A shallow artificial-reef site running from 10 to 12 m, built out of objects put on the bottom to make new habitat: a jeep and a toilet seat are among the pieces divers are shown. The junk concentrates fish in a small area, from ordinary angelfish and surgeonfish to boxfish and pufferfish, and the depth means an unhurried dive with plenty of gas in hand.
Where it is and how deep
10.0869° N, 99.8221° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
There is no natural structure to navigate by here, so the dive is a slow tour of the objects themselves. The site runs from 10 to 12 m across the bottom, which is shallow enough that gas rather than no-stop time sets the length of the dive, and the pieces are close enough together to work through methodically instead of swimming for distance. A jeep and a toilet seat are the two everybody remembers, but the point of them is what has grown on and moved into them.
Each object works as its own small reef, which is why the fish here are easier to watch than on open rock: they hold station on a piece of junk rather than moving off across the reef. Angelfish, bannerfish and surgeonfish are the everyday sightings, with boxfish and pufferfish among the rarer ones worth slowing down for. Everything on the bottom is now marine habitat, so the rule at this site is to look and photograph without handling any of it.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Good |
Season follows Koh Tao: No official closure; whale shark sightings peak March-May and September-October, while October-November bring more rain and surface chop.
Know before you go
- Everything on the bottom is now living habitat and much of it is scrap metal: keep buoyancy off the objects and do not touch or move them.
Sources
- Junkyard - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Koh Tao
Offshore granite tower where barracuda and jacks school in the blue
Drift
Drift over the Nang Yuan rock, with 40 m a short swim west
Reef
Sheltered fringing reef, sandy bottom at 12 m
Pinnacle
Coral-covered pinnacles beside the Sattakut, 7 m to 22 m
44.9 m navy attack craft, mast at 13 m, seabed at 23 m
Upright navy wreck, superstructure at 18 m, keel at 30 m
Reef
Calm reef in the lee of Koh Nang Yuan, 2 to 16 m
Reef
Plateau and canyon off the headland, sponges from 8 to 18 m
Similar dives elsewhere
Mimic, wonderpus and blue-ringed octopus under the pillars
A 7 m shore dive that photographers run day and night
Wobbegongs and grey nurse under a working navy jetty
Wobbegongs, grey nurse and whitetips under a working navy jetty