African Dive Spots Archives

The Top Dive Spots In Sodwana Bay

February 13, 2017TD_AD

Sodwana Bay in Kaw-Zulu Natal offers extensive coral gardens, great shoals of reef fish and caves. There are many dive spots in Sodwana Bay that you need to know about before you visit because some of the reefs could take you weeks to fully explore. The most commonly known is Two Mile, but there are others that you need to look at.

Stringer Dive Spot

The Stringer dive spot is a small shallow reef with an average depth of 10 meters. Stringer has two rocky outcrops that are alive with frogfish, clownfish, golden bennies and paperfish. This reef is considered a macro-photographers dream as long as the current is not too bad. As the reef is shallow you can enjoy a relaxed and long dive where you could catch a glance of manta rays and turtles.

Roonies Dive Spot

The Roonies dive spot is home to a large black coral tree which is the largest in Sodwana. Of course, the tree is actually yellow so take care to not swim straight past it, but you can easily find it by looking for red hawkfish that shelter there. This is also a small site with an average depth of 28 meters where you could see the schooling cardinals and cleaning stations.

Bikini Or Hopscotch Dive Spot

If you visit this dive spot you need to go slow because it is very fragile. By going slowly you can better appreciate the tiny shrimp at the cleaning stations and the thousands of goldies. On the Western edge of the reef, you will find a cave that you can explore. The reef offers an average depth of 16 meters and has plate coral and a large school of schooling coachmen.

Anton’s Dive Spot

Anton‘s is considered one of the most spectacular sites of the reef with diverse marine life and rocky pinnacles. The corals are wonderful which is surprising considering the large number of divers visiting this reef and the fish life is plentiful so you do not have to worry about not seeing any marine life. You can take some amazing photographs with honeycomb moray eels and large shoals of snapper around the reef.

Five Mile Reef Dive Spot

If you are passionate about coral then you need to head to Five Mile which offers the greatest diversity of all the Sodwana reefs. You will be able to see staghorn coral as well as mushroom coral sheltering large numbers of fish. The average depth of this reef is 21 meters and it is only offered to advanced divers which is one of the reasons why the coral is in such good condition. Many divers have stated that diving Five Mile is like diving into an aquarium because of the large amount of marine life.

Seven Mile Reef Dive Spot

Depending on the way the current is running you have a number of options when it comes to Seven Mile. If the current is running north to south then you should hit the Northern Wall where there is a drop off from 15 to 24 meters and the Amphitheater which is a sunken depression in the reef which is 3 to 6 meters lower than the rest of the reef. There is diverse coral life on the reef sheltering large numbers of goldies. You will also be able to see stingrays at the base of the wall.

If the current is running in the opposite direction then you should start with Mushroom Rocks on the south. This is a huge mushroom-shaped bommies covered with coral and juvenile batfish. While there you should keep a look out for porcelain crabs and whip coral gobies. You can then move onto Castle Rock which is a large pinnacle where you could occasionally spot a gray reef shark.

Nine Mile Reef Dive Spot

As the name suggests Nine Mile Reef is a very long reef so you will not be able to explore it all in one dive. There are actually 4 sites that make up the reef which you might be able to combine if the current is running correctly. The distance of the launch site means that you will only be able to dive the site when the seas are flat and you generally have to pay a premium to dive this far out.

Cape Town’s Top Shore Dives

February 13, 2017TD_AD

South Africa offers a range of beautiful dive sites, but if you do not want to take a boat out to dive then you should consider the shore dives available. If you are taking a trip to Cape Town there are many dive sites on the east coast of the Cape Peninsula. Some of the sites are located in False Bay while others are on the Atlantic side.

Why Go Shore Diving?

There are many reasons why you should consider shore diving instead of boat diving. Cape Town offers a number of amazing dives that you can easily access from the shore and you will not have to worry about the costs of a charter to take you to the dive site. It is also possible to hire a dive leader from dive shops to help you find and travel through the dive sites.

The Clan Stuart

In 1914 the SS Clan Stuart, a British turret steam ran aground on the False Bay coast. The dive is an easy shore dive because it is shallow and suitable for divers of any experience level. The wreck offers diverse reef animals and an interesting wreckage. The engine block of the wreck can be seen from the shore because it sticks out of the water. Great white sharks have been seen in the area on occasion, but this is very rare.

The A-Frame

The A-Frame offers easy entry and some very interesting swim throughs. The entry point is a flat rock plateau where you will descend to a sandy area where you can move through a kelp forest. There are a number of deep holes and overhangs to explore. The site is suitable for night dives and shy sharks are commonly seen along with cuttlefish and octopus.

Pyramid Rock

While the pyramid rock dive is a shore dive it is possible to also complete this using a boat. The highlight of this dive is the Seven Gill Cow Sharks and many divers have seen many of these sharks in a single dive. While these sharks do have teeth no divers have ever been bitten.

Justin’s Caves

One of the most popular shore dives during the summer months is Justin’s Cave. This is a fun dive because there are caverns with crayfish, sponges and anemones living in them. There are many harmless small sharks in the area. Many years ago there was a great white shark seen on the dive, but this is extremely rare.

The Maori

If you are looking for a wreck dive on the Atlantic side then the Maori is the right dive for you. The cargo ship which went down was traveling from London to New Zealand and was carrying pipes, crockery and explosives. The wreck is considered to be one of the best-preserved wreckages to dive off the South African coast Some points of interest in the dive at the steam engines and railway lines for the cargo.

Castle Rock

The name of the dive is a bit misleading as Castle Rock is actually made up of a number of huge rocks in a small bay area. The starting point of this dive is a small bay which will lead you through a large kelp forest. This site offers some amazing marine life with large numbers of different fish types including Cape Knife Jaw, Steenbras and Pyjama sharks. You will need to park on the side of the road and kit up there before walking down to the entry point.

There are many shore dives that you should consider when visiting Cape Town. The best dives are on the False Bay and Atlantic sides of the peninsula.

5 Best Zanzibar Dive Spots

February 13, 2017TD_AD

Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous archipelago of the Tanzanian Coast which is 20 to 24km of the main coast. It consists of a number of islands with the main one being Unguja and the second largest being Pemba. The capital of this archipelago is Zanzibar City with its main center being Stone Town. One of the main attractions of Zanzibar is the many coral beaches surrounding it. These beaches attract a lot of attention and are quite a few in number. The following are the best spots across the islands.

Mnemba Atoll: Thought to be the best diving spot in the whole island, it has a variety of things to offer. It is great for beginners and experienced divers and due to the circular island shape, it is sheltered from drifts and has great visibility for up to 30 meters. It is the most famous and has turtles and dolphins as part of the attraction. To go diving there are a few diving centers with the most popular one being One Ocean. It has three bases which are Matemwe Beach Village, Matemwe Bungalows and Stone Town. Zanzibar Watersports is also great for more experienced divers. For easy logistics, it’s better to stay at the hotels associated with the dive center.

Big Wall is in Mnemba area and it makes it a great diving area for experienced divers and only when there is slack tide. It faces the open ocean and has a lot of drift. It is exciting as it contains many caves to explore. The depth is 55 meters at its deepest. There a lot of dolphins, rainbow runners, lobsters, tuna and trevally all over the place.

Watabomi is another popular dive site. It has a depth of 30 m and is great for beginners and experienced divers alike. It has very beautiful plate coral and on a good day tiger fish, angel fish, stripped dolphins and turtles can be spotted.

Levenbank is one of the most beautiful and highly recommended dives in Zanzibar. It is a mountain that has its peak out in the ocean and is in the deep blue waters of the Indian Ocean. It contains all kinds of fish like Barracudas and gigantic Moray eels. It has a depth of up to 50 meters and is for advanced and experienced divers only. It is great for drift diving and offers some challenging conditions for divers who are into that sort of thing.

For photographic divers, Magic Reef/ Shanes/Shemzi is the place to visit. It has a lot of unique and picturesque things to offer. There are colorful sea horses, leaf fish, turtle, Moray and all sorts of underwater goodness to discover. It has of 25 meters. It is suited for a more experienced diver though, because of the challenging diving conditions.

If you are down for adventure consider paying a visit to Haunted Wall. This is on Timbatu Island. It is not as popular as all the other dive sites and is a little more isolated which is great for getting away from the crowd during the high season. It has a wide variety of fish like rays, eels and green turtles. Divers of all levels can swim here. It is relatively safe.

Zanzibar is a beautiful place with a lot of cultural heritage which is fiercely and proudly preserved by the population. The people understand the beauty of their nation is to be shared but also to be protected. The conservation efforts that are going on in the face of modernization are a great testament to Zanzibar making an effort to accommodate but still retain a sense of their character.