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Ibiza & Formentera · Spain · Pinnacle

Es Pallaret

A cone of rock offshore, circled between 10 and 28 m

Area photo: Fabian Hurst · CC BY-SA 4.0

A round rock standing on its own 600 metres north of Torre d'en Rovira, known locally as the Haystack. Apart from a shoulder on its west side it is cone shaped and easy to swim around at whatever depth suits, and it is dived between 10 and 28 metres. Standing away from the coast, it collects life: barracuda and dentex in the blue, grouper and octopus in the cracks.

Also known as The Haystack.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Es Pallaret: typical dive 10–28 m (33–92 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit10 m28 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

38.9772° N, 1.2318° EPublished position for this site.

The dive

The descent point is the south-west corner, where a largish rock comes up to 6 metres — the shallowest part of the site. Below that the structure is a cone, with one shoulder on the west side, and the dive is simply a circuit of it: pick a depth between 10 and 28 metres, swim round, then come up a level and swim round again.

Because it stands on its own away from the coast, the Haystack always has a lot of life on it. Barracuda, dentex and sargos swim in the blue off the rock while moray eels, grouper and octopus stay close in the cracks, so the dive divides neatly into looking out and looking in. The 6 metre top makes the safety stop part of the site rather than a hang in open water.

Marine life and season

  • Barracuda
  • Groupers
  • Octopus & cuttlefish
Month-by-month season rating for Es Pallaret
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Off-seasonOff-seasonOff-seasonFairGoodGoodPrimePrimePrimeGoodFairOff-season

Season follows Ibiza & Formentera: Logged dives climb from April, peak in July and August and fall away through November; December to March activity is negligible on both islands.

Sources

  1. Es Pallaret - Scubago — Scubago

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