Reefwander
Mangrove cays scattered across calm water beyond a marina of white boats, seen from a hillside above La Parguera

La Parguera & Guánica · Puerto Rico · Wall

Old Buoy

A sloping wall section crowded with spiny and Spanish lobster

Area photo: Les & Omy · CC BY-SA 3.0

Old Buoy is a sloping section of the La Parguera wall, a tamer alternative to the sheer drop-offs nearby. The slope is crowded with spiny and Spanish lobster, and a little west of the drop point the tattered remains of an old mooring line give the site its name.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Old Buoy: typical dive to 18 m (to 60 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit18 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

17.8897° N, 66.9848° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Divers drop in over a sloping bottom rather than a sheer face, a tamer alternative to the sheer drop-offs nearby. Canyons and trenches cut through the reef, and the dive swims in and through them. A dive here reached about 18 m (60 ft) at its deepest and lasted about 35 minutes.

Spiny lobster and Spanish lobster crowd the slope. A short swim west of the drop point, the tattered remains of an old mooring line float down below; that buoy line is the one the site is named for. Schooling barjacks, barracuda and mackerel pass along this part of the wall, which, like the rest of it, is covered in sea fans, corals and sponges.

Marine life and season

  • Trevally & jacks
  • Barracuda
Month-by-month season rating for Old Buoy
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
GoodGoodGoodGoodGoodFairFairFairFairFairFairGood

Season follows La Parguera & Guánica: No month is reported as best; June to November is hurricane season with near-daily showers, and winter calls for a 3–5 mm suit.

Questions divers ask

How deep is the Old Buoy dive in La Parguera?+

Old Buoy is a sloping section of the wall; a dive here reached about 18 m (60 ft) at its deepest.

Sources

  1. Dive Sites In La Parguera — Paradise Scuba & Snorkeling Center
  2. Great Diving at the Wall in La Parguera — Puerto Rico Day Trips
  3. Predation Pressure by Cyphoma gibbosum on Octocoral Communities off La Parguera, Puerto Rico — International Scholarly Research Notices (2014)

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