Turtle Cove and Buck Island snorkel sail

You snorkel this one from the boat, because the island itself is off limits. Buck Island, about 4 km south of St. Thomas, is a federal refuge kept for migratory birds: 45 acres of cactus, thorn scrub and grass under a working Coast Guard lighthouse, closed to visitors with no landing. The refuge stops at the waterline, though, and the reefs around it are open water.

Boats anchor at Turtle Cove, on the northwest side, where sea turtles feed in large numbers, and the surrounding reef and a shipwreck sunk as an artificial reef draw snorkellers and divers too. Smaller Capella Island sits next door.

Do not confuse it with the other Buck Island, off St. Croix, which is a national monument with its own trips.