The letters are described in the text below. Click to enlarge.
|  | Average visibility :
20 m. |  | Average depth :
20 m. |  | Maximum depth :
50 m. |  | Getting there :
By boat | | | | | Facts about dive:
This is the most popular site in the Ras Mohammed region, thanks to the luxouriance of its marine life, its unusual reef structure, its permanent network of moorings, and its easy accessibility for dive-boats. The site comprises two huge patch reefs spiralling up to the water surface from the sheer face of the massive wall which joins Ras Za'atir in the north to Ras Mohammed. Together, these pinnacles define a type of shallow lagoon between the pinnacles and the mainland with average depths of 8-10m.
A: Dive-boats usually moor between the two outcrops, a shallow saddle lies between the two reefs at 18 to 20m. Take note of the location of your vessel, and of its mooring cables. You can use this information to your advantage if the need arises. The northern patch reef (called Shark Reef), which lies perpendicular to the current, is the more interesting of the two. Your obvious goal will be to circle it. Start in the north, and travel clockwise so that the current runs with you on the way back. Turn towards the left side of the reef at B where you will find a sandy canyon plunging sharply to depths of 30m. Continue left, if you have time in hand, and if the current permits, and pay a visit to Anemone City (C). This shelf of rock protrudes about 20m into the surrounding water. It is dotted with coral heads and gorgonians, as well as innumerable sea anemones for which it is named. You will be pleased to discover a thermal spring here, although it is likely to give rise to poor visibility in places.. Otherwise, turn right in the direction of the miniwall, dropping to well past 50m, (D), then proceed back to your point of origin.
Depending on the state of the current and your air supply, judge whether to proceed to the southern pinnacle which bears the name "Jolanda" in commemoration of the Cyprian freighter which ran on the reef in 1980. For a long time afterwards, the 70m freighter lay here on her side, her bow stuck in the sand slope, her stern and propeller suspended ominously over the depths, and her cranes breaking the water surface. The Jolanda vanished in a storm in 1986, literally swallowed up by the chasm alongside the reef. The wreck is as famous for its dramatic exit as it once was for its cargo: a large quantity of...household toilets...and a single, splendid BMW 320 (E)! Only a few fragments of the Jolanda remain on the southern side of the pinnacle in mute testimony to her fate.
| 
| Structural uniqueness aside, Shark Reef is also famous for its rich fish population. Big pelagic and schooling fish swam these reefs in their thousands - the most impressive concentration is on the wall at Shark Reef. An enormous resident Napoleon wrasse will do anything for a morsel of food. Large schools of jack cruise in from the open sea. Snappers, emperors and spades also cluster thickly here. Two especially massive groupers live at the base of the slope. Big sharks of many species can be seen in the blue, particularly off the northeast corner of Shark Reef. On the reef hundreds of different reef fishes can be spotted as can moray eels of a meter and bluespotted and blackspotted stingrays. As for sharks (hammerheads, greys and blacktips), well, meeting them was a routine occurrence back in the early seventies. Today, consider it a rare treat!
Coral is excellent, with good sparse growth on the wall sections and dense coral gardens on the shallower flat areas.
| As a boat dive, the two reefs are normally done as a drift, with the boat collecting you from the shallows beyond Jolandas; this alleviates many of the current-related problems common here. You can also dive the site from shore, entering at Anemone City and swimming across the channel to Shark Reef; this should only be attempted if current is manageable, and extreme care should be taken to conserve enough air for the return trip. Shore entry option is inadvisable if you are not a strong swimmer.
|
Access to the dive: By shore, or by local or live-aboard boat from Sharm el Sheikh, Na'ama Bay or other ports.
Conditions: Very strong currents are common.
Experience grade: Everyone
| |
|
