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Scuba Turks and Caicos -
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Lay of the Land
Turks and Caicos consists of 40 different islands and cayes, 8 of which are inhabited. The chain is comprised of two groups of islands separated by the 22 mile wide Columbus Passage.
You can check them out on our page of maps of Turks and Caicos.
This deep passage is a major transit line for migrating spotted eagle rays, manta rays, turtles and dolphins. On the West side of the passage are the Caicos group: West Caicos, Providenciales, North Caicos, Middle Caicos, East Caicos and South Caicos.
On the East are the Turks group: Grand Turk and Salt Cay. 
Most of the islands are relatively flat and surrounded by shallow sandy flats. The islands themselves have many marshes and mangrove swamps which attract birds such as great blue herons, flamingos, osprey, pelicans, boobies and other water birds.
The most developed island is Providenciales (commonly known as "Provo") with a population of around 23,000. This is where most of the tourists go and it offers many hotels, restaurants, attractions, etc.
We have only stayed on Provo when we went to scuba in the Turks and Caicos - but we are working on it! Another scuba dive vacation to T&C sounds good to me.
Provo covers 38 square miles and is fringed by white sand beaches. It lies on the west side of the Caicos archipelago. The south part of the island faces the Caicos Bank which is a shallow part of the sea where you will find swamp and tidal flats.
Like the other islands in the chain, Provo is relatively flat with some small rolling hills.
It is also home to the absolutely gorgeous Grace Bay Beach, voted the Best Beach by Conde Nast. Is it any wonder that Oprah and lots of other celebs have shown up? Most people stay on Grace Bay Beach and do alot of diving off its shore.
Location
The Turks and Caicos are located just south (30 miles) of the Bahamas and 575 miles southeast of Miami. It is a short 1 1/2 hour plane ride from Miami. Probably a big reason there is so much development going on in these islands.
You can check their location out on our page of maps of Turks and Caicos.
It is easy to get to with many direct flights from the states, especially during the high season (mid-December through April).
Weather
Winter temperatures average a pleasant 75-80 degrees during the day and cool down to the mid-60's in the evening. Daytime temperatures warm up to 90-95 degrees in the summer with nighttime in the cooler 73-77 degree range. Summer can get hot and humid, like the rest of the Caribbean.
The rainy season goes from late May through November. We went in September during one of our trips to scuba in the Turks and Caicos. It was pretty rainy the whole time but that's the luck of the draw. Hopefully you'll have better luck if you go in September.
Hurricane season, like the rest of the Caribbean, is from June 1 to November 30. The most active period is usually September and October.
Water Temperature
Water temperatures range from 74F to 78F in the winter and around 80F to 84F in the summer. Most divers wear at least a shorty diving wetsuit in the winter to scuba in the Turks and Caicos.
Reefs and Rides
The reef system here is 200 miles long and about 65 miles wide so there are lots of dive sites to explore. Wall diving starts fairly shallow so it is also good for beginners. Some drop offs start as shallow as 35-40 feet. If you are a beginner, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend scuba Turks and Caicos as a great place to get your feet wet.
Marine parks and fishing reserves have been set up in the islands. The Princess Alexandra National Park is off the coast of Provo and most diving off of Grace Bay is done withing the boundaries of the park.
No commercial or sport fishing is allowed within the park. Mooring balls have also been set up at most of the sights throughout the islands to protect the coral.
If you are diving off of Grace Bay, the reef is located close to shore. No hour long boat rides here - a definite advantage of scuba in the Turks and Caicos. Our rides to the sites off of Grace bay were about 15-20 minutes.
The last time we were there, most of our diving was done off of West Caicos. The seas were rough in front of Beaches Resort, where we were staying, and West Caicos offered a more protected area.
This meant we had to take a van across the island to the dive boat. But since it was only about a 5 minute ride across the island, it wasn't too bad. Of course, how could I ever complain when I get to scuba in the Turks and Caicos? The boat rides out to West Caicos were about 45 minutes.
Even when the weather wasn't that great, we still had good visibility. It is not unusual to have visibility in the 100+ feet range.
A couple dive stories from our experiences of scuba in the Turks and Caicos:
The Masked Captain
On one boat ride out to West Caicos, there were 8 of us huddled in front of the boat. We were trying to escape the squall that hit us.
We were cold. And wet. One of the divers pipes up, "We are doing this for fun, right?"
Then the boat stopped. The captain came down.
In full yellow rain gear. And his diving mask on.
You can't make this stuff up.
We were getting close to the reef and he couldn't see. So we waited out the squall.
The squall passed and we finally got to scuba in the Turks and Caicos.
What is that floating past?
We were doing our safety stop after a dive off of West Caicos. I am looking around and see something strange. Couldn't figure out what is was at first.
Then it was obvious.
The mooring had broken. A piece of the concrete holding the mooring ball was floating past. With the dive boat attached. And heading right for my brother in law's head.
After some quick underwater pantomime, we were able to get him out of the way before he was wonked on the head. And thankfully there was a captain on the runaway boat. Otherwise it would have gone straight onto shore at West Caicos. No harm done.
At least it makes for a good dive tale over a few cold ones!
Topside
By far, our favorite thing to do after we finish diving on Provo is to walk Grace Bay Beach. The beach is gorgeous with powder soft sand and the water is a beautiful turquoise blue.
A relaxing walk along Grace Bay is perfect after you scuba in the Turks and Caicos. 
If you are lucky, you may get to see JoJo, the resident wild Atlantaic bottlenose dolphin, playing in the water. JoJo has been living and playing in off of the Turks and Caicos Islands since 1980. He is one of the few dolphins around the world that voluntarily interacts with human beings in his own natural habitat. The government has proclaimed JoJo a National Treasure, with a specially appointed warden to protect him.
We got to see JoJo once during a trip to scuba in the Turks and Caicos. He followed the dive boat out from shore and was playing in the waves created by the boat. Unfortunately, we didn't get to dive in and play with him. Maybe next time.
So go do some scuba in the Turks and Caicos. You won't regret it.
Here's wishing you good diving!
All the beautiful photos were taken by Janet Wasek. Thanks!
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