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Bare desert ridges above blue arms of Lake Havasu, with dark volcanic rock in the foreground

Lake Havasu · United States · Wall · Freshwater

Victoria Cliffs

Half a mile of sheer freshwater walls with swim-throughs and sunken boats

Area photo: nosha · CC BY-SA 2.0

Victoria Cliffs is a boat-only wall dive off the south-east corner of the island in Lake Havasu, south of the Nautical Island Golf Club. Sheer walls range from 3 to 12 m (10–40 ft) deep and run for about half a mile, with ledges, boulders, some swim-throughs and a few small boats, and visibility here is usually very good.

Also known as Nautical Cliffs.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Victoria Cliffs: typical dive 3–12 m (10–40 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit3 m12 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

34.4466° N, 114.3459° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

There is no shore access, so the dive starts from a boat off the south-east corner of the island, south of the Nautical Island Golf Club. Divers drop onto the face of the cliffs, which are sheer and range from about 3 m (10 ft) to 12 m (40 ft) deep, so any depth within that band can be held simply by staying at one level on the wall.

The cliffs run for about half a mile, so a single dive covers only part of the wall. Along the face there are ledges and boulders, some swim-throughs, and a few small boats to look for. Visibility here is usually very good, which makes the line of the wall easy to follow on the way out and again on the swim back to the boat.

Marine life and season

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

Month-by-month season rating for Victoria Cliffs
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.

Know before you go

  • Some swim-throughs cut into the wall; divers without overhead training pass them on the outside of the face.

Dive videos

Some of a scuba dive from the Nautical Cliffs in Lake Havasu · Shawn Simmon on YouTube

Questions divers ask

How deep is Victoria Cliffs at Lake Havasu?+

The sheer walls at Victoria Cliffs run from about 3 m (10 ft) to 12 m (40 ft) deep, for roughly half a mile along the shore of the island.

Can Victoria Cliffs be dived from shore?+

No. Victoria Cliffs is reached only by boat, off the south-east corner of the island south of the Nautical Island Golf Club.

Sources

  1. Let's Dive - Scuba Training and Technology — Scuba Training and Technology
  2. Nautical Cliffs — Scubago

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