How to Enter & Exit the Sea

Entries

There are a few way to enter the sea. It depends on which you are comfortable with and also on the type of reefs.

If the reef you are planning to visit is close to shore, then the best way to reach that reef is by swimming from shore.

Shore Entry

1. Enter the sea water and stop when you are waist deep in the water.

Sal's tip: Wear booties if you are on a rocky shore. I stepped on stonefish once :(

2. Put on your mask and snorkel first.

3. Put on your fins.

4. Swim away.

Sal's tip:I usually just ignore the sands in my fins and clear them once I am in deeper water. This is because if you clear them in the shallow, chances are some sands will still enter again besides, you might step on corals unintentionally.

Boat Entries

Backroll entry (only if you're not wearing snorkeling vest)

1. Sit on the edge of the boat.

2. Put on your mask, snorkel and fins.

3. Check yourself and your equipments. Make sure that nothing is dangling and in danger of being 'sangkut'.

4. Hold your mask to your face, hold your breath and just roll backward off the boat.

Giant stride entry

1. Put on your equipments.

2. Stand at the edge of your boat.

3. Hold your mask to your face and breathe deeply.

4. Take a big step off the boat.

Watch this video of a couple of guys doing backroll. See how they hold their mask before flipping back.

I have some friends who are very much afraid of heights. So the 2 boat entries are not possible for them. As a result, they devised their own way of entering the water from the boat. This is also a good entry for those wearing snorkel vests.

Beginner's entry

1. Put on you mask and snorkel.

2. Enter the water using the ladder (Most dive/snorkel boats are equipped with a ladder to make exiting the water easy).

3. Hold on to the ladder while you put on your fins. You can also let go of the ladder and put on your fins while floating.

4. Swim away.

Exits

Shore Exit

1. Swim until water is waist deep.

2. Take you mask & snorkel off.

3. Steady yourself and take your fins off.

Sal's tip: Be aware of incoming waves. Keep your body steady in the water by keeping your stance wide.

4. Walk to shore like a pro ;)

Sal's tip: I use full foot fins and no booties. So on rocky shores, I will bring my slippers with me so that I can walk safely to shore.

Boat Exit

1. Hold on to the ladder.

2. If you wear weights, you may hand over your weight belts first.

3. Take your fins off and hand them over to a friend in the boat.

4. Climb up.

5. Mask & snorkel off in the boat.

Sal's tip: Never open your mask and push it to your forehead while still in the water. A freak wave might come or you might push it off your head. Becareful you might dislodge it and lose it underwater. If you have to open your mask, push it down to your next instead.

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