Kathleen’s Reef
Body of Water:
Caribbean Sea
Max Depth: 18m
GPS Coordinates
Lat: 19.35845
Lon: -81.123483
Sitting just in front of Barefoot Beach, Kathleen's Reef is named for the wreck of the Geneva Kathleen, a three-masted schooner that met her watery end in 1930 en route from Gulfport to Curacao. Her wooden remains have long since rotted away. Still, snorkelers entering the ocean from Barefoot Beach can swim a short distance east to see various parts of her equipment sitting in just a few feet of water. However, the area is too shallow for diving, unfortunately.
The namesake dive site is a little further out from shore beyond the barrier reef. Kathleen's Reef can sometimes suffer poor visibility due to the outflow from the nearby lagoon, but catch it on a good day, and you will be rewarded. Divers can expect extensive and varied sponges, huge feather plumes, and the beautiful spur and groove reef formations typical of the north side.
Make sure to look inside the roomy barrel sponges for lobsters! If you approach gently, these surprisingly inquisitive little guys will often edge slowly from their hiding places to investigate you, waving their antennae as they do so. The Yellow Tube Sponges often have little schools of juvenile Bluehead Wrasse teeming around them. These youngsters are yellow (not blue like the adults) and will swarm toward any disturbances in the sand to pick out the tasty treats it holds.
Just a little east of the mooring pin, there is a large overhang for divers to pass underneath. Spotted Drums are a regular sighting here. If you accidentally spook one and it disappears into a hole, don't worry! Hang tight nice and still, and it will come back out again.