Roche Nathalie is a very large rock a 15-minute boat ride up the coast, with the mooring set at its foot in 14–16 m and a maximum depth of 20 m. It is a relaxed single-rock dive in two stages, with grouper, moray eels and John Dory as the regular sightings.
Also known as La Roche Nathalie.
Where it is and how deep
42.7410° N, 9.4719° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The boat moors at the foot of the rock in 14–16 m, and the dive runs in two stages, working the structure and its neighbours down to a maximum of 20 m. The first rock is at its best on the south/south-east flank, which is cut with a mass of crevices — this is the place to hunt slowly, checking hole after hole rather than swimming past them.
The crevice-checking pays off: grouper, moray eels and John Dory are all seen on the site. With the floor at 20 m the no-stop time is generous, so the two-stage route can be taken at an easy pace — from the mooring, around and over the rock and back, with the ascent up the line at the end, and the whole dive staying inside the site's 20 m maximum.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Bastia & Cap Corse (East Coast): Centres run year round, but the sea tops 20 °C only from June to October; January–March sit at 14–15 °C.
Sources
- Scubago — Roche Nathalie — Scubago
- Dollfin — La Roche Nathalie — Dollfin
More dive sites in Bastia & Cap Corse (East Coast)
Wreck
A second WWII fighter at 30 m, ringed by thirty corb
Wreck
A WWII bomber, 'Yehunde', on the seabed at 63 m
Reef
Grouper, barracuda and fan mussels on rocks at 18–20 m
A WWII fighter at 19 m, cockpit canopy still open
Pinnacle
A rocky peak off Bastia's harbour mouth, 22 m down to 44 m
Reef
Rocks from 8 to 35 m with grouper, barracuda and fan mussels
Reef
Imposing grouper circle the rocks down to 35 m
Reef
Tunnels and faults at 26–38 m, home to grouper and corb
Similar dives elsewhere
Moray eels and octopus in the jagged rock of Pollara's sea stack
Underwater mountain five minutes out of Blanes port
Pinnacle
Santa Irini Pinnacle
Kos & the Kefalos Peninsula · Greece
A pinnacle rising to within 2 m of the surface
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The shoal off Arbatax known above all for its barracuda