Costa Brava · Spain · Reef · Cave & cavern
Illa Mateua
Shore-entry islet at 0–16 m with a short, easy tunnel
Photo: Isidro Jabato · CC BY-SA 4.0
The islet off L'Escala's own coast, dived from the shore or from a boat between the surface and 16 m, with a small cave pierced through the rock that the operator says presents no difficulty. It is the macro dive of this coast: nudibranchs and polychaetes on the rock, crustaceans in the cracks, and a seahorse on a lucky day.
Where it is and how deep
42.1138° N, 3.1663° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
Access is on foot or by boat, which makes the islet simple to arrange either way: the ground around it runs from the surface down to 16 m, and the catalogue gives the average depth as 10 to 14 m. There is no wall to follow and no depth to chase, so the shape of the dive is a slow circuit of the rock at whatever depth the group is comfortable with.
The islet is pierced by a small underwater cave, and the operator is clear that crossing it presents no difficulty — a torch is optional and mostly a way to put the colour back into the rock. The rest of the dive is macro work: nudibranchs and polychaetes are the constants here, crustaceans sit back in the cracks, and the catalogue notes seahorses as a lucky find rather than a promise.
Marine life and season
- Nudibranchs
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Costa Brava: Water runs from about 13 °C in February to 25 °C in July and August; no L'Escala centre publishes closing months, and the tramuntana can keep boats in port in any month.
Know before you go
- In summer the area is marked out with buoys, which prevents vessels passing over divers; stay inside the marked water.
- Diving is only possible in calm water or a south wind, so the site comes off the plan when the tramuntana is up.
Photos from Illa Mateua
Isidro Jabato · CC BY-SA 4.0
Questions divers ask
Can you dive Illa Mateua from the shore?+
Yes. Orca Diving lists access on foot or by boat. The islet is only diveable in calm water or a south wind, and in summer the area is buoyed off to keep vessels away from divers.
Sources
- Costa de L'Escala Diving Sites — Orca Diving Center
- Illa Mateua — Scubago
- Illa Mateua (islet), OpenStreetMap way 481964669 — OpenStreetMap
Photo credits
- Illa Mateua islet in clear blue water seen from the cliff above its cove by Isidro Jabato, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Orange cliffs and clear water of the cove beside Illa Mateua by Isidro Jabato, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Costa Brava
Wall
A narrow tunnel through the point to Les Cambres
Wall
A hall under a surfacing stone, with conger in the holes
Reef
A small tunnel lined with coral and sponges
Wall
A walk-in wall at 3–22 m used for courses and night dives
Wreck
A dynamited navy tug in 5–10 m off Illa Mateua
A wide tunnel entered at 16 m, out to a 30 m bottom
Wreck
A 122 m ferry in three pieces on sand at 22–35 m
A 70 m tunnel straight through the islet, lit at both ends
Similar dives elsewhere
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A small, safe cavern for a first look at cavern diving
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A 10 m tunnel through the rock inside a no-fishing marine park