Redang & Perhentian Islands, the area around Big Mount

Redang & Perhentian Islands · Malaysia · Pinnacle · Wall

Big Mount

Submerged pinnacle from 14 m down a wall to 32 m of sand

Area photo: Ditch Townsend · CC BY-SA 4.0

Big Mount is a pinnacle at the northernmost point of Pulau Lima, near Redang. The tip is submerged at 14 m and the wall below it runs down to 32 m, where it meets a sandy bottom. Divers descend a buoy line that extends to 18 m, and current can be strong at times, so it is dived as a deeper alternative to the island's fringing reefs.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Big Mount: typical dive 14–32 m (46–105 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit14 m32 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

5.7767° N, 103.0590° EPublished position for this site.

The dive

The descent is on a buoy line that runs down to 18 m, which puts you onto the structure instead of leaving you to find it in open water. Use it in full, because current here can be strong at times. The tip of the pinnacle is submerged at 14 m, so the shallowest part of the dive is already below the surface and there is nothing above it to shelter behind on the way in or out.

From the tip the wall falls away to 32 m, where it transitions into a sandy bottom. That gives the dive a simple shape: down the line, out along the wall at whatever depth your gas and training allow, then back up the structure to the 14 m tip and the line for the ascent. Published detail on visibility and marine life is thin, so the topography and the depth are what you are diving it for.

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Big Mount
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Off-seasonOff-seasonGoodPrimePrimePrimePrimeGoodGoodFairOff-seasonOff-season

Season follows Redang & Perhentian Islands: The marine park is officially closed November 1-February 28 for the northeast monsoon; conditions are calmest and clearest April-September.

Know before you go

  • Current can be strong at times and the pinnacle tip is 14 m down, so use the buoy line for both descent and ascent rather than free-swimming to the structure.
  • The wall runs to 32 m and no-decompression time there is short. Fix a maximum depth before the dive and treat the sand at the base as the limit, not a target.

Questions divers ask

How deep is Big Mount?+

The submerged tip of the pinnacle is at 14 m and the wall drops to 32 m, where it meets sand. The buoy line used for the descent extends to 18 m.

Sources

  1. Big Mount - Scubago — Scubago (SSI)

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