Reefwander
Red volcanic rock outcrop with desert shrubs rising from turquoise water under a clear sky — Copper Canyon, Lake Havasu

Lake Havasu · United States · Wall · Freshwater

Copper Canyon

Three-sided cove with walls dropping straight from the surface to the floor

Photo: ksblack99 · Public domain

Copper Canyon is a boat-only cove on the west side of Lake Havasu and a very popular spot on the lake, enclosed by shoreline on three sides. It has an average depth of about 9 m (30 ft), and in places its walls drop vertically from the surface to the bottom, which makes it a good dive for recreational divers.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Copper Canyon: typical dive to 9 m (to 30 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit9 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

34.4259° N, 114.3078° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Boats come into the cove on the west side of the lake and usually anchor, or tie off to the trees lining its hard rock shoreline. The cove is a no wake zone and is enclosed by shoreline on three sides, and divers enter straight from the boat into water with an average depth of about 9 m (30 ft).

The hard rock shoreline slopes down to a flat, silt-covered bottom, and in some parts of the cove the walls run vertically from the surface all the way to the floor, with rugged rock formations along them. The cove floor is known for items lost by the boaters above, including phones, watches, sunglasses and box anchors, so many divers spend part of the dive searching the silt.

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Copper Canyon
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
FairGoodPrimePrimePrimePrimePrimePrimePrimeGoodGoodGood

Season follows Lake Havasu: March to September are the prime months on the lake; the water is coldest in January at about 13 °C and warmest in August at about 19 °C, and the lake is still dived on New Year's Day.

Dive videos

A 4th of July treasure hunt in Copper Canyon · robocurran in havasu on YouTube

Copper Canyon 9 8 20 · Brian Leffler on YouTube

Questions divers ask

How deep is Copper Canyon at Lake Havasu?+

Copper Canyon averages about 9 m (30 ft) deep, with walls that in places run vertically from the surface to the bottom.

How do divers get to Copper Canyon?+

Only by boat. The cove is on the west side of the lake, and boats anchor or tie off to the trees along the hard rock shoreline.

Sources

  1. Let's Dive - Scuba Training and Technology — Scuba Training and Technology
  2. Copper Canyon — Scubago

Photo credits

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