Belize Barrier Reef · Belize · Wall · Reef
Lindsey's Back Porch
Three big parrotfish species along the top of the wall
Area photo: Axelspace Corporation · CC BY-SA 4.0
Lindsey's Back Porch is a wall dive at the north-east end of Turneffe Atoll, where a steep and in places vertical face runs south to north before veering out to sea to the east. The reef flat above it sits at 18 metres, deepening to 24, and the top of the wall is rated the best place in Belize for its three large parrotfish species.
Where it is and how deep
17.4780° N, 87.7780° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The dive starts on the reef flat above the wall, at 60 feet, 18 metres, where sea ferns and sea plumes cover a large amount of the bottom. The wall runs south to north, steep and in some places vertical, before veering out to sea in an easterly direction. Follow it that way and the flat behind you deepens to 80 feet, 24 metres, with a wide sand channel running along the top of the drop.
The lip of the wall is where to spend the dive. It is renowned as the best place in Belize to see the country's three large parrotfish species, rainbow, blue and midnight, all of which grow to more than three feet, so it pays to hold position and let them come past. Black groupers work the same edge, sharks turn up occasionally off the face, and loggerhead turtles are found in this area.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Sea turtles
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Prime | Prime | Prime | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Belize Barrier Reef: March to May is the dry season, when visibility at Turneffe can pass 30 m (100 ft); rain and northerly winds take the shine off the other months.
Sources
- Turneffe Atoll dive sites — Dive The World
More dive sites in Belize Barrier Reef
Pelagic & blue water
Whale sharks feeding on snapper spawn between March and June
Reef
One big coral bommie ringed by schooling bar jacks
Wall
An overhanging wall stepping down to a wide sand terrace
Reef
Gullies cut across a submerged spur-and-groove reef
A flat coral plain that ends at a terrace into deep water
Reef
Drop into 35 m of open water, then up a sharp reef slope
Wreck
114 metres of ship lying at 18 metres off Blackbird Caye
Wall
Eagle rays off a sponge-hung wall on Turneffe's east coast
Similar dives elsewhere
Two facing walls a quarter mile apart, cut by a prehistoric river
Sloping Victory Reef wall with swim-throughs out of the current
Wall
Rendezvous Bay
Montserrat · Montserrat
Eagle rays on the wall face, turtles on the reef top
Barracuda and wahoo along the drop-off at Grand Îlet's tip