Today was probably my favorite of all the days here in Turks and Caicos. We ventured to Coral Gardens Reef, a spectacular self-guided reef area right off the shores of Turtle Cove on the north side of Provo. The wind was still whipping a bit this morning, but I silently cheered, as the stillness is what reminds you of the heat. With even a small breeze, the air moves across your skin and allows you to breathe easier and sweat less! We pulled of the marina road to a dead end roundabout, grabbed our snorkels and headed to the water. At the end of the path, the view opens on to a gorgeous cove with white sand and aquamarine water. Chad fired up the GoPro camera and we were off into the water. Coral Gardens Reef is surrounded by a circle of buoys that keep people on a sort of a track around the attraction. To swim the circle would take about 30 minutes, and you get a continuous view of the reef as you swim the track. As we entered the water, the sand on the bottom was a perfect white. As you get closer to the reef, the scenery bursts into view with various forms of coral and sea fans, the prevalent colors of purple and yellow. While the reef itself was amazing to take in, the fish had to be my favorite part of the snorkel. Parrot fish, varieties of tangs, yellow tail snapper, barracuda, wrasses, and tons of other types swam in formation along the reef. What made this experience so cool was the snorkeling started just a few yards off the shore and you were instantly transported to sea life wonderland! I enjoyed floating along, while Chad got a ton of cool shots with the camera and kept swimming to the bottom to get a closer view. We soon finished the lap and headed to the beach for some beers and people watching. We even saw a guy in a kilt! The sun was blaringly bright and we reapplied the sunscreen, knowing our white bodies would be blistered if we weren’t intentional about another round of SPF. With the sun higher in the sky, we knew the reef would be more colorful if we went another lap. We set off into the water, Chad getting even more amazing footage on this trip. The vibrant colors and close proximity of the sea life likened to watching a National Geographic video unfold in front of your eyes. We finally peeled ourselves from the water and realized it was already 1:30! We wanted to stay longer, but we knew the sun had already cooked us pretty well done. Right off the beach is a bar called Somewhere – great name for a bar. Barry had suggested we try it. We saddled up to the bar and I ordered a mojito, Chad a Presidente. The bartender was a comedian and we quickly caught the cool vibe of the bar with its jazzy tunes and tiki atmosphere. For lunch, we started with guacamole and chips – the guacamole was chunky and fresh. Chad had conch fajitas and I had fish tacos – we decided this was one of our favorite meals so far on the trip. The conch fajitas were spicy, the tortillas were lightly toasted and fried, the pico was fresh, the meal was exceptional. After lunch, we headed home to lounge. The pool was a welcome invite on this extremely hot day. We huddled together in the few inches of the pool that still had shade and hunkered down in the pool to cool off. Later, we attempted to make mojitos, but had forgotten simple syrup, so our drinks weren’t as exciting as Somewhere Bar, but nonetheless refreshing. For dinner we had pork chops on the grill and then turned in for the night. What an exceptional day – to view the most beautiful sights in such a wonderful place, we are so lucky to be here!
To view our video of Coral Gardens Reef, click below: