Oʻahu, the area around Turtle Canyon

Oʻahu · United States · Reef

Turtle Canyon

Green and hawksbill turtles at a shallow cleaning station

Area photo: mattk1979 · CC BY-SA 2.0

A shallow south-shore reef that works as a turtle cleaning station: green and hawksbill turtles come in to the same spots on the coral to have their shells and flippers picked over by small wrasses. Nothing here is deeper than about 11 m, which makes for a long, slow dive and lets the same reef be run as a snorkelling stop.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Turtle Canyon: typical dive to 11 m (to 36 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit11 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

21.2743° N, 157.8374° WPublished position for this site.

The dive

Everything happens in the top 11 m, so this is less a route than a slow circuit of the coral heads looking for the cleaning stations. A turtle settles over its chosen head and holds there while cleaner wrasses work across its shell and flippers; a diver who stops a couple of metres short and stays still is usually tolerated for as long as the gas lasts.

Green turtles are the constant and hawksbills come in as well, both for the same reason, and the sheer number of them is why this is one of the most dived sites on the island. Eels are the other regular sighting in among the coral. The shallow profile is also why the reef is booked for snorkelling as well as diving, and why bottom time here is rarely the limiting factor.

Marine life and season

  • Sea turtles
Month-by-month season rating for Turtle Canyon
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GoodGoodGoodGoodPrimePrimePrimePrimePrimePrimeGoodGood

Season follows Oʻahu: South-shore boat diving runs all year; the North Shore reefs at Pupukea are only calm from about May to October and are dangerous in winter.

Questions divers ask

How deep is Turtle Canyon?+

About 11 m at its deepest, which is why the site is used for both scuba and snorkelling tours and why divers rarely run out of no-decompression time before they run out of gas.

What will I see at Turtle Canyon?+

Green and hawksbill sea turtles being cleaned by small wrasses at set cleaning stations on the reef, along with cleaner wrasses and eels around the coral heads.

Sources

  1. Turtle Canyon — Scubago — Scubago / SSI MyDiveGuide
  2. Discover the Best Dive Sites in Honolulu — Rainbow Scuba Hawaii

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