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A turquoise lagoon framed by jagged limestone karst peaks on Coron Island in northern Palawan.

Coron · Philippines · Reef · Drift · Channel & pass · Coral garden

Calumbuyan Reef

A channel drift at 1 to 3 knots between two wrecks

Area photo: Ray in Manila · CC BY 2.0

Calumbuyan Reef is a double site at Calumbuyan Island in Gutob Bay, between the wrecks of the Okikawa and the Akitsushima. Coral gardens on the east side suit snorkelling and shallow dives, while the deeper south-side reef lies in a channel where the current makes it a drift dive.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Calumbuyan Reef: typical dive 4–34 m (13–112 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit4 m34 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

12.0061° N, 119.9420° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

The south-side reef runs from 4 to 34 m down a channel between Calumbuyan and Lajo islands. Channel currents of 1 to 3 knots carry divers along it as a drift. On the east side of the island the coral gardens offer a shallow dive, or a snorkel, close to the surface.

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Calumbuyan Reef
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
PrimePrimePrimePrimeFairFairFairFairFairFairFairPrime

Season follows Coron: Dry December to April brings glassy seas and the best visibility; in the wet months bad weather sometimes stops diving.

Know before you go

  • Channel currents on the south side run between 1 and 3 knots, deep enough at 34 m that the drift needs close depth control.

Sources

  1. Reef Dives — Sangat Island Dive Resort
  2. OpenStreetMap — OpenStreetMap contributors

More dive sites in Coron

Wreck

Akitsushima Wreck

A 35-ton seaplane crane on a warship lying on her side at 35 m

22–35 m · max 36 madvanced

Cave & cavern

Barracuda Lake

Fresh water over salt, and 38 degrees below the thermocline

to 30 m · max 40 madvanced

Cave & cavern

Cathedral Cave

A fallen tree lit by daylight inside a cavern under Coron Island

6–12 madvanced

Wreck

East Tangat Wreck

A 35 m gunboat in 3 to 19 m, open to any certification

3–19 mbeginner

Wreck

Irako Wreck

A 145 m provisions ship with its deck areas at 28 to 35 m

28–35 m · max 43 madvanced

Wreck

Kogyo Maru

A bulldozer and cement bags still in the cargo holds

25–34 madvanced

Wreck

Kyokuzan Maru

Japanese staff cars and trucks still parked in the cargo holds

22–40 madvanced

Similar dives elsewhere

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Cervera Shoal

Pamilacan · Philippines

Banded sea kraits crawling openly over a sunken plateau

10–30 mintermediate

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Raja Ampat · Indonesia

Lionfish and scorpionfish resting on table and brain corals

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Rock Point West

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Frogfish and cuttlefish in the island's densest hard coral

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to 30 mintermediate