Bayahibe · Dominican Republic · Wall · Reef
Catalina Wall
A 6 m coral slope that reaches an edge and drops away
Area photo: Pc.wiki4 · CC BY-SA 4.0
A wall dive at Isla Catalina, west of Bayahibe, and one of the best-known in the Dominican Republic. A gentle coral slope runs out from the island in about 6 m of water, reaches an edge and drops away; the growth along the drop-off is at its best between roughly 12 and 18 m, and how far below that you go is a matter of certification rather than of the site.
Also known as Santa Catalina Wall, The Wall.
Where it is and how deep
18.3763° N, 69.0052° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
You drop onto the shallow reef that runs out from the island. The dive starts at around 6 m, so the light is still hard and the coral has not gone blue, and you follow a very gentle slope outward. It is a stroll rather than a swim, and the point of that first stretch is the view forward to where the shelf ends.
The shelf reaches an edge and the wall goes down. Sponges are the dominant growth right at the drop-off and they are extensive there; along the face the coral runs to every colour, shape and size, and the crevices hold reef creatures rather than anything large. Operators put the best of it between about 12 and 18 m.
Below that, depth buys darker water rather than more reef, and dive centres here cap the site at 30 m for advanced divers. Because the top of the reef is shallow, the ascent and the safety stop happen over coral instead of over open blue, which is what makes the site workable with a group of mixed certification levels.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good |
Season follows Bayahibe: January to April is the driest stretch and October the wettest; Atlantic hurricane season runs June to November and peaks from late August into September.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Catalina Wall?+
The reef starts at around 6 m and the drop-off begins from there. Operators put the best of the wall between about 12 and 18 m and cap the site at 30 m for advanced divers, so how far down you go follows your certification rather than the site.
Sources
- The Wall dive site — PADI
- Catalina The Wall — Scubago
- Catalina - The Wall — Blue Dreams Diving
More dive sites in Bayahibe
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A park reef 25 minutes out, split into three dive points
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Wreck
Top of the wreck at 15 m, bow on the sand at 44 m
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