The Basics, for Calm Confidence in the Water
Article by Joel Simon

Many people assume that snorkeling is so easy that little or no instruction is needed to master the skill. This simply isn’t true. In addition to learning the fit and use of equipment, many snorkelers must deal with more sophisticated issues: long term fear of the water, feelings of claustrophobia, lack of swimming ability, or learning to breath through their mouth. Just as often I instruct people who have tried snorkeling before, but after an initial trial with no guidance, are left with dank memories of leaky masks, cramped legs, sunburned backs, and mouthfuls of salt water, still allegorically caked on their previous enthusiasm.

Snorkeling is perhaps the easiest methods of immersing oneself in a true wilderness environment. It’s safe, easy, enjoyable, and in many ways more relaxing than being on land. Done correctly, snorkeling offers a multitude of educational and physical rewards. Clearly, a little snorkeling instruction, especially at the start, can be invaluable in developing a calm confidence in the water. This confidence will grow with experience, as you literally immerse you in one of the most fascinating realms this planet has to offer. Scuba divers, too, can benefit by honing their snorkeling skills, and relaxation in the water is a shared goal. Whether you are a novice or an expert, the following tips should prove useful in your snorkeling activities.

Snorkeling Techniques:

While the equipment itself is simple, evolutionarily, we are land-based beings. Quite often, the translation to becoming comfortable in the water involves as much psychology as physical skill development. On land we relate to the world vertically. In the water we’re horizontal. On land we can breath through our nose. With a mask and snorkel breathing is by mouth only. When we place our face underwater, all our well-earned survival instincts are saying "Don’t do this, silly. I need air to live!"

As a child, I remember practicing breathing through a snorkel while watching Rocky & Bullwinkle on television through a misty mask, lying comfortably on the living room floor. Even after mastering calm even breaths in a swimming pool, I had to literally force myself to inhale, against my better judgment, during my first forays into the open sea.

Many enthusiastic novices plunge right in without a second thought about currents, sunburn, or flooded masks. Edna Murray was one of those people. She lowered her head to closely view a colorful fish, then turned frantic when her snorkel filled with water. Rising to her feet, standing knee-deep in calm water, she was still choking, literally drowning on her feet. I motioned to her to take the snorkel out of her mouth, which she did, and her panic quickly turned to relief. These "rescues" are easily avoided with training.

Begin by learning how to use the equipment. When you put on your mask for snorkeling, be sure it seals well around your entire face; brush all your hair back and if you’re wearing a bathing cap, be sure it doesn’t interfere with the mask’s edge. Condensation may form on the inner surface, quickly resembling San Francisco fog. Fortunately, mask clouding is easily avoided by swishing a little saliva or commercially available "de-fog" solution on the inside of the glass each time before going in the water. One friend swears by baby shampoo to prevent condensation, and her eyebrows look great! Sometimes new masks have a protective film which is best removed with a very light abrasive. Some folks effectively use toothpaste. It’s best to avoid putting suntan lotion on your nose or face when snorkeling because the water can occasionally flush some into your eyes.

Your snorkel essentially transfers your mouth to the back of your head, somewhat like a dolphin’s blowhole, permitting you to breathe through your mouth while floating face down in the water. This is a novel experience for most of us. It may help to first use the snorkel out of the water, progressing to a pool or calm, shallow water as you become more comfortable. Ultimately, correctly using a snorkel allows greater relaxation and uninterrupted views of the world below.

Beginners are encouraged to develop their skills by deliberately flooding their mask and snorkel while still in shallow water. Dip your head down until you hear and "feel" water entering the snorkel. How do you clear the water from a flooded snorkel or mask? Remember Edna Murray: When all else fails, a mask and snorkel come off as easily as they go on. There are, however, other more commonly used methods. For the snorkel, exhale a burst of air through your mouth, breathing in cautiously at first to make sure you’ve forced all the water out. To clear a flooded mask, place your hand on the upper edge of the mask, tilt your head back at a 45 degree angle, or turn your head sidewise, and blow air through your nose until the water evacuates. For most of us it’s normal to have a little water gurgling at the bottom of a snorkel, or a little puddle inside your mask around your nose.

Tayna Lane came to me during a recent program with a leaky mask. She complained: "It fit perfectly at the shop, and worked fine in the pool, but here in the sea, it’s leaking like crazy. What’s the problem?" After a little discussion and observation the problem became clear: every time she smiled, which was often, her face creased near her mouth, and water came in through the sides of the mask. The more she enjoyed herself, the more miserable she became! She may be the only person I’ve ever asked to stop smiling.

Fins are great in the water, but awkward as snowshoes on land. If you’re going to a snorkeling area from a calm beach, try putting on your fins in waist-deep water. Snorkeling companions can help one another maintain balance. On boats, fins are usually put on at the dive platform, and taken off before climbing up a ladder. Walking with fins on a moving boat can prove challenging at best, dangerously precarious at worst. While fins can facilitate fast swimming, their greatest asset is increased efficiency. Used gently, they let you glide nearly effortlessly along the surface, keeping your body in a relaxing horizontal position. Not only does this help keep your snorkel above water, but it keeps your face looking down comfortably. Remember to look where you’re going every now and then to avoid bumping into a boat, parts of the reef, or your friends!

Rather than zoom around the entire area, many snorkelers find that once they locate an interesting area, a shallow coral head for example, they actually see much more by floating quietly in one place. Many reef creatures rely on cryptic coloration for survival, and are only noticed upon careful observation. If you relax in one place, small fish and other reef life become accustomed to your presence, realize you are not a link in their food chain, and come out of hiding to resume their normal routine.

With fins, propulsion is by easy, gentle kicking. You rarely need to use your arms at all, unlike conventional swimming. Let your arms rest comfortably by your side, or float one arm in front of your head to act as a bumper if needed. If you ever took swimming classes, you probably remember the stern admonitions: "kick from the hip, keep those legs stiff and straight". Not so with snorkeling. With fins, you can keep your knees and ankles loose. Gently lead your fins up and down in the water and allow the pressure to flex your joints. This lets your muscles expand and contract, promotes muscular respiration, diminishes lactic acid buildup, and makes your legs far less susceptible to cramps.

Once you’ve mastered the skills of comfortably floating on the surface using your equipment, you may wish to swim down and take a closer look. Many of the most interesting aspects of the reef are small. Delicate christmas-tree worms-red, orange, and yellow-are mere inches tall. Tiny translucent shrimp and crabs dwell safely in the protective tentacles of large anemones, and little fish often hide in coral crevices. These and other interesting sights are all more easily seen when viewed closely. To leave the surface and venture down into the underwater world isn’t difficult, but it takes some practice.

Here’s how: Relax at the surface, breathing normally. Take a breath and hold it. Bend at the waist so your head is pointing down, lift your legs above your head, and use your arms to help start your downward motion, then continue by kicking your legs. Now the most important part: equalizing your ears. As you swim downward and before you feel any pressure, put a hand to the nosepiece of your mask and squeeze your nostrils closed. At the same time, try to gently blow some air through your nose--of course, no air should come out because of your squeezed nostrils. This will equalize your ears. Continue to equalize your ears as long as you descend. If you feel any pain, come up and try again. This procedure is only needed going down, not up. Equalizing your ears is a necessary part of diving, and when done "early and often" will prevent any pain or damage to your eardrums. Sometimes sinuses may be congested, especially if you have a cold or allergies. This can hinder equalization and can be dangerous for your ears. Over the counter medications can help if taken as directed before snorkeling.

While underwater, stay relaxed! The more relaxed you are, the longer you can stay down. Take a look around and enjoy the view. When you ascend, look up and watch where you’re going, not where you’ve been. It’s amazing how many people look down when coming up! Upon arrival at the surface, clear your snorkel with a burst of air, then cautiously breath in. Your free-diving skills will improve with practice. Floating on top of the water provides a splendid overview, and for many snorkelers this will be enough, but surface diving will literally give you a deeper appreciation of the intricacies and details of the complex underwater community.

Relaxed snorkelers not only float more easily, they are safer, stay underwater longer, and more thoroughly enjoy the experience. One easy relaxation technique, applicable to all skill levels, is the development of an even, regular, breathing pattern in the water. On land we don’t walk around inhaling, holding our breath, and then quickly exhaling. In the water, an even breathing pattern will greatly aid relaxation. Try it, it works.

Probably the most important responsibility is to listen to and abide by your own personal limitations, your own "comfort zone". These limitations are always subject to change. Much will depend on water temperature, surge or current conditions, how much sleep you may have had the night before, or how much snorkeling you’ve already done that day. Certainly they change with experience and proficiency in the water. Individually, each of us knows best what our limitations are on any given day, and individually we must be responsive to those messages. If you get cold, get out, warm up, and go back in only when you feel like it.

After nearly an hour in the water, I helped Susan Oberlin back onto the boat. "How was it?" I inquired. "Fantastic!" she replied exuberantly, "I followed one gorgeous bright blue fish, then another more beautiful than the last, and then another, a yellow-stripey one, I think, and then before I knew it ..... I was freezing!"

With relaxation in mind, another precaution is simply to move slowly. Most injuries are caused by reflex actions that bang extremities into relatively immovable objects: boats, reefs, piers, etc. One student came to me with a scraped elbow. He’d inadvertently banged it into some coral...despite my urging not to touch the reef! When I asked him how it happened, he rather sheepishly replied that when he felt something (very big) bite his fin, he’d whipped around quickly to confront the beast, scraping his elbow in the process. When I asked him what his assailant looked like, he admitted that it was only one of his fins accidentally hitting the other. Harmless enough, except his sharp reflexes left him with a nasty scrape. Move slowly. Stay relaxed. Incidentally, even small scrapes in the tropics, especially coral cuts, can become easily infected. Be sure to clean all cuts very thoroughly, and apply a little antibiotic cream which will help them heal more quickly.

It’s also a good idea to remove bracelets, earring, and other "fishing lures" before entering the water. Sometimes jewelry becomes so much a part of us, it’s easily forgotten, until lost. On one occasion, I spent nearly an hour searching bottom before finding someone’s missing wedding ring.

While many people measure snorkeling skill by how long they can stay in the water, how fast they can kick, how deep they can free dive, or how long they can stay beneath the surface, the real measure of skill is the ability to remain relaxed. Don’t get discouraged if it feels a bit awkward in the beginning. Set your own pace. Like many other skills, snorkeling is a training, and the more you do, the better you will get. Developing and maintaining a calm easy demeanor in the water will be your best key to unlocking the treasure chest of fascinating mysteries contained within the underwater world.