 |
|
ATOL 4112. ATOL Protection extends primarily to
customers who book and pay in the United Kingdom. |
|
| |
| Turks and Caicos Dive Sites |
| |
 |
| |
- BLACK CORAL FOREST
An overhung section of the reef wall that starts in 45ft of water,
undercuts to about 80ft and then drops to a ledge at 200ft before
falling away into the deep, this wall is covered with block coral
trees of varying species. In this forest can be found small chromis
and other fish, seeking refuge amongst the branches. An excellent
site for wide angle photography.
- THE DOME/THUNDERDOME
Believe it or not, this is where a French TV game show was filmed!
A large domed metal structure with a door in the top and one in
the side, inside the dome you can find snappers, chub, goatfish
and occasionally barracuda. Not for the serious diver, but an
amusing aside!The Crack
Nice dive, shame about the name! A large fissure runs in an arc
through the reef, and it can be exited at any point along its
length. Starting at the reef top in about 45ft the crack extends
down the reef slope to a wide sandy ledge at 130ft. From here
the wall drops away into the abyss. Half way down the crack you
will find a massive barrel sponge and a beautiful anemone. From
the crack you can either go south and find a large field of plate
corals cascading from the top of the reef down to the lip of the
ledge or you can head north and explore numerous gullies and caves
in the reef wall. The top of the reef is dominated by a large
pillar coral formation around which you can often find swirling
schools of grunts & snapper.
- ELEPHANT EAR CANYON
A cut in the top of the reef wall at about 50ft and dscends through
a series of sand gullies to an area of alrge coral buttresses
at about 100ft. The largest elephant ear sponge in the Turks &
Caicos resides here. Some 10-11ft across and round in shape, this
magnificent specimen is a wonderful orange colour and is home
to many interesting creatures in its own right, not least the
myriad of crustaceans, gobies and other small fish that make it
their home. They are often the same colour or, in some cases,
almost transparent.
- DRIVEWAY
From a reef top of about 40ft you can swim down a long sand chute
that stops at a ledge at 90ft, covered in star & plate corals,
from where the reef drops into the abyss. The wall is covered
in black coral trees and red tube sponges. Beyond the ledge there
are often sharks and large groupers. The top of the reef here
has lots of large coral heads that are home to anemones (with
their resident Pederson’s cleaning shrimps) and lots of interesting
critters such as arrow crabs, coral dusters, banded shrimps &
feather stars. This is an excellent area for a night dive.
- WHITEFACE
White sandstone and coral bluffs dominate parts of the shoreline
of West Caicos, and Whiteface is named after this fact. Wedged
within a gully cut into the coral wall is a 17th Century anchor,
its origins unknown – this anchor has given rise to the site’s
other name, Anchor!. At the base of the gully in 100ft of water
is a striking white anemone. The top of the reef is a flat a sandy
area in about 40ft of water with large pillar coral formations.
There is a resident grey reef shark that is very inquisitive and
not at all averse to posing for the camera!
- STAIRWAY
Stairway is a huge trench in the side of the reef that is dominated
by massive stands of plate corals that march down the reef to
a depth of about 110ft before dropping off into the blue. The
plates give the effect of a huge staircase. The top of the stairs
are covered with vibrant soft corals and filled with schools of
fish such as grunts, snapper and chub. Like a watch tower above,
a huge brain coral marks the top of the stairway, covered of crabs
and other crustacea. Either side of the stairway the reef wall
is composed of large coral buttresses within which are many nooks
and crannies, full of small critters
- DOUBLE D
Close to shore two large coral mounds rise from a sandy seafloor
–looking like a pair of Double D boobs!!!! Look got the oversized
scorpionfish that lives on the mounds – he enjoys posing
for photographers! Beyond the coral mounds the wall slopes gently
down into the depths, but coral growth here is exceptionally lush,
with plate corals, pillar corals and large stands of seafans and
soft corals. The sandy areas reflect the sun off the seafloor,
so the area is particularly light. A school of Atlantic spadefish
(that’s batfish to you or I!) live here. With the sun in
the correct place and the spadefish in formation above the reef
and sand, this is a great place for would be David Baileys!
- MOLASSES REEF
It was here that we saw a large silky shark (we could think of
no other species that it could have been!) which cruised around
the back of the boat for 45 minutes. Molasses Reef is out in open
water, on the edge of the banks that make up French Cay. It was
the scourge of many ships and there are a number of historic wrecks
on the reef, anchors and other items of which can be seen at the
Turks & Caicos Museum. It is on the outer wall of this reef
that you dive – blue water encounters with sharks and eagle
rays are common, and school sof jacks and barracuda can be seen
cruising the wall.
- WEST SAND SPIT
This remote sand cay is five miles south of French Cay, and only
accessible in good weather. The cay is surrounded by a large sandy
plateau that slopes to about 40ft before the reef proper starts,
dropping away to 150ft. Huge pillar corals interspersed with barrel
sponges and seafans dominate the scenery, and currents often sweep
across the reef – hence its vibrancy. A large school of goatfish
is usually seen scurrying across the sandy patches looking for
food, cloudy drifts of sand marking their course. There are also
some very large stingrays here, some as big as 5ft across. In
summer nurse sharks can be seen in profusion, but there are usually
some around on most dives. If you are lucky you may spot one or
more of the 3 extra-large giant groupers that live at West Sand
Spit. They are a muddy brown in colour and are about the size
of a small Japanese compact!!! With fresh oceanic water being
swept across the reef at all times, the remoteness and total lack
of any freshwater run off, this reef often has fabulous visibility.
|
| |
| |
|  |
|
|
Scuba Safaris | Ormond House, Plaistow Road, Loxwood, West Sussex, RH14 0TR. United
Kingdom
T: 01403 752 480| EM: info@scuba-safaris.com
All Content Copyright © Scuba Safaris 1997 - 2012 |
| |