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
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
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Off-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
- Es Pallaret - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Ibiza & Formentera
Pinnacle
A shoal from 24 m of sand up to 3 m below the surface
Cave & cavern
A wide 4-9 m entrance into a chamber with an air pocket
Three passes cut clean through the islet wall
Wall
A reserve wall to 20 m with a small arch full of life
A holed wall from a 5 m platform down to 30 m
Seamount
A seamount from 50 m to centimetres under the surface
Reef
A reserve dive to 28 m, with the route cut to fit the group
A sunken fish farm hanging at an angle from 12 m to 35 m
Similar dives elsewhere
The sec du Pelu, renamed for the groupers that hold on it
Serpent stars that turn from black to red under a torch
A rock spine with a crest at 12 m and groupers along its length
A steep gorge to 25 m holding the remains of an old anchorage