You park on the shoulder and walk through a sandy garden of elevated crypts and plastic flowers, a sunnier, tropical version of a New Orleans graveyard. We spent about an hour on the reef, which is not a dramatic one, lacking the variety of coral and marine life that deeper reefs offer, but it was a good way to test our masks and fins. In fact, almost everything, from services to food, is expensive. While there are several reefs besides Cemetery Reef within swimming distance of the shore around the island, you will need to hook up with a dive boat to see the best ones. I counted more than three dozen dive operations in a telephone directory.
Most tourists join group dive trips on boats that can hold several dozen people.
With two young divers, we wanted the safety of a dive master's undivided attention, so we spent more to secure the boat and exclusive services of James Ebanks, whose family has been in business for decades. Our two afternoons with Ebanks were no-frills dives for which we brought our own drinks and snacks. If diving holds no interest for you, there are other diversions. Ebanks also took us to Stingray City, a sandbar populated by stingrays waiting for people to feed them raw conch. The rays have all been named by the locals, who will show you how to feed, stroke and even hold the rays.