Malapascua · Philippines · Muck & macro · Sand slope
North Point / Deep Slope
A dune-like sand slope for macro, down to about 28 m
Area photo: Petter Lindgren · CC BY-SA 3.0
Deep Slope, at Malapascua's north point, is a muck and macro site rather than a reef: a sandy slope that resembles a dune, running down to roughly 28 metres. Divers come for what lives on and in the sand, and the depth is what separates it from the shallower muck closer to the island — a dive planned around bottom time rather than around a route.
Where it is and how deep
11.3508° N, 124.1178° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The site is a renowned muck diving and macro site characterised by a sandy slope that resembles a dune, and the dive is organised around depth rather than around a route. Groups drop in at the north point and work down the sand, spending the first part of the dive at the deeper end where the slope reaches roughly 28 metres, then giving back depth steadily as gas and no-decompression time allow.
There is no structure to follow, so the guide sets a line across the slope and the group stays spread out along it, hovering rather than finning. That is partly for the visibility, which a single careless fin stroke over sand destroys, and partly because everything worth seeing here is small and takes looking for. The ascent is simply the slope itself, which brings you into the shallows for a safety stop over the same sand.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Malapascua: Threshers visit Kimud Shoal all year. March to May is calmest and clearest; October to January brings rough seas, green water and the most cancelled crossings.
Know before you go
- The dune-like sand silts easily and the deep end of the slope is around 28 metres, so bottom time goes quickly if buoyancy is loose and the group has to re-find the line.
Sources
- North Point / Deep Slope Malapascua - Scubago — Scubago/SSI
More dive sites in Malapascua
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A gentle coral slope from 5 to 20 m inside a protected area
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Pinnacle
A rocky pinnacle from 14 m to 34 m, dived on tide changes
Wreck
A 1988 ferry wreck lying on her starboard side at 33 m
A 5 to 13 m coral and seagrass slope off the resort beach
A 30 m swim-through tunnel at 10 m with sharks resting inside
Similar dives elsewhere
Two jetties over a steep sand slope to 30 metres
Fine sand and rock past 30 metres, dived for the small stuff
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Black sand to 27 metres, at its best after dark