The dive under the Cabrits cruise ship dock, worked from one piling to the next among wooden posts covered in sponges. Cabrits Dive Centre lists seahorses, batfish, flying gurnards and sand eels as regulars, PADI adds crabs, shrimp, frogfish, octopus and a big barracuda, and the whole thing happens between 4.5 m and 14 m.
Where it is and how deep
15.5819° N, 61.4714° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
The dive is what the name says: you work from one dock pole to the next, checking each one and the sand around it, and it all happens between 4.5 m and 14 m. PADI describes going through 15 m (50 foot) posts, and Cabrits Dive Centre calls them towering wooden poles covered in sponges. There is no route beyond the line of pilings, so the pace is set by how carefully you look.
Cabrits Dive Centre lists seahorses, batfish, flying gurnards and sand eels as regular sightings here, and PADI adds crabs, shrimp, frogfish and octopus found on the poles themselves, plus a large barracuda that turns up out of the blue. The centre rates the site as good at night as by day, and Scuba Diving Magazine named it one of seven top pier dives in 2010.
Marine life and season
- Barracuda
- Frogfish
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Dominica: November–May gives calmer seas and the best sperm whale sightings; September–October bring the heaviest rain and hurricane risk.
Questions divers ask
What can you see at Pole to Pole?+
Cabrits Dive Centre lists seahorses, batfish, flying gurnards and sand eels as regular sightings, and PADI adds crabs, shrimp, frogfish and octopus on the dock poles along with a large barracuda.
Is Pole to Pole suitable for beginners?+
Yes. Cabrits Dive Centre rates it an easy dive, and the published range is only 15 to 45 feet, about 4.5 m to 14 m, under the Cabrits cruise ship dock.
Sources
- Diving in Dominica — Cabrits Dive Centre
- Pole to Pole dive site — PADI
More dive sites in Dominica
Wreck
The Nadine L., a 17-metre wreck (55 feet) sunk in 2003 as a first wreck dive
Reef
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Swim-throughs between massive coral-covered boulders
Sand slope
A field of sea pens standing up out of the sand like white feathers
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A fallen boulder shaped like a hand, its top breaking the surface
A wall for all levels, starting on a shelf at 8 m
Reef
A flat coral plateau at 12 m (40 ft) that drops sharply to 120
Reef
Round Capucin Point from the Caribbean into the Atlantic
Similar dives elsewhere
Seventeenth-century Dutch beads in the sand at 17 m
Over 100 nudibranch and sea slug species in under 8 m of water
A submerged sailboat and a resident school of spadefish
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Frogfish and flamboyant cuttlefish on rubble inside 10 metres