Curaçao - Adventure Guide to Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao - page 247

The sea floor slopes gently and allows you to walk out quite a distance. The
water is crystal clear and teeming with fish. No admission charge.
Playa Forti , at Westpunt on the far western end of the island, has black
pebbly sand. You can look straight to the bottom of the sea through the
clear-as-glass water. Little shade and no facilities, but you'll enjoy watch-
ing locals dive from the cliffs. No admission charge.

Trips to Klein Curaçao
Dive operators and charter boats take passengers out to the over-
sized volcanic rock for beach parties, cookouts, and fantastic div-
ing. The shore is covered in soft white sand, and the water is
crystal clear, but there is no shade. The northeastern side tends to
have rough seas, while the southeastern side routinely has calm
water with gentle waves. If you want to go over to Klein, contact
Mermaid Boat Trips , 560-1530; www.mermaidboattrips.com.

Diving & Snorkeling Sites
Experienced scuba divers have discovered the island's close-
in reefs and abundant sea life. While Bonaire is still the most
popular dive destination among the ABC Islands, Curaçao is
gaining respect. Several wrecks provide interesting dives,
and shore entrance is possible at a number of sites.
The fringe reefs have 55 identified species of hard corals and 35 varieties of
gorgonians (often called soft corals), which draw a wide variety of fish,
crabs, and shrimp. Rather than vertical walls, divers find gently sloping
reefs at the western end of the island and steeply sloping reefs at the east-
ern end - all covered with a diverse variety of coral formations.

The Curaçao Underwater Park
(Onderwaterpark)
This runs from near the Seaquarium Beach (just south of St. Anna Bay
and Willemstad) to the southern tip of the island, a distance of more than
12 miles. It was established in 1983 and is under the management of the
Netherlands Antilles National Parks (STINAPA). Numbered buoys indi-
cate dive sites inside the 1,483-acre park, and a marked snorkeling trail is
laid out at buoy number three.
Tugboat is a marvelous wreck lying upright in 15 feet of calm water. It is
surrounded by colorful corals that make a magnificent background for
underwater photos. This old pilot boat is near a steep wall that drops to
about 100 feet, where you'll see a sheet of corals.
Caracas Bay Lost Anchor features an anchor chain that seems to
extend forever, just like the coral- and gorgonian-covered reef. Snorkelers