Turks and Caicos is a British Overseas Territory consisting of two groups of sub-tropical islands in the West Indies. The larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands are known for tourism and as an offshore financial center. Most of its 36,000 inhabitants live on Providenciales Island, part of Caicos Islands.

The flight from Miami to Turks & Caicos was very short, only an hour and a half over beautiful scenery. If you plan to go anywhere in the Caribbean, be sure to fly during daylight hours and get a window seat!

If you check Google Earth (or Google Maps) for aerial images, you will see very old and outdated pictures. In 2008, the islands were struck by hurricane Ike - a bad category 4 - which flattened Grand Turk Island and caused millions of dollars in damage on all the others. Thus, many hotels and housing were built after 2008, including, Grace Bay Suites, the hotel I booked (www.gracebaysuites.com). It is located in the center of the island which is perfect for exploring, close to the beach, restaurants and supermarket. The scooter rental was also within walking distance.

I had to switch my brain to Left-Side driving mode before taking the scooter to the eastern side, not far from the hotel. I thought a reasonable map would be available at the hotel, or if not, it wouldn't matter much since the island is quite small - only 40 miles across. I was wrong - those free maps are very stylized and do not show all major streets. I got lost a few times but considering that I get lost in my hometown, it was not too bad.

I explored for land shells in new condominium construction areas. Parking the scooter inside one lot, I immediately saw a few dead Cerion on the ground. Huge ones! Farther on a walking path among trees, there were a few live specimens, some Hemitrochus and Helicina too. The east part of the island is more populated, so the streets and roads are not so bad. It was getting dark, so I returned to the hotel, planning to explore the other side the next morning.

The hotel was way nicer than I expected when booking it, considering the fact most other places on that area were charging up to $1,200 a night. There was a small fridge, microwave and even free Internet – although out most of the time. Yet for a short period I was able to check Google Maps for possible snorkeling places. Too bad the images were so outdated... After a quick shower I went to the supermarket to purchase groceries for breakfast and a few bottles of water for the road.

The next morning, I went straight to the west side; took a wrong turn somewhere and wound up near the airport. I drove on unpaved roads going uphill looking for Cerion - and found some other species up there, different from those I had found previously.

After asking around, I finally found Millennium Highway which would take me to Northwest. I soon discovered that it was not paved all the way and wished I had rented an off-road motorcycle. The road was so bad at times that the mirrors got unscrewed! I started going very slow but that made it even worse, then increased speed to 35 mph, which improved the shaking. If I would have hit a rock or hole, I would have flown over the handlebars.

Where the road split, some cars went to the right on a road that seemed slightly better than the left option so I followed. They were going to Northwest Point Resort - rates ranging from $250 (low season) to $700, not very expensive compared to some hotels there.... But the road got worse... the only vehicles I saw were off-road quad bikes. But I managed to get to a spot which looked suitable for a snorkeling try. Nice place, crystalline water with some dark spots which I thought were rocks and coral. Wrong. It was sand and grass, not a single rock to turn! I did not find a single shell there. It might have been a nice spot for night snorkeling, but it was too far from the hotel. That’s a problem when I travel alone: I get very tired after snorkeling at night and I need someone to keep me awake on the way back. After one hour without a single shell, I drove to the west until it was no longer possible to ride the scooter - the sand got too deep.

Back at the hotel I had a very tasty sandwich and a beer. The manager told me where to find the best snorkeling places. He mentioned the far west part next to a resort and on the south. Also the National Park near the hotel - but of course I did not go there to avoid temptation and getting arrested...

Looking at Google Maps, the south seemed the closest place to try. Again, one third of the road was paved - the rest was awful... I could see the ocean from the road from some spots and there were rocks and coral! I parked inside a huge construction lot and found some very tiny Cerion. I put on my wetsuit and started snorkeling towards a small island about 400 meters away. I found several species - common but nice. I climbed the small island hoping to find an isolated population of Cerion like the ones I found in the Bahamas, but there was not even a dead one. The view was fantastic though! I snorkeled around the island and found some other species such as Murex pomum, Fasciolaria tulipa and big Chitons on the splash zone behind the island. I also found huge Cittarium pica - luckily they were badly eroded and full of worm holes since I did not want to clean and carry. I found live Volvarina under the shallow rocks on my way back to shore. The main problem was capturing them before they ran away - those little guys run very fast!

I swear I wanted to do a night snorkel that night as this place was ideal for Olives and Marginellas. However, after I returned, had lunch (at 5:00 P.M.) and a hot shower, I was no longer that enthusiastic guy from a few hours ago and went to bed.

The next day was the last one - where to go? I asked the hotel manager if he knew some other places and a diver was talking to him. Both said the best place was in front of Amanyara Resort on the west coast (on that awful road I avoided earlier). They told me that usually the hotel does not allow non-guests to cross their property to use the beach but maybe I would be lucky and convincing enough so that they let me enter. I packed my stuff and drove again towards Millennium Road. I said the road to Northwest Point was bad. Well, to get to Amanyara it was much worse! And again, I took a wrong turn and ended on a very isolated rocky road which ended directly at a beach. Did I mention I never carry my cell phone when I intend to snorkel? Luckily I did not have any flat tire or other problem there, otherwise I would be waiting forever for help there.

I finally got to the resort and using my acting talent, I explained to the guy at the front gate that I wanted to visit the hotel for a future stay. He was nice - but at the same time said I would not be able to use the beach access unless I was a registered guest. I told him it did not matter and I wanted to check the hotel anyway. A staff member came to greet me and guided me around the hotel. I did not want to waste my time looking at rooms or anything else, as I was eager to check possible snorkeling spots and to find the possibility of using the beach access. But the lady was so nice that I went along and took a short tour. She took me to the "cheapest" room; a fantastic all glassed-in room, with a huge bed in the middle and an addition in the back with bathroom and other amenities. I asked whether it was not a bit exposed with all that glass - although surrounded by trees and private access to one of the water canals. She then pressed a button on a remote control, which lowered dark shades all around the place. The price? At low season it was only $1,200 a night! At least it included any drink from the small fridge at no charge! But that was the cheapest room. If you want privacy and take a few friends along, there is a 5 bedroom villa with its own pool at $15,000.00 a night! (Here’s their website in case you have spare time and money http://www.amanresorts.com/amanyara/resort.aspx ). Remember, I mentioned that the other resort was not so expensive at $700 a night? Well, some guests at Amanyara use that hotel for their boat or jet crews. I didn't even bother to ask to use the beach because during the tour I could see the next beach entrance about 500 meters from the hotel, where the sea even seemed calmer.

I remembered seeing a road to get there on the map - did I say road? Looked more like a minefield after all mines had exploded! I stopped on the top of the hill looking down the road. It was very steep and rocky - one mistake and I would end on the ground with very deep abrasions all over my body. I took a deep breath and carefully drove down the hill. After a short but very tense drive, I parked next to a hut where tourists were eating and drinking. Some were wearing snorkeling gear, so at least it was the right place.

I walked some distance to find a place to enter the water. It was tricky because the sea was very rough and I had to jump over rocks and coral between waves. The water was colder than at other places, but at least I did find some nice shells there. Four hours later I was very tired - not only from the snorkeling itself, but because the sea was so rough. As I was ready to leave, I turned one last rock and found a huge Conus cardinalis! It was dead but still very nice.

I packed all the gear and drove back to the hotel, hoping the scooter would survive the trip. It was good to have sunglasses along, even though it was getting dark. Bugs were attracted to the scooter lights and although it is not a good feeling to have flies and other bugs entering your nostrils, helmet and shirt - at least they did not hit my eyes!

On the last day I spent the whole morning packing and called a taxi to take me to the airport. I arrived early, and after checking the luggage, took a walk on a hill by the airport parking lot. I found some more Cerion – but I was sweating wearing jeans and shoes! Not mentioning the heavy backpack... My flight back to Miami was nice and beautiful - I made sure to have a window again!

P.S. No sea urchin accidents this time!