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Dive Site

Shaab Shona

  • Current: S in the morning, S at midday, N in the afternoon
  • Visibility: J, F, M, A: 25–35m; M, J, J, A: 20–30m; S, O, N, D: 30–40m
  • Temperatures: J, F, M: 24–24°C; A, M, J: 26–28°C; J, A, S: 28-30°C; O, N, D: 28-25°C
  • Depth: 45 m
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Dive Site

Overview

There's ghost pipefish here? Have you gone mad? What do they look like then? A little like ugly seahorses (our apologies to all fans of ghost pipefish) and very, very well-disguised! They can hardly be distinguished from among the coral and make us think that they are coral branches. In addition to these haunting lads and lasses, we'll also find seagrass beds, coral gardens, sea turtles, darkspotted stingrays and ... dugongs in Shaab Shona – the second bay towards the south after Port Ghalib.

Description

Shaab Shona's lagoon originates from a wadi (a dried-out river) and is five to 45 metres deep in some places. We can still recognise the former river in the form of a channel ascending from the north to the south. A high plateau can be made out in the northern area of Shaab Shona.

From glassfish to crocodilefish, from Indian mackerel and ghost pipefish, we will find everything that a diver's heart wants to see in the Red Sea. Many different kinds of coral brimming with life can be found on the reef's edge down to a depth of around 20 metres.

A seagrass bed is located in the inner area and where there's beds of seagrass, then ... that's right ... there's probably dugongs there. With some luck, a few of these fine specimens can be seen here. An eye should be kept out for lionfish and large turtles, too.

Whoever is still not happy and wants to see a few sand eels and different kinds of rays, should make their way over to the southern edge to the sand pile at a depth range of 20 to 40 metres.

Hotspots

  • Seagrass bed: The dugongs are a definite must-see. There are also large green turtles as well as charming sea horses and cuttlefish to admire.

map Dive Plans

South in the morning

Take the Zodiac south and descend over the south-eastern hills to 25 meters in west direction. After a short while there is a sandy area with sand eels. Behind it you should go up to 15m and look closely - there is a lot to discover. Then you have to go roughly west across the sea grass meadow. There are often large groupers and leopard rays on the edge - but you have to work against a slight current from the lagoon.

North at noon

The best thing is to let the Zodiac drive you 50m to the outside of the bay. There the plateau begins from a slope at 14m. On the way south you pass several cleaning stations and have the current behind you. On the blocks you will find glass fish and, with a lot of luck, the ghost shredded fish.

Seaweed in the afternoon

From the boat you dive south to the seaweed. African lionfish live on the small block in the west of the meadow (attention: very poisonous spines!). Further into the sea grass and in 7 to 10m with a little luck to the dugong. Its feeding tracks can be clearly seen in the seaweed.

Night dive

A small area such as the coral hill in the back or the north edge is completely sufficient for this dive. Pay attention to the current on the north edge. You can find octopuses, sea urchins, scorpion fish, snails and Spanish dancers here.<br/>