Atlantic · France
Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park
Rock walls carpeted in jewel anemones, plus wrecks in the bay
The Crozon peninsula is the middle prong of Finistère, and its waters lie inside France's first marine nature park, the Parc naturel marin d'Iroise. Boats from Morgat work the rocks of the Baie de Douarnenez and a trio of artificial-reef wrecks at 33 m; from Camaret they reach the Tas de Pois off Pen-Hir and the Swansea. The main rock sites go to about 20 m, and the walls are coated in jewel anemones.
About diving in Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park
Diving runs from two harbours. At Morgat the centre sits a short walk from its boat, and most sites are about 10 minutes away across the Baie de Douarnenez; Kador beach next to the port takes shore dives and first dives. At the western tip of the peninsula, boats leave Camaret for the Goulet de Brest, the Tas de Pois off Pen-Hir and the Swansea. The Goulet, the narrow entrance to the Rade de Brest, is dived only at slack water because the tidal currents there can be strong. Tides, a changeable sea and cold water shape every plan.
The main sites are rocks breaking the surface with a maximum depth around 20 m: granite blocks under kelp and sea urchins, small walls, faults and plateaus. Jewel anemones in pink, green, blue, red and white cover whole faces, with yellow and red soft corals, gorgonians and sponges. Cephalopods and crustaceans hide in the cracks, Krohn's doris and Tritonia nudibranchs turn up among the gorgonians, and bass, bream and pollack patrol above. The three wrecks in the middle of the bay sit together on sand at 33 m and carry dense fixed life.
For newer divers, Niveau 1 covers dives to 20 m, Pointe de Saint-Hernot is a simple dive to 12 m, and Pointe de Rostudel stays under 12 m beside a plateau at 5 m. Visibility was about 15 m in early summer, with particles in suspension. The exposed outer rocks such as the Roche du Dolmen face swell and current and are rarely diveable; only the lucky get to dive them. Wreck divers should expect the hulls to be explored from outside, as entry has become too dangerous.
Best time to dive Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair |
The Morgat base opens in April and takes clubs and groups diving over several days from April to June. By late June and early July the water reaches 15 to 16 °C, with no thermocline because the tides keep it mixed. From September to November it takes groups again, and the season closes at the end of November. Nothing indicates boats running from December to March; February and March bring the coldest water of the year.
Best months: April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November
Dive types & marine life
Grey seals visit Les Verrès only occasionally, and one sometimes glides through a group off the Pointe des Verrès. Large schools of pouting surround the Castel Meur and the Swansea. A quarter of France's marine mammals live in the Iroise, including grey seal and bottlenose dolphin colonies.
- Reef
- Wall
- Wreck
- Kelp forest
- Cave & cavern
- Nudibranchs
- Seals & sea lions
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Reef fish swarms
Best dive sites in Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park
- 1
Le Taureau
Rock plateau on sand at 22 m, its wall of more than 15 m entirely covered in jewel anemones.
- 2
Castel Meur
Trawler scuttled as an artificial reef in 1984 at 33 m, ringed by a huge school of pouting.
- 3
Swansea
British cargo ship that struck the Trépied rocks off Camaret on 8 August 1918, with pouting and pollack around the hull.
- 4
Tas de Pois
Off Pointe de Pen-Hir, a small canyon where nudibranchs hide among gorgonians.
- 5
Anse des Verrès
Plateau sloping to sand at 16 m, then a wall coloured by jewel anemones; grey seals at times.
- 6
Pointe du Menhir
A fault leading to 3 submerged caves, at 10 m at most and dived only at high tide.
- 7
Pierre Profonde
Former battleship target strewn with inert shells that shelter a varied fauna, to 20 m on sand.
- 8
La Meuse
Naval sloop sunk as a target in 1945, upside down at 33 m and slowly collapsing.
Site guides
Wreck
A huge school of pouting wraps the hull, with bass, pollack and John Dory
The storm-wrecked ruins of a breakwater, a maze of caves beside Morgat port
A First World War cargo ship with its propeller and rudder still in place
How to get to Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park
Brest Bretagne Airport (BES) serves Brest, and Camaret lies 68 km from Brest by road. The Morgat centre is in the marina at Crozon-Morgat, on the Baie de Douarnenez; the Camaret boats leave from the port at the western tip of the peninsula.
Questions divers ask
What certification is needed to dive around Crozon?+
Niveau 1 allows dives to 20 m, which covers the main rock sites in the Baie de Douarnenez. The three wrecks sit at 33 m and need a deeper rating.
When is the diving season at Morgat?+
The Morgat centre operates from April to November. Groups and clubs come from April to June and from September to November.
Is the diving from shore or by boat?+
Mostly by boat: Morgat's sites are about 10 minutes from the port, and Camaret's boats run to Pen-Hir and the Goulet. Kador beach beside Morgat port takes shore dives.
Can divers enter the wrecks in the Baie de Douarnenez?+
No. The Meuse, Castel Meur and Perle are not maintained and entry has become too dangerous, so dives stay outside the hulls, which lie on sand at 33 m.
Are seals seen on dives at Crozon?+
Grey seals turn up occasionally at Les Verrès in the Baie de Douarnenez, sometimes gliding past a group. They are a bonus rather than a sure thing.
Sources
- Plongées d'exploration - Centre de Plongée ISA — Centre ISA
- Centre de Plongée I.S.A. - cursos debuceo — cursos debuceo
- Exploration des fonds marins à Camaret-sur-Mer — VVA Natation
- Parc naturel marin d'Iroise — Wikipedia
- Brest Average Sea Temperatures — SeaTemperature.org
- Camaret-sur-Mer — Wikipedia
- Brest Bretagne Airport — Wikipedia
- Les spots de plongée de la baie de Douarnenez — Centre ISA
- Les épaves de la baie de Douarnenez — Centre ISA
Embed
Run a dive centre, club or blog? Embed this map of 3 dive sites near Crozon Peninsula & the Iroise Marine Park on your own page.
Similar destinations
Pink granite caves and tunnels in cold Atlantic swell off Peniche
Atlantic
Azores — São Miguel
Portugal
The WWII Liberty ship Dori in 21m, minutes off Ponta Delgada
Around three hundred charted wrecks, most of them shallower than 20 m
Kelp and granite in cold Atlantic water at the mouth of the Ría de Vigo