Tobago South West Dive Sites
Mt Irvine Wall
Depth Range: 18-50ft/5-15m
Diving Experience: Beginner
Mount Irvine comprises a trio of dive sites – with the Wall and Extension being the most famous. The Wall is a shallow 30ft dive close to the shore and full of interesting crevices, where moray eels, spiny lobsters and crabs congregate. The Extension is a deeper dive site that follows the outcropping rocks of Mount Irvine Bay. Big enough for several distinct dives, this beautiful reef is a perfect spot to see large groupers, snapper and hawksbill turtles – as well as the shy spotted eagle ray that rarely approaches divers and tends to travel in pairs.
Dutchman's Reef
Depth Range: 24-45 feet
Diving Experience: Beginner
Easily accessible from the shore of Mount Irvine Beach, look out some of the island's history: two cannons that were once part of the Dutch East India Company that ran aground in the 17th century. Beyond the cannons, spiny lobsters, nurse shark, cardinalfish and mull around while there is a profusion of soft corals consisting of sea rods and plumes, sea fans and sea sprays. Keep an eye out for stingrays, electric rays, spotted snake eels and yellowhead jawfish.
Kariwak Reef
Depth range: 10-55 feet
Experience: Beginner
A fan-favorite, Kariwak Reef is great for night dives since it is easy to navigate. The absence of current is an underwater photographer's delight, offering an array of color and marine life. On the sandy bottom, you'll find flying gurnards 'walking' about on their finger-like spines. Located about 120 feet off Store Bay, it is easily accessible as a shore dive or from a boat.
Look out for: Nassau groupers, balloonfish, lizardfish, barracuda, green morays, spotted eagle rays, fire coral, Christmas tree worms
MV Maverick
350ft former ferry was deliberately sunk in 1997 to create an artificial reef. Although its hull sits on the seabed at 30m (99ft), the top deck, at 15m (49ft), is within reach of all qualified divers and attracts large schools of fish including rainbow runners, kingfish and barracuda.
Diver's Dream
Diver’s Dream: Depth Range 30-50ft/9-15m
Diving Experience: Advanced
This seasonal, advanced dive is dependent on tidal conditions and lunar phases. Strong surface currents give way to a plateau at around 36ft, where there are lots of hard corals housing sharks, eagle rays, turtles and plenty of colourful fish.
Diver's Thirst
Depth Range: 30-50ft/9-15m
Diving Experience: Advanced
Just over a mile and a half from Diver’s Dream, this reef is made up of overlapping ledges.
Though you’re more likely to see corals at Diver’s Dream, Diver’s Thirst offers beautiful sea fans and large sunshine-coloured yellow tube sponges.
The current is gentler here than at Diver’s Dream, but divers will need to keep an eye on the depth gauge. A perfect place for divers who wish to see groupers, huge midnight parrotfish and graceful blacktip reef sharks.
Flying Reef
Depth Range: 18-45ft/5-14m
Diving Experience: Beginner
Flying Reef’s Atlantic waters have a generally gentle drift between 0-2kts of current, though at times the pace can pick up – giving the reef its ‘flying’ name. When diving at the Flying Reef, you might glimpse stingrays, turtles, nurse sharks, schools of both big eye and glass eye snapper as well as reef fish like parrotfish, French angelfish and porcupinefish. A highlight is the sunken ship’s anchor – where porkfish and schools of Bermudan chub gather.
