DIVES SITES - PROVIDENCIA

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Table Rock:

The reef barrier of Old Providence is the world’s most extensive flanking volcanic islands. Its farthest point, at 10.5 miles from the northern end of Santa Catalina, is known as Point of Reef, where a lighthouse stands on an islet of sand and coral rubble. Excursions are frequently made to this point, which include the cooking of fish in improvised bonfires. In its nearby surroundings there are numerous patch reefs, fragments left by erosion of the barrier, inside of which Table Rock stands out for numerous caves that can be explored with ease by divers with tanks and also by those who can hold their breath for long periods of time.The caves, well illuminated by tunnels that interconnect among themselves and with the surface, are visited by all kinds of fish including nurse sharks and large schools of fish, silvery fish. Its walls, contact with which should be avoided in order to prevent damaging them as well as getting scratched, are covered in organisms of shining colors. However, the main attractions are the caves themselves with their capricious forms and admirable light contrasts.

The Bight:

After a 20 minute boat ride, you arrive to this site located north of the reef complex. Diving begins in the plateau, at 60ft, from which you can reach the slope edge. You can choose whether to follow its contour or go deeper until 130 ft to look at the exuberant wall. This site offers the opportunity to enjoy, in great conditions, a reef bank in slope edge, where it is possible to observe big colonies of star boulder coral (Montastrea franksi) growing as a mass or a shingle, also colonies of lettuce coral (Agaricia sp) covering the walls and beautiful great coral mounds (Montastrea cavernosa). Big fish are common, especially between January and March, and along with the small and abundant community of reef and ocean fishes, they complete the diving scenario at this site. Due to the conditions of depth and significant distance from the island, this site should be visited by experienced divers.

Blue Hole:

After a short boat ride, northeast of Saint Catalina Island, you’ll find Blue Hole, so called because of its depth and the hole shape of the reef platform that surrounds it. This place works as an oozing site of coralline sand masses produced by the coral reef complex in this area; you’ll find sand slopes that descend into deep waters. Diving at this site takes place of the borders of this formation, at 45- 60ft, where a coralline platform precipitates to the slope. Coral formations are scarce but you’ll find some individual corals like Montastreas franksi, and M. cavernosa, along with the great brain and lettuce corals. One of the main attractions in the Blue Hole is the abundant fish life: margaritas, jacks and snappers search protection among the corals and feed in the surrounding sand areas. It is possible to observe here the under water geomorphology and the abundant submarine fauna.

Bite:

One descends to 40 ft on a flat, rocky platform, covered by corals, sponges, octocorals. It is crossed by numerous sand beds, remnants of ancient streams which eroded the platform before the rising of the sea level. The platform plunges via a steeply inclined, nearly perpendicular slope, descending to 100 ft where it reaches a sandy bottom, less inclined. On the slope you’ll see sandy fissures alternating with rocky crests covered by stony and soft corals and tubular sponges.

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