Curaçao · Curaçao · Reef · Drift
Watamula
Where two currents meet at the island's north-west tip
Area photo: LASZLO ILYES · CC BY 2.0
A boat site off Westpunt at the north-west tip of the island, where two currents meet under the Cliff Villa peninsula and stir nutrients across the reef; the name comes from the Dutch watermolen, water mill. Depths run from 6 to 36 metres and the flow can set north, south or circular, which is both why the fish are here and why it is a dive for experienced divers.
Where it is and how deep
12.3833° N, 69.1500° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Watamula is boat access only: the routes, coral areas and entry and exit points that make the site work are not reachable from shore. It is usually run as a drift, and the direction is decided on the day, because the current here can flow north to south, south to north, or turn circular. The guide reads it at the surface before anyone gets in.
The reef runs from about 6 metres down to 36, and those converging currents keep nutrients moving across it. Reef fish are the constant — ocean triggerfish, chubbs, angelfish, parrotfish and butterflyfish — with sea turtles, eagle rays and the occasional nurse shark as the larger visitors, and large schools of bogas over the coral.
Dives regularly finish around the point of Watamula itself, where schools of barracuda hold; lobster, porcupine fish and green morays are on the same stretch. Because the flow is unpredictable and the direction is set on the day, the exit is planned around the boat rather than a fixed feature on the reef, and the 36-metre bottom is best treated as a limit rather than a target.
Background
Wikipedia's Westpunt article credits the two currents that meet in front of the Cliff Villa peninsula with making this stretch the island's premium diving location. The same water shapes the coast above it: two kilometres to the north-east of Watamula, at the northernmost point of Westpunt, the tide has carved large seawater blowholes into the coral rock. Dive Curaçao ranks the site as the island's number one boat dive.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
- Eagle rays
- Barracuda
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Curaçao: Diving runs all year; October to February is the rainy season, and May to November brings warmer water and fewer crowds.
Know before you go
- Two currents converge here and can run north to south, south to north or in a circle — stay with the guide and be ready for the direction to change.
- The reef reaches 36 m, deeper than the island's usual profiles; agree a maximum depth on the boat and watch gas consumption, which climbs in current.
Dive videos
Diving at the Watamula Dive Site in Westpunt: Curaçao's #1 Boat Dive Site · Dive Curaçao on YouTube
Scuba Diving CURACAO Watamula Dive Site 2019 [4K] · Sand Gravity Adventures on YouTube
Curacao/ Watamula/4k · Street Remember on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How strong is the current at Watamula?+
Two currents converge here, and the flow can run north to south, south to north or in a circle. The direction is judged on the day, which is why the site is dived as a guided drift from a boat.
Can you shore dive Watamula?+
No. It is a boat access site — the coral areas and the entry and exit points that make the dive work are only reachable by boat.
Sources
- Watamula Dive Site — Dive Curaçao (divecuracao.info)
- Watamula — Wikipedia
- Westpunt — Wikipedia
- Dive Sites (Go West Diving) — Go West Diving
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Similar dives elsewhere
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Jacks and barracuda stacked in the current
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Schools of black jacks gather here from May to July