New Caledonia · France · Drift · Wall
Pointe de Dumbéa
Outer entrance of the Dumbéa pass: plateau at 14 m, wall to 40 m
Area photo: Jean Rerêve · CC BY-SA 4.0
The site at the outer entrance to the Dumbéa pass, built on a plateau at 14 m that ends in a drop-off running down to 40 m. It can be dived static, or, on an ingoing current, as a drift that carries you towards Mur aux Loches — and which of the two you get is decided by the tide rather than the schedule.
Where it is and how deep
22.3669° S, 166.2560° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
Everything here depends on what the tide is doing. On an ingoing current the site is the start of a drift that runs towards Mur aux Loches, so the boat drops you at the point and collects you further in; with no useful flow the same ground is dived static, working the plateau and the top of the drop-off and coming back to where you started.
The plateau sits at 14 m and the wall below it falls to 40 m, so the depth you dive is a choice rather than something the site sets for you: the plateau and the top of the drop-off are the dive, and the 40 m figure is the bottom of the wall rather than a target. Set a maximum depth before you go in, and expect the site to feel whatever is running outside, since this is the pass's outer entrance.
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 | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good |
Season follows New Caledonia: Sep–Dec is warmest and clearest before the wet season; Jan–Mar is cyclone season, and winter water drops to about 21°C.
Know before you go
- The pass runs on the tide: an ingoing current turns this into a drift towards Mur aux Loches, and without one the same ground is dived static — which you get is decided on the day.
- The drop-off reaches 40 m at the edge of recreational limits — plan the deep section first and set a hard maximum depth.
Sources
- pointe de Dumbéa — SSI/Scubago
More dive sites in New Caledonia
A manta cleaning station on a 13 m plateau in the Boulari pass
Wreck
A broken-up 50 m wreck on a 12 m bottom
Wreck
A well-preserved fishing boat leaning to starboard at 20 m
Wall
Passages and arches at 10 m above a wall that falls to 70 m
Lagoon
Sand and coral heads at 3–6 m, sheltered from the trade winds
Drift
A gentle drift slope from 6 m to 50 m with a diver's memorial
Wreck
A wooden minesweeper reduced to her metal ribs
Reef
Reported as the densest fish concentration near Nouméa
Similar dives elsewhere
The outer rim's face drops 91 m into open ocean
A current-swept ridge where grey reef sharks hold out in the blue
Black coral on the deeper reef, dived as a drift
Bali's other mola mola plateau, deeper and rougher than Crystal Bay