| Quarter Mile | Stringer | 5 Mile | Ribbon | 7 Mile | Sponge | Big Blue | |
| 2 Mile | Anton’s | Caves and Overhangs | Four Buoy | Pinnacles | Monty’s | Coral Gardens | Chain Reef |
| Booking Details | Diving Procedures | ||||||
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SODWANA REEFS |
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Sodwana
has various different reefs to visit. The reefs vary in size and are mostly
named by their distance from the launch site. All are extremely beautiful with
abundant fish life and many of them are so large that you can dive a different
area of the same reef on each dive! Here’s a list of some of our most commonly
dived reefs. The visibility on the reefs ranges daily and can be anything up to
40 metres, with average visibility of 10–15 metres. The water temperature in
Summer (Dec, Jan) is about 27 degrees centigrade and in Winter (July) it is
around 21 degrees. 2 Mile is the most dived reef. The outer reefs are for the more experienced divers and it is up to us all to keep these reefs in good condition. It is not desirable to have novice divers damaging the reefs through lack of buoyancy control. |
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Just off the shore at Jesser Point there is Quarter Mile Reef. About 12m deep. Loggerhead turtles are frequently seen. In the summer months the reef is home to many ragged tooth sharks who come here to gestate. This is a very exciting dive though the sea must be calm.
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In between quarter mile and two mile reef is Stringer Reef. This reef consists of Stringer Small which is round island of coral attracting multitudes of juvenile fish almost as if it was a nursery. Stringer Large is an elongated reef and you dive only on the shore side. You usually see lots of rays here. Both reefs are best dived in calm seas. The rare ghost pipe fish is found here. |
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Raggie - Qtr Mile
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Robust Ghost Pipefish - Stringer Reef
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Anton’s Caves and Overhangs Four Buoy Pinnacles Monty’s Coral Gardens Chain Reef |
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2 MILE REEF 2 Mile Reef is situated a 5-10 minute boat ride from the launch site. It is a large reef with many different areas to dive. The principal reef is 2 Mile Reef. This reef extends about 2.5 km northwards and has many smaller dive sites. 2 mile ranges in depth from as shallow as 8 - 10 metres at Pinnacles in the north to 16 - 18m at Anton’s & Chain Reef on the southern tip. The reef has abundant coral, fish & marine life including rays, turtles, moray eels and the occasional reef sharks. There are many gullies, ledges, pinnacles & rocky outcroppings all over the reef to explore. In 1992 over 100,000 divers
visited this reef. There is plenty of sea life. Over 1200 species of fish
have been recorded. The average depth is 12m which makes it ideal for the
student diver. |
Frogfish
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Resident schools of snappers, flame goat fish and tassel fish. This reef is renowned for its abundance of fish life. |
2 Mile Reef - Caves and Overhangs Sodwana's underwater topographic paradise.
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Moorish Idol
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Caves and Overhangs |
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Ideal for the first dive of the Openwater course and as such is many divers first experience of underwater Sodwana. |
Shallow dive of about 10m. This makes it a good second dive. Plenty of scenic rock formations as the name would suggest. |
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our Buoy Archway |
Pinnacles |
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2 Mile
Reef - Coral
Gardens |
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Dramatic rock formations. Named after a moray eel who was always to be seen here. |
On the eastern side of Anton's reef Named because there is a chain there extending all the way up to Coral Gardens. |
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Monty's |
Green Turtle |
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Situated
about 20 minutes from the launch site, 5 Mile reef ranges in depth from 18
metres in some areas to about 35 metres in others. This reef is known for
the pothole and for its exquisite coral. It is a flattish reef with spectacular plate and stag horn corals. Also a haven for invertebrate sea life. |
Inshore from 5 Mile, Max depth approx 20m. Small Reef rich in Macro sea Life, named after the elusive Ribbon Eels.
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Lobster 5
Mile |
Midas Blenny - Ribbon Reef |
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About
25 minutes boat ride from the beach, the coral here is thought to be
the most scenic in Sodwana. 7 Mile
reef has been rated one of the most beautiful dive sites in the world. The
maximum depth at 7 Mile is 24 metres with an average depth of 18 metres.
Where the edge of the reef meets the sand it creates a 3 or 4 metre wall
that makes for a spectacular dive. The reef is in immaculate condition and
is bursting with almost every type of sea life imaginable. Keep a lookout
on the sand for rays & sand sharks. There are huge schools of snapper
& often kingfish hanging in midwater over the amphitheatre. You can
also expect to see trumpet fish, scorpion fish, puffer fish, nudibranchs, big moray eels, rays and
turtles and much, much more.
Also home to the rare paper fish. A
dive not to be missed! |
Octopus - 7 Mile |
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The
longest trip, 9 Mile is situated about 40 minutes from the beach. Another
beautiful wall dive with some lovely swim throughs. The scenery here is quite beautiful
with plenty of caves, overhangs and pinnacles .
This reef is best known for the “Green Tree”- a coral tree that stands
a couple of metres tall, surrounded by clouds of goldies & other fish.
With a maximum depth of 22 metres on the sand and averaging about 18
metres, 9 Mile is definitely a site worth seeing - if weather conditions
allow! |
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Nine Mile
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About 500m east of Two mile reef. About 18m to 35m deep where naturally enough you can see sponges, some up to 600 mm high. Due to its increased depth this reef is popular with Advanced Dive Courses. |
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The last main dive. This consists of taking a boat about 5 miles to sea where the continental shelf drops off. We dive here to depths of 40m. (The PADI standards say this is the maximum depth for sport diving) |
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Buoys The
Sodwana
Bay Dive Industry Association, of which we are a founder member, has implemented
a buoy installation project to try and both protect our reefs and
make it easier for our reef visitors. The
buoys have been positioned so that divers will descend onto sand. This is
especially useful for student and novice divers. |
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