Previously on this blog, I introduced you to Yonehara beach on Ishigaki Island.
This time, you will be amazed by the beauty in the water! You can find a tremendous variety of fish just 30~50 meters off the beach!
Since I took many pictures there (actually I took many videos and I captured the shots from them), I will divide them into several articles, so this article is based on the second half of my experience in May 2018, which I wrote about in my Japanese blog.
- Where is the Yonehara beach? How can I get there? —>check here
I was explaining the location and the access from the downtown area of the island in the previous article.
Find the points where you can see many different fish at once!
I came to this beach because everyone said it’s the best place to do personal snorkeling in Ishigaki. And it was beyond my expectations!
These striped fish were usually gathering together…
This fish looked rather aggressive but don’t worry, they don’t bite you.
It doesn’t look very obvious, but the fish is coloured yellow, black and pink. It’s a kind of Thalassoma cupido, which can be seen everywhere in the water at this beach.
The fish on the left is called Scolopsis bilineata (yes, I’m now learning!)
This is just 20 – 50 meters off the beach where you can easily touch the bottom (my height is 159cm/5’2″)
I had participated in some snorkeling tours before coming here, and it was very good because they took me the points by boat I cannot reach by myself.
However it was surprising to see the same level of species just 30-50 meters off the beach. You don’t have to pay the tour fees, or care about the tour schedule.
I was swimming wearing this. As I warned here before, it would be better to wear a rash guard to avoid getting burned by the strong UV rays.
This is my friend, now you can see how shallow the tide is.
Note that you should put on a life jacket even though it is shallow, it will help you to control your movement and avoid damaging the coral if you step on it.
Look at plenty of stony coral
The water is full of marine species because of the stony coral. You can’t find as many kinds of coral as the points that you can visit by boat, but stony coral always attract the fish.
This coral is extremely big.
Some coral is bleaching for a number of reasons, but the tiny coral is trying to grow.
What do you need for snorkeling here? Be sure to wear a life jacket
There is a shop where you can rent snorkeling items.
Here are the items you can rent from the shop, I use my own though.
・life jacket
・marine shoes
・swim suit
・towel
If you are a westerner, I know that you think that Asians with rash guards look unfashionable on the beach. I used to have the same feeling because I am Westernised to some extent, but please don’t think that the UV rays in Okinawa are the same as the South of France. The sun is much stronger here and your skin can get seriously burned. The vest will also protect you from getting hurt by rocks etc.
You can find a free parking place.
Please see the previous article for the info about the access by bus. –>>here
It’s possible to come here by bus as I did in 2018 (This article is about 2018), but I rented a car this year, which made the stay in Ishigaki 100 times easier.
You need an International license or the official translation for your country’s license (check here), but I recommend you to get an international one if you can.
You need an International license or the official translation for your country’s license but I recommend you to get one if you could.
So, if you go to the beach by car, note that there is a place where you can park your car for free.
I parked here for free.
However, you might be led to a toll parking lot. Actually, there is a trap, lol.
So try to find the free parking lot instead of getting trapped. However, the toll is only 500 JPY a day, so don’t worry too much.
I will write about my experience here this year after posting about different regions next time.
