Isles of Shoals · United States · Kelp forest · Reef
Duck Island
Harbor and grey seals resting on the rocks above a kelp-covered cove
Duck Island, in the Isles of Shoals, is home to a colony of harbor and grey seals year round. Its sheltered cove is a shallow dive over kelp-covered ground with plenty of fish, where the seals come to check out divers and rest on the rocks.
Also known as Seal Cove.
Where it is and how deep
43.0049° N, 70.6046° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The dive works the shallow, protected ground around the island, where the kelp-covered bottom seldom drops past 5 m (15 ft). Seal Cove, on the southeast side, reaches about 12 m (40 ft) at its deepest and carries only a slight current. The harbor and grey seals are most often met in the shallows, swimming or resting on the rocks, and divers who enter there are often approached by them; the Marine Mammal Protection Act bars divers from approaching the seals themselves.
Marine life and season
- Seals & sea lions
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Isles of Shoals: May to October gives the most favourable conditions; the seals stay year round, but the water falls to about 4 °C in February and March.
Know before you go
- The island was once a military target range, and unexploded shells have been found in the area by divers.
Dive videos
Seal Cove · Kristen Mello on YouTube
Sources
- Guide to dives and local diving sites — Portsmouth Scuba
- Local Dive Sites in NH & Maine — Seafari Charters
- Isles of Shoals — Wikipedia
More dive sites in Isles of Shoals
Wall
The open-Atlantic face of Duck Island, where the bottom falls away fast
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