Exploring and snorkeling on Koh Tao

During our second week on Koh Tao, we went snorkeling and hiking. Oh did we go hiking! Without really thinking it through, we decided to hike all the way up to Mango Bay on the north coast of the island. It’s about 5 miles each way, requires climbing over the tallest part of the island (twice), and we were snorkeling for 2 hours as our ‘rest’. We also did it during the hottest part of the day. We were soaked the entire time. The steep roads here are no joke. 

We did get lucky with the rain during this adventure. It rained in the morning before we left, then rained while we were eating lunch after snorkeling, and then rained while we got happy hour drinks, but we never really got rained on. The snorkeling at Mango Bay was some of the best we’ve had on the island. The water was fairly clear, and there was a ton of reef structures and aquatic life.We made it most of the way back before stopping to get ice cream and then happy hour drinks sitting next to the beach as a storm blew over.

Some videos from various snorkeling spots around the island:

A huge grouper!

Me being viciously attacked by a tiny wrasse over and over while all the sergeant majors just look on silently.

Another day, we decided to search out a snorkeling spot a little closer to home. It was an awesome hike through the tropical rainforest to get there. Once there, it was really amazing snorkeling. We even saw a baby black tipped reef shark!

The reef shark surprised us by passing right underneath in shallow water, so we only got a partial picture:

Highlights from our second week on Koh Tao:

• Seeing a black tipped reef shark
• Spending 2 whole hours snorkeling. We always come out of the water exhausted and in great moods.
• Hiking the length of the island!

Subscribe to our blog!