, big fish, super tiny fish). They also dove deeper to bring back to us specimens from the deep to look at, so if you didn't have a weight belt you really didn't miss out on anything. It was very peaceful and breathing was easy. The sealife wasn't as colorful as my other snorkeling adventure in the tropics of Thailand, but it was still impressive, especially the fields of starfish.

 

The wetsuits keep you super buoyant. This was great for me because I'm a terrible swimmer. I never had to think about trying to keep afloat. (Of course the super buoyancy part isn't as good for those who want to dive deeper.)

 

Our guides, Fred, Michelle, and Legare were really helpful, always there to offer to take pictures of you looking ridiculous in your wetsuits, and very knowledgeable about what you were seeing in the water. This is a super professional operation. Fred was able to catch (and release) a fish from the depths that he had never been able to grab before. It actually stung him. (Now that makes it sound not as professional but really, it was.)

[KansasScrapper]

I think we are going to do it.

[dfitz]

I think we are going to do it.

I bet it will be great ... normally the places you go to snorkel/scuba are beautiful, peaceful and serene ... would love to hear back about how it is

~Denise

dfitz0321@aol(dot)com

[tee_harbor]

Try the search function here too. I know it's been reviewed before. I believe people enjoyed it--and you'll have a great story to take home.

[Miss Jolly]

As an Aussie who is currently living in temps that are fluctuating between 30 odd and 40 odd degrees celcius, the thought of snorkelling in Alaska certainly tickled my fancy. I must admit, that this thought had never crossed my

mind!:p Go for it! Have a great time!

[babydoll]

We did a snorkeling excursion in 2005 in Ketchikan. It was the end of August. It was so much fun! The wetsuits work very well, the initial entry into the water is a little chilly but then we stayed very comfortable. We saw a lot of sea critters. I would highly recommend this excursion. If you have any questions feel free to ask.

 

Sarah