I love getting new gear for the store and being the buyer for snorkelingonline.com it seems like it is Christmas every day.

Our newest product is the Cressi snorkel equipment but the snorkeling gear that I want to talk about today is the Cressi snorkeling travel package. The Cressi snorkel gear includes the Cressi Palau SAF Fins, Sky II Mask & Gamma Snorkel with an awesome travel bag.

The size of the fins might have some fooled but they work great in the water and perfect size for the traveler. The Sky II mask has a silicone skirt with tempered glass and the Gamma Snorkel has a replaceable silicone mouthpiece and is semi-dry.

The snorkeling equipment can be purchased as a package or can be purchased individually for just the snorkel, snorkeling fins or snorkel mask. The fins come in 3 colors and 3 sizes.

I came across this picture and thought I would share. Isnt the puppy adorable? If you dont have a puppy and never had the opportunity to put a snorkeling mask & snorkel on your pet, check out this picture.

Thank you MNFX for this adorable picture and sharing what a dog looks like with snorkel equipment.

The first tip is to get a snorkel mask with a soft silicone skirt and avoid any snorkel mask that is not silicone. Snorkeling Masks that have silicone skirts will conform to the face better than the inexpensive masks found in the seasonal aisles of the “Mart” stores. Silicone can be more expensive than PVC or Siltech materials, but it is more resistant to the elements such as Ultra-violet rays. Silicone will also have a better life value. If you are unsure if the mask is silicone, see if the snorkel mask has tempered glass lenses. The lenses will have “tempered” written right on the glass. Manufacturer’s who spend the money on tempered glass are more likely to use silicone for the skirt as well. All snorkel mask skirts should have what is called a double seal, which will create a more effective barrier than masks without. You will find that all snorkel masks on SnorkelingOnline.com are silicone with tempered glass lenses.

For more information, read our snorkeling guide, Snorkeling Masks – Select the Right One.

With having a brick & mortar snorkeling & scuba diving location, we have been asked a thousand times, how can we stop our snorkel mask to stop leaking when we have a mustache. I LOVE telling the guys, SHAVE IT OFF. Off course I am laughing when I suggest that because the look on the guys face when I say that, is priceless! You would think I asked them to cut off a limb.

So not having a mustache, I asked fellow snorkeler, Roy, to give us some times on how to get around this “hairy” dilemma.

• Get a good snorkel mask with a soft silicone skirt. Avoid any mask that is not silicone because the silicone will conform to the face better than the inexpensive masks.

• If it leaks tighten it. While this may work with faucets and such, tightening the snorkeling mask strap will only serve to reduce the silicone skirt’s ability to conform to the face. The simple act of smiling or taking out the snorkel will cause leakage from other areas. You may have to play with how tight or loose the mask strap needs to be, but the position of the mask strap on the back of the head may solve a lot more problems than you might think. Positioning the mask strap higher on the back of the head, will pull the bottom of the skirt tighter to the lip but will still allow the rest of the mask skirt to conform the other facial features.

• You may have heard people suggest putting petroleum gels on the mustache to create a better seal. While this does actually work, using petroleum gels such as Vaseline will deteriorate the silicone over time and is therefore not advised. Using a food grade silicone gel will work and will not affect the silicone skirt. While this is a very viable means of taking care of leakage due to mustaches, it is really a bite getting the silicone gel out of the mustache when you are done snorkeling.

• If you have a very thick mustache, thinning it out will help. I have known guys to go so far as to trim their mustaches to create a wider space between the nose and the upper lip. This allows the inner seal of the mask skirt to seal directly to skin of the upper lip.

These are a few suggestions and they may or may not work for those with mustaches. If you have tried these and have not succeeded then it is time to kiss that mustache goodbye.