The Beaches - Fernanado de Noronha Revisited (Part 3)
The relatively small island of Fernanado de Noronha has three beaches that were each rated “Best Beach in the World” at various times. We made it to five or six different beaches, and that was really only a fraction of what the island had to offer.
Wes and Brianna both had their diving certification, so they went on a scuba excursion, while Dan, Auden and I took the buggy to the south shore of the island. The beach we intended to go snorkeling at was closed due to a tiger shark being sighted in the water. So we headed back to the north shore and found ourselves on a beach near Two Brothers Rock.
Perhaps the most interesting of the beaches we saw was one that had indeed been rated #1, and was only accessible by climbing down a ladder and then a staircase through a crevasse in the cliff overlooking the beach. Auden and I had been designated “pack mules.” With a few contortions, I was able to make it through the crevasse with a backpack, but the bag of snorkeling gear was too big to carry down, so an employee of the national park helped us lower it via a rope. The folks in front of me were having a bit of a tough time; I think at one point a woman in their party was having a minor panic attack in the close confines of the crevasse. But we finally made it down with our towels, reef-safe sunblock, water, snacks and snorkeling gear.
The beach actually had a posted schedule of when people were allowed to descend, and when they were allowed to ascend. It worked pretty well, and there were plenty of people on the beach. We took turns snorkeling; I managed to spot an octopus amongst the other tropical fish that populated the rocks at the east end of the beach.
The west end of the beach had almost no one on it, so Dan, Auden and I walked down to that end to try out the snorkeling. Dan and Auden had fins, so were able to go farther and faster than I could. I swam out along the rocks, climbed out after a bit for a rest, then started to make my way back. I got more than I bargained for when a couple unexpected big swells pounded me into the rocks and tore my mask and snorkel off. Fortunately, I was able to float on my back, gather my wits, and make it the last few yards toward shore where it was shallow enough to stand. When we finally left the beach, the bumps and bruises made going back up the stairs and ladder a little painful. It was our last beach stop, which was fine by me, because I was all beached out by that point.
