Porto Santo · Portugal · Reef
Baixa do Cotrim
Easy reef from 8 m on the rock to 22 m on the sand
Area photo: Portuguese_eyes · CC BY-SA 2.0
A reef on the east side of Porto Santo, described as an easy dive with depths between 8 m on top of the reef and 22 m on the sand. The shallowest part is dense with small fish, Turkish wrasse and damselfish above all, while deeper down there are several species of bream, octopuses, morays and rays.
Where it is and how deep
33.0742° N, 16.2866° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The reef lies on the east side of the island and the profile is simple: 8 m on top of the reef, 22 m where the rock meets the sand, and an easy dive between the two. A group can be worked down the slope and brought back up onto the reef top without any part of it feeling like a deep dive, so the depth band is a matter of choice rather than of planning.
The shallowest part is the busiest — the catalogue calls it an authentic small fish pond, thick with Turkish wrasse and damselfish, and it is the part worth saving time for at the end. Deeper, on the edge and the sand, the mix changes to several species of bream, octopuses, morays and rays, which is the more patient half of the dive and the one that rewards looking under and into the rock rather than over it.
Marine life and season
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Stingrays
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair |
Season follows Porto Santo: Diving runs all year. July to October holds the warmest water, logged at 22–23°C, February logs the lowest visibility, and the island's rain falls in winter.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Baixa do Cotrim?+
It runs from 8 m on top of the reef to 22 m where the rock meets the sand, and the operators describe it as an easy dive.
Sources
- Baixa do Cotrim — Scubago
More dive sites in Porto Santo
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Big sheltering rocks between 13 m and 20 m
Wall
A 15 m to 33 m wall, run only when the current allows
Reef
Reef platform at 8 m dropping to sand at 22 m
Reef
Rock from 7 m to stone walls at 30 m, near Ilhéu da Cal
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Three cannons and ammunition on the seabed at about 20 m
A Navy corvette sunk in 2016, top at 15 m, bottom at 30 m
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Lesson ground in 2 to 7 m, straight off the dive centre
Cave & cavern
A small cave off the islet, from 15 m down to 25 m
Similar dives elsewhere
Shore-accessible rock from 0 to 18 m over a Phoenician port
Volcanic caves and coral blocks inside 18 metres
Sand, a small cavern and a broken wreck, all inside 15 m
Reef
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Azores · Portugal
A shore-divable reef of arches and sand from 4 to 20 m