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Egypt Red SeaSharks Observatory is located at the famous Ras Mohamed Park - Sinai, very close to the resort town of Sharm el Sheikh.
The site can be dived from shore, dayboat or live aboard safari. In spite of its name, Shark Observatory is not noted for its sharks. Despite this, it is possible to see sharks at the site, white tip reef sharks, grey reef sharks, black tip sharks, tiger sharks (during summer months) and if you are lucky, whale sharks as well, have all been spotted at the site.
The dive normally begins on the western side of the corner / point. From shore it is an easy entrance "through a man-hole
type entrance, descending into the reef plate, that leads into a big cave (about 7 meters deep / 10 meters long). Once you exit the cave you will find a big canyon, dissappearing into the blue. The cave itself has some groupers, clearfin lionfish
and also special "comet starfish" near the entrance of the reef plate. The top of the reef is abundant with fish, Arabian surgeon fish, parrotfish etc... Light filtering through the reef plate into the cave is also spectacular. The reef starts right at 0.5 meters depth, dropping vertically down to approximately 200+ meters at some spots. Once you have exited the cave the best is to follow the wall to your left hand side. Along the wall you will find good hard corals with lots of sea goldies, groupers, lionfish, moray eels, turtles, if you look into the blue, you will see jacks, dog tooth tuna, barracuda passing by. Before the corner, on the western side, at a depth of about 15 meter, are some huge fan corals and cave where we always spot hawk fish and in the cave you almost always find a resident scorpion fish and the "rare" Broad-banded pipefish. Above this cave is some "cracks" in the reef, filled with glassfish and groupers. The wall especially at the "corner" offers some of the best and most colorfull soft corals in Sinai. The area also abounds with marine life, lots of jacks, groupers etc...
Late afternoons it is also possible to spot eagle rays and manta rays passing by in the blue. Please take care as the current at the corner can be very strong at times. When diving this site in the afternoon, you will have lots of shadows, giving again excellent light effects.
Sharks Observatory always offers the "X" factor, you never know what you can expect!
more info about Sharks Observatory, Ras Mohamed Park including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Barbados Caribbean SeaThe SS Stavronikita is the wreck of a 365ft Greek freighter which ran in to trouble off the coast of Barbados in 1976. The ship caught fire and was severely damaged. It was towed into the port of Bridgetown where she sat for almost two years.
In 1978 The Greek Government disowned her, so the Barbados government decided to deploy the ship as an artificial reef in the calm tranquil waters of the west coast, just off of Fitts Village in the Parish of St James. The shipwreck lies bolt upright with her bow facing East and the prop is at 40m/130ft. The top of the mast is at 6m/20ft. The house and main deck are to be found at 24m/80ft. The huge forward and aft cargo holds, and the cabins, stairways and engine rooms can be penetrated. This dive is rated as one of the best wreck dives in the Caribbean. Hightide Watersports visit this site approx 3 times a week.
more info about SS. STAVRONIKITA West Coast including maps, reviews, and ratings...
South Africa Indian OceanBest of both worlds... underwater and land safaris on the same trip! Great visibilty, very little surge. lovely dive!
more info about Sodwana Bay including maps, reviews, and ratings...
United KingdomSwanage pier is the ideal night dive. Even though the pier itself closes at dusk it remains easily accessible from the beach in front of the adjacent yacht club. The marine life on the night shift differs considerably from that found during the day. Even barren ground, such as the sand flats, plays host to flatfish, baby cuttle, and squid.
Tompot BlennyAt night the wall where the hardboats moor is accessible with out the danger of a prop behind the ear, it comes alive with prawns squat lobsters, and tompot blennies.
On one night dive last year I was attracted by the frenetic swinging beam of my buddy’s torch and, upon investigating, discovered the object of his attentions was the largest conger eel I have ever seen! It was inhabiting a discarded drainage pipe that, on a dive earlier that day, I was poking my arm into!
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website more info about Swanage Pier night diving including maps, reviews, and ratings...
United KingdomAnother popular site at St Abbs is Seagull Rock, which has a large cave cut out of the seaward side. Unlike the well-known Cathedral Rock, this site is best dived at high water, as the lower the state of tide the more slippery rocks you have to negotiate. The best route is to swim out along the sewage pipe that is clearly visible from the car park. Raw sewage is discharged from this pipe so if you use the toilet on the harbour front before your dive there is a very good chance that you will meet anything you put down it again on your way out. Still, the fish seem to like it, so don’t be put off; just keep your DV firmly in your mouth!
Further up the coast, just around St Abbs head, is Petticowick Bay, a picturesque cove boasting a Divers Only car park. Petticowick is reached either by a short drive through the nature reserve, or by boat from St Abbs harbour. This is an interesting site, mostly kelp, but with reefs where rare marine life has been recorded. Probably the most spectacular sights observed here though are the diving seabirds ‘flying’ underwater. This site is completely sheltered from southerly winds and a good alternative to St Abbs at such times
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website more info about St Abbs, Seagull Rock including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Thailand South China SeaHaad Yao Divers offers trips to these site 3 x a week. Different kind of cameras can be hired at their shop. They offer the Underwater Specialty Course.
more info about Sailrock: Koh Phangan including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Cayman islands Caribbean Seaexalent dive site! thar is a 10 ft bronze statue at 15 feet and a wreck of a landing craft
more info about sunset reef including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Malaysia Celebes SeaSipidan and Mabul off the coast of Borneo, Malaysia was one of the best dive locations ever.
Where else can you get the big fish and macro life just 1 island away. When Sipidan had the resorts, you could literally walk out from your beach bungalow to the pristine Celebes Sea and experience white tip and Black tip sharks, loads or huge Hawsbill turtles, Humpheads, Barracuda and nearly every colorful sea life imaginable for a sunset dive.Or take the speed boat 5 minutes to the dive sites where wall dives and reefs and the open blue offer huge sharks, including scalloped hammerheads, nurse and thrasher sharks galore.
Then onto Mabul which is a 15 minute boat ride away, one can see Corocodile fish, large Frog fish in a multitude of colors, Mantis shrimp, ribbon eels, huge Giant Morays,and finally a Pygmy Seahorse that was so hideen in the fan coral that you almost needed a magnifying glass to see it. So beautiful and delicate, its hard to imagine how it ever survives. The list goes on and on.
Truly a Paradise for Divers!!
more info about Sipidan including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Italy Mediterranean SeaGood dive for all type of diver. It's in the center of famous Marine National Park of Portofino. When you are near of -10 meter look like to be in an aquarium.
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website more info about Secca Carega - Portofino including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Italy Tyrrhenian SeaOne of the best sites in Italy: we can find all that we find in the Mediterranean Sea but, above all, groupers and barracudas.
more info about Secca del Papa, Tavolara Island, Sardinia including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Northern Mariana Islands PacificA beautiful sunken pool connected to the ocean by underwater passages. The sunlight shining on the ocean outside the cave gives the water its amazing deep blue color with typical visability of 100 plus feet. The Saipan Grotto is one of Saipan's best diving spots. Considered by many as one of the best shore cavern dives in the world, this must do dive site in Saipan is sure to amaze you.
After entering the water through a large limestone hole, divers realize they are in a huge cavern. From here, there are three different exit holes to the sea. Once outside, there are beautiful walls, swim-throughs, and caves to explore. Turtles, sharks, and wrasse, are some of the many types of sea life to be seen at this magnificent dive site.
more info about Saipan Grotto including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Cape Verde Atlantic (South)The best spots in Cape Verde with Sal & Aventuras.
website more info about Sal & Aventuras including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Colombia Caribbean SeaGR8
more info about San Andres & Providencia, Islands including maps, reviews, and ratings...
BahamasAll sorts of opportunities for photograhpy. Great shark dive, lots of life, both big and small.
more info about South shore of Grand Bahama including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Taiwan East China SeaIf you would like to find out more about dives sites in Southern Taiwan and elsewhere in the country or perhaps you are visiting Taiwan and would like to do some fun dives, or perhaps you live and work in Taiwan and you would like take some PADI Scuba Diving courses, please contact us.
Joe Cooperman
PADI Scuba Diving Instructor
#477967
click here to email OCEAN DIVING CLUB Taichung City
Taiwan
more info about Southern Taiwan including maps, reviews, and ratings...
United KingdomGreat dive site, friendly atmosphere, plenty of fellow divers to help and assist.
Access to Stoney Cove for diving is available to all registered divers during opening hours every day except during the Christmas and New Year holidays. You will find details in the current Stoney Cove Report. All diving projects other than instruction and general sports diving must be declared and agreed with the duty site manager.
stoney cove
sapcote road
stoney stanton
leicestershire
le9 4dw
tel: 01455 273089
more info about Stoney Cove including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Dominica Caribbean SeaScotts Head Pinnacles straddles the top of a submerged volcanic crater,creating the southern rim of the Soufriere Scotts Head Marine Reserve, the isthmus seperates the Atlantic from the Caribbean and is a nutirent mixing zone. This brings in small fish which are fed upon by larger.
The mooring pin is on top of a large rock riddled with cracks and crevices and one swim through, on a shalf of 10m depth, filled with lobster and soldierfish. From the pin one swims to the main pinnacle where two large rocks abut forming an arch, this is filled with soft corals, lobster and fish. Going through the arch takes you from the Atlantic into the Caribbean, the wall begins in 3m and drops vertically to 35 before sloping to approximately 1500m, on a good day you tend to ignore the huge gorgonains, barrel sponges and other life dripping from the wall and spend the dive looking out to sea at the schooling fish, on a bad day the wall is more than enough for the jaded reef diver to come up saying "wow!", remember this is a mixing zone loads of nutirents so lots of life and opportunity for growth on the reef and in the water column. If the current is running it is a drift along the wall back to the edge of the reef and onto the shelf,but the ride is worth it. From the edge of the reef heading back to the shelf is a garden of macro life and well worth loking for seahorses frogfish etc. in addition to small barracuda looking at you like you owe them money, going through the swimthrough under the moring pin will bring you to the top of the first pinnnacle and under the boat for your safety stop.
This is one of the dives I do to remind myself that theres more to life than stress.
more info about Scotts Head Pinnacles including maps, reviews, and ratings...
United States Pacific
San Benedicto is a very rugged
island that looks like a volcano rising right out of the ocean. The last
eruption was in 1952 and you can easily see where the eruption took place, on
the lower side of the southeast corner of the island.
Shark Caves is located on the East side of the island. A dive briefing
was given prior to our arrival at which time we were informed that gloves,
lights and knives are strictly prohibited while diving any of the islands.
Target lights and focus lights attached to any camera gear are exempt. The
recommended water exit procedure is to climb the ladder with your fins on to
avoid any injury with the potential bouncing, surge and currents that may exist.
This was not difficult with the wide, well spaced steps on the ladder and was
indeed a very good recommendation. Once the anchor was dropped and the RIB’s
were in the water, everyone suited up and jumped in for the first checkout dive.
The dive was to approximately 70 feet. Visibility was poor at only 30 feet, but
I was able to get up close with at least a dozen white tip sharks resting in
their caves. I also spotted a Shovelnose Guitarfish, a very Stingray-ish looking
variety of the shark family.
There were hundreds of Moorish Idol's and even with the reduced visibility,
it was a great dive and the water temperature was a pleasing 76 degrees, 10
degrees warmer than the water in Cabo. Once all of the divers were back on
board, the Solmar V moved to a protected bay with calm water on the south side
of the island and dropped anchor for the evening. It seemed that in a matter of
only minutes, a few Silky sharks showed up and began patrolling the boat a few
feet under the surface. After dinner, we were treated to a shark feeding show
off the side of the boat where tuna parts were hung off the side.
more info about San Benedicto, Baja including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Cayman islands Caribbean Sea
- Seaview reef
[61 minutes, max. depth 56’]: We
headed South from Seaview towards Sunset House and rode the slight current
back, ending right at the ladder at Seaview. Highlights: Spotted Scorpionfish,
Pygmy Filefish , Peacock Flounder.
- Hepp’s Pipeline
[52 minutes, max. depth 65’]: Looking back at the
18 dives we did that week, this one was one of our favorites. Right away we
saw a 5 foot green Moray tucking himself into an overhang. We crossed over a
sandy plain, down over a mini-wall to a huge coral "mound". The
coral here seemed very healthy compared to other areas we saw. The site is not
dived very often because conditions are rarely favorable for the dive. In
other words, we were very lucky! During the dive we saw the first and second
Turtles of the trip. I snuck up on the second one while he was sharing a snack
with a grey angelfish…very cool!
[44 minutes, max. depth 13’]: Often called the
greatest 10 foot dive in the world. That I think goes to Moses Reef, Eilat,
Israel. Still good though! Dived with Don Foster’s since TI didn’t have
enough divers to go out. The one tank trip was not included in our dives for
the week, so it cost us $55 US each. We rode a van out to the North side,
and then boarded Foster's very large catamaran style boat that wasn't
specifically outfitted for diving (no tank holders). A short boat ride to
the shallow, sandy site and soon we were surrounded by many friendly
stingray. Everyone should do it at least once, I guess. Don Foster's staff
was very friendly, but the time we spent with them was really too short to
form any kind of opinion. It's certainly a much larger operation than
Treasure Island.
Water Temperature on all dives was 83 degrees F. On all dives the coral
was fairly healthy with a wide variety of fish life inhabiting it.
more info about Stingray City including maps, reviews, and ratings...
Bahamas Caribbean SeaWith advanced booking checking in was breeze, and was on the boat in 10 minutes upon arrival. The boat was great, 46ft lots of room and shade, topside sundeck, bathroom, freshwater showers, camera table, huge water cooler, everything you need.
The first dive was at Razorback reef, about a 15 minutes from the dock. During the dive briefing we were given the choice of following the divemaster or heading out on own. I followed the divemaster and it was very good dive, lots of life, saw a hammerhead, cool.
The 2nd am dive was 2 wrecks laying bow to stern, the first starting at about 35ft,the 2nd ending at around 60ft. Both of these ships are 180ft island tankers, this was a cool dive. This site is only about a minute from Stuart Cove's dock.
After lunch out to Sharkwall and Sharkarena, about 45 minutes or so, defnitively worth the ride. The dive is on a wall and coral gardens that surround Sharkarena the site of the 2nd dive. The sharks know a snack isn't too far away, with 6-10 following us around (and a couple grouper too). After a surface interval back down to the Sharkarena a natural sand spot surrounded by coral, the feeding begins. I was totally blown away by these 2 dives it was great lots of sharks in your face action, 6 days later I'm still processing it. If you want to see sharks and want to go with a great dive op chose Stuart Cove's. I can't think of anything negative about Stuart Cove's the entire staff was fantastic. I hired a private photographer from Stuart Cove's Fin Photo for the Shark encounter dives, Tori did a awesome job during the dives and gave me a disc with 61 great pictures, worth the extra money. I can't wait to go back
more info about Shark Dive with Stuart Cove's including maps, reviews, and ratings...