Baa Atoll & Hanifaru Bay · Maldives · Pinnacle · Wall
Anga Thilas
Four coral pinnacles 30–50 m apart, from 10 m down to 30 m
Area photo: Abllo · CC BY-SA 4.0
Anga Thilas is not one pinnacle but four, spaced roughly 30 to 50 m apart in Baa Atoll. Each has the same build: sloping wall topography, overhangs cut into it, and coral growth over the whole structure. Depths run from 10 m on the tops down to a maximum of 30 m, so a dive links one or two of the pinnacles rather than covering all four.
Where it is and how deep
5.1728° N, 73.0997° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
With four pinnacles and 30 to 50 m of open water between them, the dive is planned around how many you can link before depth and gas run out. Groups drop onto the first pinnacle at its top, around 10 m, follow the sloping wall down its side, then cross the gap to the next one. Everything below the tops sits between 10 m and the site maximum of 30 m, so the working depth is a choice rather than something the ground dictates.
Each pinnacle is worked the same way: down one face, around the base, then back up the far side with the overhangs in reach. The cut-away sections under those overhangs are the reason to go slowly here rather than to rush the crossings, and the coral growth covers the structure from the tops down. Save the end of the dive for a pinnacle top at 10 m, where the safety stop is done over reef instead of open water.
The crossings are the part to plan. Thirty to fifty metres of open water between pinnacles is short, but it has to be swum on a heading, and losing the next structure means burning gas looking for it. Agree the order of the pinnacles with the guide on the boat, and treat each gap as the point where you check depth and pressure before committing.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair |
Season follows Baa Atoll & Hanifaru Bay: The Hanifaru aggregation runs May–Nov on the south-west monsoon and peaks Aug–Oct; Dec–Apr is calmer and clearer but the mantas disperse.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Anga Thilas?+
The pinnacle tops come up to about 10 m and the site bottoms out at a maximum of 30 m, so most dives work the sloping sides between those two figures.
Sources
- Anga Thilas — Scubago
More dive sites in Baa Atoll & Hanifaru Bay
Reef
Coral slopes and a vertical wall between 5 m and 30 m
Blue hole
A vertical chimney through the reef with a cave exit
Reef
Canyons and overhangs from 12 to 30 m, with a shark nursery
Turtles and whitetips resting under a quiet 10 m pinnacle
Pinnacle
Endemic sponge snail on a protected thila topping out at 7 m
Pinnacle
A 400 m ridge from an 8 m top down to about 35 m
A narrow swim-through and mantas on a current-split point
A shore-entry slope from 3 m down, with 20–25 m visibility
Similar dives elsewhere
Caves and overhangs north, a wall past 60 m east
A 4 m coral top, soft coral at 15–25 m and almost no current
Three pinnacles topping out at 15 m beside an open drop-off
Temple statues on the bottom under the Koneswaram cliff