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A school of silver barracuda with dark-barred flanks swimming in open blue water — New Ireland & Kavieng

New Ireland & Kavieng · Papua New Guinea · Pinnacle · Pelagic & blue water

Echuca Patch

An isolated ocean ridge whose point pulls in barracuda and jacks

Area photo: Micha Baum · CC BY-SA 4.0

Echuca Patch is a large ridge in the open ocean just outside Kavieng, climbing from 45 m to within 12 m of the surface. Standing alone in open water, its point draws barracuda and jacks, and the dive is spent between the crest and the upper slopes of the ridge.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Echuca Patch: typical dive 12–31 m (40–102 ft), deepest point 45 m (148 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit12 m31 m45 m maxtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 60 m (197 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

No published position for this site — the map shows New Ireland & Kavieng and its other sites; operators know the mooring.

The dive

The typical dive works the ridge between its crest at 12 m and about 31 m, well above the base at 45 m. The point of the ridge is where the fish concentrate: barracuda and jacks gather there, out over open water rather than along a coastline.

Marine life and season

  • Barracuda
  • Trevally & jacks
Month-by-month season rating for Echuca Patch
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
FairFairFairFairPrimePrimePrimePrimePrimePrimeFairFair

Season follows New Ireland & Kavieng: The New Hanover trips run from May to October; rain from late December to March and North Pacific swell from November to April mark the rest of the year.

Sources

  1. Dive Sites | Lissenung Island Resort — Lissenung Island Resort

More dive sites in New Ireland & Kavieng

Channel & pass

Albatross Passage

Eagle rays and grey reef sharks crowding the channel as the tide floods in

12–30 mintermediate

Wall

Bermuda Drop

A coral slope that suddenly turns into a sheer drop out of sight

3–25 mintermediate

Wreck

Deep Pete

A wartime Japanese floatplane ringed by schooling batfish and snapper

to 40 madvanced

Coral garden

Ral Island

Frogfish, seahorses and the odd mimic octopus on the sandy slope west of the island

5–15 mbeginner

Similar dives elsewhere

Pinnacle

Rayners Rock

Pulau Aur & Pulau Dayang · Malaysia

Schools of jacks and barracuda just off a lone boulder in open water

17–30 madvanced

Pinnacle

The Magnet

Belongas Bay & South Lombok · Indonesia

Hammerhead schools around a surge-washed rock in the open sea

to 25 m · max 80 madvanced

Pinnacle

Batu Kapal

Banda Islands · Indonesia

Big pelagics turn up on the pinnacles when the current runs.

10–40 madvanced

Pinnacle

Gili Sarang

Belongas Bay & South Lombok · Indonesia

Giant trevally working the current lines over open-sea pinnacles

to 35 m · max 40 madvanced