Addu Atoll · Maldives · Channel & pass · Reef
Kuda Kandu Corner
Table, mushroom and brain corals down a steep slope to 25 m
Area photo: ╚ DD╔ from Male, Maldives · CC BY-SA 2.0
The corner dive on Addu's Kuda Kandu channel, where a steep slope of massive coral formations runs down to 25 metres with only one small patch of rubble breaking it. Grey reef sharks, napoleon wrasse, turtles, barracuda, tuna and rainbow runners are the company over the corner.
Where it is and how deep
0.6116° S, 73.1289° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
This is the corner of Kuda Kandu rather than the reef outside it, and the dive is set up on the point where the channel turns. The slope is steep and almost unbroken coral: table, mushroom, brain and cone corals stacked down to 25 metres, with a single small patch of rubble the only interruption. Getting onto the corner cleanly at the start of the dive is what decides whether you spend the dive on the good ground or past it.
The animals here come with the coral rather than instead of it. Grey reef sharks are the ones to expect, with napoleon wrasse and turtles in closer on the formations and barracuda, tuna and rainbow runners out over the drop. Work back up the slope as the dive runs down, finishing shallow over the coral formations before you leave the corner.
Marine life and season
- Reef sharks
- Napoleon wrasse
- Sea turtles
- Barracuda
- Tuna
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good |
Season follows Addu Atoll: Addu's resident dive centre rates January to April driest and busiest and July to September best for visibility; May-June and October-December are wetter. Full and new moon run the strongest currents.
Sources
- Kuda Kandu Corner dive site — Scubago
More dive sites in Addu Atoll
Channel & pass
A year-round manta point at 19-25 m inside the channel
Reef
A banana-shaped reef dived from the surface to 30 m
Wreck
The largest wreck in the Maldives, on her port side at 33 m
Channel & pass
Drift the channel corner on either tide, 5 to 25 m
Hard coral gardens from 6 m to a 20 m drop-off
Wall
Easy wall from a 5-8 m reef top down past 30 m
Reef
Tigers, grey reefs and silvertips on Addu's outer reef
Similar dives elsewhere
Sharks, jacks and eagle rays on the channel-mouth current
Advanced channel drift with sharks between 22 and 30 m
Channel & pass
Avapehi Pass
Huahine · French Polynesia
Adult grey reef sharks breed in the swell-driven current
.jpg){kind=link}
Mantas and eagle rays in the outer reaches of a tidal cut