Mid-Island Dive Sites
In the mid island region, you will find more traditional Caribbean coral structures than in other
regions, spreading patch reef leads to steep slopes and vertical walls.
With deep water nearby, the wall structure attracts some blue-water pelagic but the focus is
really on the wealth of tropicals, midwater schooling fish, larger predators such as amberjack
and barracudas and an array of normally rare frogfish, batfish and seahorses.
The mid-island marine life is as varied as in the north and south and there are excellent coral
wall structures, that said, the mid-island topography is not as unique, making the dives less
challenging than in the north and south.
Canefield Tug
A victim of Hurricane David in 1979, the Canefield tug sunk, was re-floated and attached to
mooring, But it slowly took on water and slipped below the waves for a final time.
Today, this 60ft tugboat sits upright in 90ft, rising to 55ft at the top of the wheelhouse.
The bottom here is silty because the normal runoff of a nearby river is made worst by runoff
from a cement factory upstream, because of the low visibility; the wreck is dived only on the
Sundays, when the factory is closed.
Fortunately the siltation has not diminished the potential for marine growth on the site, soft
corals- including gorgonians, sponges, telesto corals and more- are draped around the
entire
structure.
The base encrustation consists of colorful corals and coralline algae.
You'll likely find seahorses with their tails wrapped around gorgonians, stingrays in the silty
bottom and tarpon lurking in the surface waters.
The structure of the wreck itself is unstable, so penetration is unsafe and is not allowed.
Location: West of Boeri river
Depth Range: 55-90ft 17-27 M)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Rodney's Rock
South of the town of Tarou, this dive site is found just off Tarou Point, known as Rodney's
Rock, which is thought to be a volcanic cap. The reef surrounding the point consists of
low-lying coral formations, soft coral and sponges.
The site's main attraction, however, is the smaller marine life, a juvenile nursery sporting an
amazing variety of species, it is and ideal site for both snorkelers and divers.
Batfish have been seen here, as have flying gurnards, southern stingrays, lobster, varieties
of
shrimp and nudibranchs and a wealth of other critters.
Rodney's rock also holds the island's record for seahorse sightings- 11 were once found in a
single dive, be sure to take time to investigate under loose stones and look in the sand for
exceptionally small juveniles.
Location: South of Layou river, off Rodney's rock
Depth Range: Surface-48ft (15m)
Access: Boat and shore
Expertise Rating: Novice
Maggie's Point
Maggie's point is a series of coral lines largely made up of pencil and finger corals beginning
several hundred yards offshore and projecting towards the west, these coral spurs, which
are
separated by sand gullies, are dressed with azure vase sponges and crinoids.
Though the formation of the reef is not especially interesting, the reef supports an
impressive
amount of fish life, schools of Creole wrasse, goatfish, scorpion fish, French angelfish,
jackknife fish and spotted drums are commonly seen here; you'll see both juvenile and adults
of each species.
Maggie's point is also the mid-island site where you are most likely to find sea turtles, usually
green or hawksbill turtles.
Location: North of Layou River, off Castaways Hotel
Depth Range: 18-90ft(6-27m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Castaways Reef
Castaways Reef is notable for the many large barrel sponges scattered across its face.
This is not a deep dive: Portions of the reef are as shallow as 18ft and it reaches a maximum
depth of only about 80ft, Most of the best material is found in the shallow depths.
Castaways Reef is a segment patch reef with coral heads separated by sand patches, there
are blocks of eight-ray finger corals (considered unusual), which are home to groups of
channel- clinging crabs.
Triggerfish, barracuda, Creole wrasse and parrotfish are commonly found.
In sandy areas east of the reef you will usually find southern stingrays resting and feeding.
Also check the sandy areas for gobies and wrasse hiding under the edges of the coral
heads.
Location: North of Layou River, off Castaways Hotel
Depth Range: 18-80ft(6-24m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Barry's Dream
Barry's Dream has a nice wall that drops from about 60ft to another sloping wall at 120ft.
These depths vary along the length of the wall.
The south part starts at 60ft; farther north, the top of the wall is deeper, around 90ft.
The best approach is to descend the mooring line to 45ft, proceed to the wall and drop to the
depth you choose, from there, move north along the face of the wall and ascend to 90ft, then
reverse direction and continue along the wall, ascending until you reach your starting point.
The face of the shallow wall is decorated with sponges, gorgonians and excellent hard coral
formations, several small pinnacles near the wall reach up to about 80ft, and the wall itself
has
some nice buttresses sticking out.
As always, the deeper water nearby offers the chance to see larger fish passing by.
If nothing materializes there, the wall teems with enough marine life to keep you interested.
Location: West of Castaways Hotel, north of Layou River
Depth Range: 42-120ft(12-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Lauro Reef
Though close to shore, Lauro Reef manages to gain depth quickly, you start the dive in as
little as 30ft.
From there, the wall drops quickly to 120ft before the reef levels off and gently slopes into
deeper water.
A slight overhang at 90ft protects the opening to a shallow cavern, this cavern is too small for
divers to enter safely, but large enough to shelter surprises like crab, lobster and large fish.
Resist the temptation to enter the cavern- you will only damage the delicate invertebrate life
that drapes the entrance.
Forests of gorgonians hang from the wall, as do some large barrel sponges and boulder star
corals.
The fish here include puffer fish, burr fish, parrotfish, trunkfish, filefish and barracuda.
Location: Southeast of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 30-120ft(9-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Brain Coral Reef
A dive at Brain Coral Reef begins at the mooring in 36ft, from here, a gentle slope descends
to the edge of a steep wall, which drops to 130ft and beyond.
Hard corals dominate the reef, which is named for the many massive brain coral heads
scattered across it.
Boulder star coral- in the morphotype commonly referred to as plate or sheet coral- overlap
each other along the steep slope, you will also find some finger corals in the shallower areas.
Look for lobsters and channel-clinging crabs and check for slipper lobster hanging upside
down under the plate corals.
Look for schooling chromis, sergeant major and Creole wrasse.
You may also see barracuda around the wall and southern stingrays resting between the
coral
heads at the top of the reef.
Location: Southeast of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 35-130ft(11-40m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Nose Reef
Nose Reef is named for two unmistakable proboscular protrusions sticking out from the face
of the wall, in other words, the wall has a couple of rock buttresses that look like huge
honkers.
The larger is found at 60ft, the smaller at 108ft.
The face of the wall is a steep slope featuring lush curtains of deep-sea gorgonians
combined
with tube, rope and barrel sponges.
As with many of the mid-island sites, bottom dwellers such as nurse sharks and stingrays are
commonly found here than in the southern dive sites.
Seasonally, thick schools of silver- sides blanket the wall's face, seeking shelter among the
soft coral and sponge growths.
Currents can be strong along the face of the wall.
Location: South of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 25-120ft(8-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Whale Shark Reef
Whale Shark Reef sits about 1,500ft offshore and features a small wall, which drops to a
larger sloping wall, you begin the dive at 45ft and then drop to about 75ft where the slope
begins.
The top of the reef features lush soft coral growth with a forest of deep-water gorgonians.
Though the site is named for a whale shark encounter, this should be considered rare.
That said, the site is well offshore, so you may see larger pelagic such as spotted eagle rays,
amberjacks and rainbow runners.
Great barracuda are common along the face of the wall, start your dive deep and ascend up
the smaller wall.
End it by watching yellow-head jaw fish found along the flats at the top of the wall.
Location: Southwest of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 45-10ft(4-40m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Rena's Hole
Rena's hole lies directly off Grand Savane, just southwest of Coral Gardens North.
This site features a classic Caribbean reef with nicely formed coral overgrowth and areas of
pale sand- a relatively rare commodity on this volcanic island, reef depths range from 25ft to
a
maximum of 60ft.
The site's name refers to fairly large tunnel beneath a rocky outcropping, this "hole" is
named
for Rena- the girlfriend of the former dive master who first discovered it- and is adorned with
many types of colorful encrusting growth and some yellow tube and webbed sponges.
Typical fish life at the site includes angelfish, sergeant major, barracuda and schooling
chromis.
Look out for turtles and southern stingrays in the open water and the occasional nurse shark
hiding under a ledge.
Location: Southwest of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 25-60ft(8-18m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Coral Gardens North
Coral Gardens North is found off Grand Savane, a gently sloping coastal foothill that was
created from lava flows from Morne Trois Pitons.
It is typical of the central areas of western Dominica.
This is an easy and satisfying dive, more like a standard Caribbean-style dive than most
Dominican sites.
The reef starts as shallow as 10ft and falls away at a gentle angle, which reflects the on-land
topography of Grande Savanne.
The maximum depth is 120ft, but the variety of depths makes it a suitable site for both divers
and snorkelers.
Divers use a central pinnacle to orient themselves at the beginning and the end of the dive.
The reef is somewhat hill shaped and is very easy to navigate.
Soft corals dominate the shallower depths, gradually giving way to reef-building hard corals
in
the deeper areas.
Fields of wire coral are a striking feature.
Clouds of blue and brown chromis fill the midwater region.
Typical invertebrates, including shrimp and lobster, are easy to find.
Location: North of Grande Savanne
Depth Range: 10-120ft(3-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
All texts taken from the book "Diving and Snorkeling Dominica" by Michael
Lawrence.
In the mid island region, you will find more traditional Caribbean coral structures than in other
regions, spreading patch reef leads to steep slopes and vertical walls.
With deep water nearby, the wall structure attracts some blue-water pelagic but the focus is
really on the wealth of tropicals, midwater schooling fish, larger predators such as amberjack
and barracudas and an array of normally rare frogfish, batfish and seahorses.
The mid-island marine life is as varied as in the north and south and there are excellent coral
wall structures, that said, the mid-island topography is not as unique, making the dives less
challenging than in the north and south.
Canefield Tug
A victim of Hurricane David in 1979, the Canefield tug sunk, was re-floated and attached to
mooring, But it slowly took on water and slipped below the waves for a final time.
Today, this 60ft tugboat sits upright in 90ft, rising to 55ft at the top of the wheelhouse.
The bottom here is silty because the normal runoff of a nearby river is made worst by runoff
from a cement factory upstream, because of the low visibility; the wreck is dived only on the
Sundays, when the factory is closed.
Fortunately the siltation has not diminished the potential for marine growth on the site, soft
corals- including gorgonians, sponges, telesto corals and more- are draped around the
entire
structure.
The base encrustation consists of colorful corals and coralline algae.
You'll likely find seahorses with their tails wrapped around gorgonians, stingrays in the silty
bottom and tarpon lurking in the surface waters.
The structure of the wreck itself is unstable, so penetration is unsafe and is not allowed.
Location: West of Boeri river
Depth Range: 55-90ft 17-27 M)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Rodney's Rock
South of the town of Tarou, this dive site is found just off Tarou Point, known as Rodney's
Rock, which is thought to be a volcanic cap. The reef surrounding the point consists of
low-lying coral formations, soft coral and sponges.
The site's main attraction, however, is the smaller marine life, a juvenile nursery sporting an
amazing variety of species, it is and ideal site for both snorkelers and divers.
Batfish have been seen here, as have flying gurnards, southern stingrays, lobster, varieties
of
shrimp and nudibranchs and a wealth of other critters.
Rodney's rock also holds the island's record for seahorse sightings- 11 were once found in a
single dive, be sure to take time to investigate under loose stones and look in the sand for
exceptionally small juveniles.
Location: South of Layou river, off Rodney's rock
Depth Range: Surface-48ft (15m)
Access: Boat and shore
Expertise Rating: Novice
Maggie's Point
Maggie's point is a series of coral lines largely made up of pencil and finger corals beginning
several hundred yards offshore and projecting towards the west, these coral spurs, which
are
separated by sand gullies, are dressed with azure vase sponges and crinoids.
Though the formation of the reef is not especially interesting, the reef supports an
impressive
amount of fish life, schools of Creole wrasse, goatfish, scorpion fish, French angelfish,
jackknife fish and spotted drums are commonly seen here; you'll see both juvenile and adults
of each species.
Maggie's point is also the mid-island site where you are most likely to find sea turtles, usually
green or hawksbill turtles.
Location: North of Layou River, off Castaways Hotel
Depth Range: 18-90ft(6-27m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Castaways Reef
Castaways Reef is notable for the many large barrel sponges scattered across its face.
This is not a deep dive: Portions of the reef are as shallow as 18ft and it reaches a maximum
depth of only about 80ft, Most of the best material is found in the shallow depths.
Castaways Reef is a segment patch reef with coral heads separated by sand patches, there
are blocks of eight-ray finger corals (considered unusual), which are home to groups of
channel- clinging crabs.
Triggerfish, barracuda, Creole wrasse and parrotfish are commonly found.
In sandy areas east of the reef you will usually find southern stingrays resting and feeding.
Also check the sandy areas for gobies and wrasse hiding under the edges of the coral
heads.
Location: North of Layou River, off Castaways Hotel
Depth Range: 18-80ft(6-24m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Barry's Dream
Barry's Dream has a nice wall that drops from about 60ft to another sloping wall at 120ft.
These depths vary along the length of the wall.
The south part starts at 60ft; farther north, the top of the wall is deeper, around 90ft.
The best approach is to descend the mooring line to 45ft, proceed to the wall and drop to the
depth you choose, from there, move north along the face of the wall and ascend to 90ft, then
reverse direction and continue along the wall, ascending until you reach your starting point.
The face of the shallow wall is decorated with sponges, gorgonians and excellent hard coral
formations, several small pinnacles near the wall reach up to about 80ft, and the wall itself
has
some nice buttresses sticking out.
As always, the deeper water nearby offers the chance to see larger fish passing by.
If nothing materializes there, the wall teems with enough marine life to keep you interested.
Location: West of Castaways Hotel, north of Layou River
Depth Range: 42-120ft(12-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Lauro Reef
Though close to shore, Lauro Reef manages to gain depth quickly, you start the dive in as
little as 30ft.
From there, the wall drops quickly to 120ft before the reef levels off and gently slopes into
deeper water.
A slight overhang at 90ft protects the opening to a shallow cavern, this cavern is too small for
divers to enter safely, but large enough to shelter surprises like crab, lobster and large fish.
Resist the temptation to enter the cavern- you will only damage the delicate invertebrate life
that drapes the entrance.
Forests of gorgonians hang from the wall, as do some large barrel sponges and boulder star
corals.
The fish here include puffer fish, burr fish, parrotfish, trunkfish, filefish and barracuda.
Location: Southeast of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 30-120ft(9-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Brain Coral Reef
A dive at Brain Coral Reef begins at the mooring in 36ft, from here, a gentle slope descends
to the edge of a steep wall, which drops to 130ft and beyond.
Hard corals dominate the reef, which is named for the many massive brain coral heads
scattered across it.
Boulder star coral- in the morphotype commonly referred to as plate or sheet coral- overlap
each other along the steep slope, you will also find some finger corals in the shallower areas.
Look for lobsters and channel-clinging crabs and check for slipper lobster hanging upside
down under the plate corals.
Look for schooling chromis, sergeant major and Creole wrasse.
You may also see barracuda around the wall and southern stingrays resting between the
coral
heads at the top of the reef.
Location: Southeast of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 35-130ft(11-40m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Nose Reef
Nose Reef is named for two unmistakable proboscular protrusions sticking out from the face
of the wall, in other words, the wall has a couple of rock buttresses that look like huge
honkers.
The larger is found at 60ft, the smaller at 108ft.
The face of the wall is a steep slope featuring lush curtains of deep-sea gorgonians
combined
with tube, rope and barrel sponges.
As with many of the mid-island sites, bottom dwellers such as nurse sharks and stingrays are
commonly found here than in the southern dive sites.
Seasonally, thick schools of silver- sides blanket the wall's face, seeking shelter among the
soft coral and sponge growths.
Currents can be strong along the face of the wall.
Location: South of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 25-120ft(8-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Whale Shark Reef
Whale Shark Reef sits about 1,500ft offshore and features a small wall, which drops to a
larger sloping wall, you begin the dive at 45ft and then drop to about 75ft where the slope
begins.
The top of the reef features lush soft coral growth with a forest of deep-water gorgonians.
Though the site is named for a whale shark encounter, this should be considered rare.
That said, the site is well offshore, so you may see larger pelagic such as spotted eagle rays,
amberjacks and rainbow runners.
Great barracuda are common along the face of the wall, start your dive deep and ascend up
the smaller wall.
End it by watching yellow-head jaw fish found along the flats at the top of the wall.
Location: Southwest of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 45-10ft(4-40m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
Rena's Hole
Rena's hole lies directly off Grand Savane, just southwest of Coral Gardens North.
This site features a classic Caribbean reef with nicely formed coral overgrowth and areas of
pale sand- a relatively rare commodity on this volcanic island, reef depths range from 25ft to
a
maximum of 60ft.
The site's name refers to fairly large tunnel beneath a rocky outcropping, this "hole" is
named
for Rena- the girlfriend of the former dive master who first discovered it- and is adorned with
many types of colorful encrusting growth and some yellow tube and webbed sponges.
Typical fish life at the site includes angelfish, sergeant major, barracuda and schooling
chromis.
Look out for turtles and southern stingrays in the open water and the occasional nurse shark
hiding under a ledge.
Location: Southwest of Grande Savane
Depth Range: 25-60ft(8-18m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Novice
Coral Gardens North
Coral Gardens North is found off Grand Savane, a gently sloping coastal foothill that was
created from lava flows from Morne Trois Pitons.
It is typical of the central areas of western Dominica.
This is an easy and satisfying dive, more like a standard Caribbean-style dive than most
Dominican sites.
The reef starts as shallow as 10ft and falls away at a gentle angle, which reflects the on-land
topography of Grande Savanne.
The maximum depth is 120ft, but the variety of depths makes it a suitable site for both divers
and snorkelers.
Divers use a central pinnacle to orient themselves at the beginning and the end of the dive.
The reef is somewhat hill shaped and is very easy to navigate.
Soft corals dominate the shallower depths, gradually giving way to reef-building hard corals
in
the deeper areas.
Fields of wire coral are a striking feature.
Clouds of blue and brown chromis fill the midwater region.
Typical invertebrates, including shrimp and lobster, are easy to find.
Location: North of Grande Savanne
Depth Range: 10-120ft(3-36m)
Access: Boat
Expertise Rating: Intermediate
All texts taken from the book "Diving and Snorkeling Dominica" by Michael
Lawrence.