Guadeloupe · Guadeloupe · Reef · Night
La Caye
Green turtles gather here after dark
Area photo: Antoine Cupial · CC BY-SA 4.0
La Caye is the shallow ground left when the Malendure rock collapsed into the sea, a spread of broken stone in 4 to 18 m that is accessible to divers of any level. Its reputation is nocturnal: after dark this is where the green turtles gather, counted in the tens rather than ones. Spotted moray eels hunt the same rubble at night.
Where it is and how deep
16.1695° N, 61.7775° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
The ground here is the collapsed Malendure rock, which fell into the ocean a long time ago and left the shallow site divers use today. Depths run from 4 m out to 18 m for anyone who wants to go further, and nothing about the profile forces the decision: you can spend the whole dive in the shallows or drop down the slope and work your way back up.
Come back after dark and the site changes character. Night is when the green turtles rendezvous — one, then two, then ten of them settled on the bottom — and that gathering is what La Caye is known for. Spotted moray eels like to hunt here as well, so the shallow rubble that looks unremarkable in daylight is working ground once the torches are on.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Guadeloupe: Dec–May is the dry season with the calmest water; Aug–Oct brings hurricane risk and the heaviest rain.
Questions divers ask
Is La Caye good for a night dive?+
It is the reserve's turtle dive after dark. Green turtles gather here at night in numbers, and spotted moray eels hunt the same shallow rubble, while depths of 4 to 18 m keep the profile simple in the dark.
How deep is La Caye?+
Depths range from 4 m in the shallows to 18 m for divers who want to go further. The site is accessible to all levels and there is no need to use the deeper end at all.
Sources
- La Caye — Scubago — Scubago
In The Logbook
- Where to dive with sea turtlesBig animals · 15 min read
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