The West Coast Of Puerto Rico - A Sea Glass Lovers Paradise - Continued
Once at sea the party really gets started as the glass is worked by some of the Caribbeans most powerful surf. Glass is sucked up the faces of steep large waves and is then slammed down against the bottom over and over again, resulting in beautifully smoothed and frosted sea glass.
The surfing season is in the late fall to early spring. Sometimes there are some small swells during the summer but the sea is usually pretty calm then. Although it is possible to to find large quantities of sea glass in Puerto Rico there is never a gaurantee. If the surf is up there may not be anything on the beaches at all. The best time to collect is the day after the swell drops at low tide.
Rincon, Puerto Rico
Rincon is a surfing town on the westernmost point of the island. I lived there for fifteen years and that is where I found my first piece of sea glass and started making sea glass jewelry. Rincon is well known for being a good place to collect sea glass but sea glass can also be found on beaches throughout the island.
Sea glass can be found on all of Rincon's beaches from Barrero to Rivermouth and beyond. The best time to look is at low tide after a large swell. Looking in gravel and shell piles that were left by the swell is your best bet. However, you can also find sea glass along the high tide line and strewn across the sand.
- Steps Beach & Tres Palmas - There is elkhorn coral off of Steps Beach and when the sea is calm and clear Steps Beach offers good snorkeling from the beach. Tres Palmas is a surf break off of Steps Beach which is world famous for big waves with steep 25 foot faces. The sea glass found in this area tends to be small pieces as this sea glass has been relentlessly pounded by the surf at Tres Palmas and washed against the elkhorn coral.
- From Steps Beach To Marias - The walk between Steps Beach & Marias can be very rewarding sea glass wise as there are some nice gravel piles that form on this stretch of beach. The sea glass pieces tend to get a little bigger than those at Steps Beach too.
- Marias - Sea glass can be found in small quantities on this stretch of beach to Indicators.
- Domes Beach - Domes Beach is excellent for seashells and has some sea glass. This beach tends to be very crowded and has lots of crime. I use to avoid it entirely.
- Sandy Beach - Sandy Beach can be very good for sea glass collecting.
- Tide Pool - There is a tide pool on the way up to Rivermouth. During large swells it is hard to tell where this tide pool is. When the swell drops the tide pool reappears. When the conditions are right this tide pool is rimmed with sea glass and quite a few pieces of sea glass can be found in the tide pool as well.
- Rivermouth - Rivermouth is a surf break which is right off of where a small stream empties out into the sea. This is an excellent area to collect sea glass.
- Second Rivermouth - It is a long walk but past Rivermouth there is an area that is often called the second rivermouth and it is just that another place where a small stream empties out into the sea. The sea glass collecting can be excellent here as well.
The image above is of the surf break Tres Palmas in Rincon, Puerto Rico
