I first went to El Garrafon in 1996, driving to the location in one of the golf carts that can be rented in the center of town. I am a high school wrestling coach, so my female travelling partner challenged me by saying that she didn't think that I had the "courage" to wrestle one of the sharks on the island. So, my ego challenged, I decided to show my "machismo".
After we stepped from the cart, we crossed a nice sand beach. There were many people on the beach who had travelled over with one of the many day trips from Cancun. Some were busy socializing, but many were renting snorkelling equipment. There were picnic tables and concessions available, in addition to the snorkelling gear.
We arrived at a short pier, which was centered in an enclosed area. We talked to one of the men at the pier, who allowed me to jump in the water. He directed me to a shark that was about 3 meters (9 1/2 feet) long. As you can see in the pictures below, I did "wrestle" with the shark. Many of my students have been silenced when they see the poster sized photo that I had made from that encounter.
Later, we rented snorkelling equipment and swam along the reef. This part of the trip was less eventful. Much of the coral was damaged, probably due to abuse by the tourists. It was possible to see angelfish, parrotfish, and other species. But, I much preferred diving the reef in the Cozumel area than snorkelling in this crowded spot.