THIS is why you want to come dive in South Africa

[Deefstes]

I can't imagine that there could be many other places in the world where you could dive in the middle of the winter with only a 5mm wetsuit and be welcomed by these the moment you do your backwards roll:

Oceanic Blacktip Shark (Carcharhinus limbatus)

and then get some of these when you get to the reef:

Ragged-tooth Shark (Carcharias taurus)

and other treats down to the smallest of macro stuff:

Bluestripe Pipefish (Doryrhamphus excisus)

and

Speckled Shrimpfish (Aeoliscus punctulatus)

and the most cute

Pineapplefish (Monocentris japonica)


Or if fish ain't your thing there's

Octopus

or

Nembrotha aurea


And of course the usual suspects with a few fat ones:

White-spotted Puffer (Arothron hispidus)

Some long ones:

Tiger Snake-eel (Myrichthys maculosus)

Some prickly ones:

Leaf Scorpionfish (Taenianotus triacanthus)

Some smooth ones:

Tiger Cowrie (Cypraea tigris)


These pics were taken this past weekend at Aliwal Shoal where we did a quick 4 dives. Wonderful visibility, very calm seas (which are a bit unusual for Aliwal Shoal) and spectacular sealife. Perhaps the most exciting find was this little Pipefish which has yet to be properly identified but there are some who reckon it's Zavora Pipefish (Halicampus zavorensis), a fish known from only three specimens - which of course would make this picture exceptional. Still awaiting some feedback from some of the real experts.

You're still wondering where to go for your next diving trip? Come and join us man! You'll love it, I know you will.

 

[DevonDiver]

Love it....!

Aliwal and Protea are right near the top of my ultimate 'To Do' list.

 

[TSandM]

A great ad for South African diving!

Now tell us a bit more about the logistics . . . all boat diving? Costs? Likelihood of getting weathered out? Visibility? Water temperatures? (BTW, I'm asking out of interest. We've been to South Africa, although not for diving. I wouldn't mind going back.)

 

[Deefstes]

A great ad for South African diving!

Now tell us a bit more about the logistics . . . all boat diving? Costs? Likelihood of getting weathered out? Visibility? Water temperatures? (BTW, I'm asking out of interest. We've been to South Africa, although not for diving. I wouldn't mind going back.)

OK, let's see.

Now tell us a bit more about the logistics . . . all boat diving? Yes. We don't really have any shore diving along the Natal coast (the subtropical waters). I believe around Cape Town there is good shore diving to be had but, embarrassingly enough, I have still not dived down there.

The boat diving here is a fair bit different from what I've seen in Key Largo, Thailand and Greece. You won't be boarding from a marina or harbour and the vessel won't be a big comfortable boat. You'll be boarding the Rigid Inflatable on the beach and do a surf launch. I've seen some visiting divers who's found this quite harrowing but they all survived in the end and they all loved it. It's actually quite exciting.

The reefs are reasonably close to shore which means that two tank dives are not the norm. For the most part you would launch twice or three times a day, once for each dive. Doing more than three dives a day rarely happens. The seas usually pick up towards the afternoon so the operators try to fit all of the diving into the morning.

Costs? You can expect to pay around R270 ($40) per dive. Most operators of course offer cheaper prices for more dives. Some operators also offer accomodation and have package specials that includes a certain number of nights plus a certain number of dives for a very good price. A three night, 5 dive package should cost you around $290 which I think is as good as you can hope to find anywhere in the world.

Likelihood of getting weathered out? This is a difficult one to answer because of course it can happen but I don't think it is very likely. I've never had an entire trip weather out but I have had one day out of a three day or five day trip weather out. I'd imagine it would be very unusual to have three days in a row that you absolutely cannot launch. You might have one unlaunchable day followed by two days of rough but doable launches.

Visibility? I'm not overly hung up on visibility as most of what I want to see is at arm's length anyway. I used to religiously note the visibility in my log book after every dive until I realised that I actually don't have a clue how to gauge it accurately anyway. These days I rate the viz as simply 'bad', 'good' or 'great'. Id say, 'good' would be anything greater than say 5m (15ft) and 'great' would be 30m+ (100ft+). By sucking my thumb I'd suggest that dives fall into these categories as follows:
bad - 10% of dives
good - 80% of dives
great - 10% of dives

Don't hold me to it though. I'm guestimating here.

Water temperatures? Quite surprisingly, the water temperature varies fairly little. In winter, it would be very unusual for the water temp to drop below 20°C (68°F) and in summer it rarely goes higher than 28°C (82°F). A typical winter dive would be 21°C while a typical summer dive could be 26°C. Aliwal Shoal and Protea Banks are slightly colder than Sodwana Bay but not by much really. If the water temp drops below 18°C it'll make news.

I (and I think most divers here) do most of my diving in a 5mm wetsuit and in the warmer summer months I often dive just a 3mm shortie.

Hope that helps. I'm not sure how well South Africa as a diving destination is known to the outside world but I honestly believe it ranks right up there with the best.

 

[vladimir]

I used to religiously note the visibility in my log book after every dive until I realised that I actually don't have a clue how to gauge it accurately anyway.

Thanks for these posts, Deefstes, and, as always, your refreshing candor.:thumbs_up:

 

[TSandM]

Wow, you make things sound very attractive! (I come from Puget Sound, so anything over 15 feet of viz is "good", and 30 or more is "wow!") Where are your boats launching from?

I will definitely have to keep this information in mind, if we make another Africa trip. Luckily, safari trips require very little to be packed, so dive gear wouldn't be that hard to bring!

 

[ScubaSam]

Deefstes - Great thread and pics., thank you for posting the dive information.

My interest has been piqued and I'd love to return to Africa again for another trip. I was a non-diver when I first visited Africa and was in Kenya/Tanzania/Zanzibar, not in South Africa.

Again, thanks!

 

[drbill]

Your pictures make a good case... I've wanted to dive Africa for a number of years. Thanks for posting them. Trying to decide between the Red Sea, Pemba Island, Madagascar and South Africa. If I win the lottery I'll do all of them. If not, I'll have to be more selective!

 

[AndyT]

I really must make it up there some time - great pics by the way !!

Haven't been diving much lately but looking forward to getting back in and doing some photography.

 

[ligersandtions]

Pretty sure this has been bumped up to near the top of my list of places to dive! Thanks for the report, pictures, and additional information