THE REEFS AND DIVE SITES
Diving around Sharm el Sheikh
The morphology of Sharm el Sheikh's coastline is unique. Although some beaches can be found, the area mainly consists of sheer, flat-topped cliffs extending vertically out of the sea. Running parallel to these cliffs along their entire length is flat narrow stretch of reef, referred to as the reef table. The reef table extends downwards as a fully-fledged wall. This 65km stretch is considered to be one of the richest and most famous reefs in the world. For mile after mile, hard and soft coral species, reef and pelagic fish abound in a dazzling display.
The dive sites are broken down in to five general areas: Sha'ab Abu Nuhas, Strait of Gubal, Strait of Tiran, the Ras Mohammed National Park and Local.
Sha'ab Abu Nuhas
The reef of Abu Nuhas, meaning 'Father of Copper' in Arabic,
was named by the local fisherman who used to find many copper parts in
their nets: they belonged to the Carnatic and to other vessals wrecked 
in
this area. The reef is situated in the middle of the Strait of
Gubal directly north of Shadwan Island which is about 3 miles away.
This is a fairly sensitive position with its proximity to the major
shipping lanes of the Gulf of Suez. Numerous ships were wrecked on this
half-submerged reef that previously had no lighthouse, four of which
are still visible today and in good condition: they transformed the
coral reef of Abu Nuhas into one of the most appreciated sites amongst
scuba divers in the Red Sea. All wrecks lie on the northern side of the
reef exposed to prevailing winds and waves, and extending from west to
east. The oldest one is the wreck of theCarnatic that goes back to 1869, the youngest of the still visible wrecks is the Ghiannis D., shipwrecked in 1983. The remaining two wrecks are, respectively, the Kimon M. and the Marcus.
The Olden, transporting lentils, sank in 1987 and has vanished,
probably resting in deep waters still to be found. On the southern side
of the reef, in front of a shallow lagoon that has no access, there is
the only fixed mooring offering sufficient protection for boats.
Further to the south, between Abu Nuhas and Shadwan, there are three
small reefs called Yellowfish Reefs due to the presense of numerous
yellow fish: butterflyfish, grunts and goatfish that come up from a
sandy seabed at a depth of 15 meters. They can be an object of an
alternative dive when weather conditions do not allow wreck diving. The
wrecks should be explored when there is a calm sea and preferably by
zodiac.
New for 2010! It is also now possible to make a day trip to Sha'ab Abu Nuhas. S paces on this very special trip are limited so early booking is highly recommended. For more information contact Dive Africa Sharm.
Strait of Gubal
he Strait of Gubal connects the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea and is
bordered to the west by the Egyptian coast and to the east by the Sinai
peninsula. The Gulf of Suez is much shallower than the Gulf of Aqaba
because of its different geological origin; its average depth is about
80 meters.
The canal through which ships pass into the Strait of Gubal - which is
much wider than the Strait of Tiran - is flanked to the northeast by
two outcrops called Beacon Rock and Shag Rock, both of which have beacons as well as the wrecks of theDunraven and the Kingston respectively.
To the southwest the canal is delimited by the southern tip of
the Shadwan Island, which also has a beacon, situated 15.2 miles
from the one on Beacon Rock.
The southeastern section of the
strait is characterized by the presence of two massive,
half-outcropping coral formations (called sha'ab in Arabic)
that create a coral reef inside which there are shallow lagoons with
sand floors.
On a level with the western side of the Ras Mohammed peninsula
is Sha'ab Mahmud, about 6 miles long and 2.7 miles wide, delimited
to the north and south by two
smaller sha'abs called Sha'ab Surur and Sha'ab
el-Utat. Sha'ab Mahmud consists of a coral reef oriented in a
northwest-southeast direction, cut through on its western side by two
channels, Small Crack and Big
Crack, and completely open on its southern side. This vast lagoon is
navigable and is usually used by the boats going to the diving sites in
the Gubal region because it is well sheltered from the waves.
The
second large coral formation in the Strait of Gubal is Sha'ab Ali,
situated north of Sha'ab Mahmud, extending for 8.3 miles in a
northeast-southwest direction and separated from the Sinai coast by a
canal with an average depth of 20-25 meters.
Sha'ab Ali is well-known for the famous wreck of the Thistlegorm on its eastern side.
It surrounds a lagoon 7-10 meters deep, the entrance of which, marked
by a series of luminous buoys, lies on its northeastern side. Diving
boats often spend the night in this lagoon so that scuba divers can be
at the site of the shipwreck at dawn, thus avoiding the arrival of the
many boats from Sharm and Hurghada later in the morning.
Strait of Tiran
The Strait of Tiran lies at the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba and is
delimited to the west by the coast of the Sinai and to the east by the
Island of Tiran. In the middle of this canal are four coral reefs lying
in a NE-SW direction that were named after the 19th-century English
cartographers who drew the first nautical map of the region - Jackson Reef, Woodhouse Reef, Thomas Reef and Gordon Reef.
These reefs divide the strait into two canals: to the east is the
so-called Grafton Passage, which is used exclusively by ships
going northwards, while to the west is the Enterprise
Passage for ships heading south. East of the island of Tiran and
the nearby island of Sanafir - both part of Saudi Arabia but granted to
Egypt for military defence - the configuration of the canal floor makes
navigation impossible.
On a level with the Strait of Tiran, the Gulf of Aqaba passes from an
average width of 10-12 to 2.4 miles, while the floor ranges from a
depth of 1,270 meters to only 71 meters in the Grafton Passage and 250
meters in the Enterprise Passage.
This particular configuration of the strait reduces deep water
exchange between the Gulf of Aqaba and the rest of the Red Sea on
the one hand, causing an increase of salinity and temperature,
while on the other hand it gives rise to an increase in the speed of
the tidal currents and the average height of the waves
moved by the wind which, chanelled by the tall mountains of the
Sinai and Saudi Arabia, is in turn subject to acceleration. The
peculiar topographical arrangement of these reefs and the presence of
prevailing winds coming from the north, which are stronger in the
morning and calmer in the afternoon, means their western and northern
sides (or "outside") are much more exposed to the action of the waves
than the eastern and southern ones, which are "inside" and sheltered.
The strong currents characterizing the Strait of Tiran transport great
quantities of plankton and other nutrient material every day, thus
supplying a great deal of food to the corals and hence to the reef
fish, which in turn are eaten by the large pelagic predators such
as barracuda, jackfish, tuna and above all sharks, which are always
present in this zone. Consequently, scuba divers in the waters of Tiran
are sure to see not only an infinite number of corals but also rich
fauna, both reef and pelagic. However, they must always be careful of
the wind, tides and currents here, which will condition the time, place
and type of dive.
Ras Mohammed
South of Sharm el Sheikh the coast is totally deserted, with no
shelter, for more than a mile, up to the small bay named Marsa
Ghozlani where the Ras Mohammed National Park begins.
This is followed by another bay, Marsa Bareika, which is larger
and deeper. It penetrates the land for 2.8 miles, forming theRas
Mohammed peninsula, which extends south-eastwards into the Red Sea
for almost 5 miles and separates the Gulf of Aqaba from the Gulf of
Suez.
The eastern coast of the Ras Mohammed peninsula is composed of a tall
fossil coral reef that is interrupted for a few dozen meters by the
only accessible beach in the area, Aqaba Beach, and ends at the
Ras Mohammed headland - 'Mohammed's Cape' in Arabic, because its
profile is like the bearded one of the Prophet. The rocky spur is about
60 meters high; on top of it is the Shark Observatory balcony.
On the southern side of the peninsula there are three beaches -Shark
Observatory Beach, Main Beach and Yolanda Beach -
the sandy, shallow Hidden Bay, the mouth of which is almost
completely blocked by a long coral reef that divides the peninsula of
Ras Mohammed into two rocky land spits.
A shallow channel forms a small island called Mangrove Island on the
western side with a small beacon. On the sides of the channel grow
numerous mangroves (Avicennia marina), which represent an important
ecosystem. Mangroves are special plants, quite rare in the Sinai, and
thanks to their incredible root system they are able to filter
nutrients from the seawater, expelling salt crystals through their
leaves.
The western side of the peninsula is low and sandy, and its primary
attraction is the only mooring, which is well sheltered, in the area on
a level with the half-submerged remains of an old jetty known
as The Quay. Because of its geographic position the Ras Mohammed
peninsula is a privileged area distinguished for the strong, massive
currents that transport large quantities of plankton and other food
that give rise to an extraordinary growth of hard and soft corals and
attract large schools of both reef and pelagic marine fauna. The
classic diving sites begin at the northern and southern-most tip of
Marsa Bareika, respectively known as Ras Ghozlani and Ras Za'atar, and continue along the eastern coast with Ras Burg, Jackfish Alley, Eel Garden and Shark Observatory (also known as Ras Mohammed Wall), and at the southern end of the peninsula with Anemone City, Shark Reef and Yolanda Reef.
Further reading - "Protection of the Marine Environment"
Local
The generic name 'Local Dives' (due to their closeness to Sharm) covers
all the shore diving sites north and south of Naama Bay between the
Strait of Tiran and the town of Sharm el Sheikh.
Naama Bay, still
a desert at the end of the eighties, is now a famous international
tourist resort. This splendid bay was originally called Marsa
el-Aat, situated at the outlet of Wadi el-Aat.
Naama Bay has one of the two jetties that diving boats usually embark
from; the other one, Travco Marina, is situated to the southwest in the
bay of Sharm el Sheikh, known locally as Sharm el-Maya, or the
'bay of the harbour' due to the large tourist port which is also
present.
You reach the different local dive sites from Naama Bay following a
boat ride that may take anywhere from 10 to 70 minutes. North of Naama
Bay there are nine diving spots on a 7.5 mile stretch of coast. Ras Ghamila, the furthest away lies almost directly opposite Gordon Reef;Ras Nasrani is on a level to the international airport; the others, within a short distance of each other are Ras Bob, White Knight, Shark's Bay, Far Garden, Fiddle Garden, Middle Garden and Near Garden (corresponding to the northerly tip of Naama Bay).
South of Naama Bay are a further nine diving sites: Sodfa, Tower, Pinky Wall, Amphoras, Turtle Bay, Paradise, Ras Umm Sid, Temple and Ras Katy.
Generally speaking, besides their vicinity to Naama Bay, these diving
sites have other features in common due to their position, sheltered
from waves and strong currents, and to the configuration of the
fringing reef, which has found an ideal ecosystem for its growth along
this stretch of the coast. Diving here can be enjoyed by divers at all
levels and, in good conditions, you can observe many genera of
mandrepores (hard corals), innumerable varieties of Alcyonarians (soft
corals) and an almost complete range of fish life, from the small
anthias to the large Napoleonfish (Cheilinus undulatus), multi-coloured
butterflyfish and angelfish to parrotfish, triggerfish to surgeonfish.
