Portofino Marine Reserve · Italy · Wall
Altare
Probably the finest red coral colony in the reserve
Area photo: Stefan Schäfer, Lich · CC BY-SA 4.0
A deep canyon in the seabed, coated by what is probably the finest red coral colony in the area. The mouth of the fissure is at about 30 metres and the ground goes past 50, which makes this one of the most demanding dives in the reserve, and mooring is limited to one boat at a time. Lobster, nudibranchs and brown grouper live around it.
Where it is and how deep
44.3055° N, 9.1969° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The site is a deep canyon in the rock and the whole dive is organised around it. The mouth of the fissure sits at about 30 metres, so you are already deep when the dive proper begins, and the ground inside drops past 50 — depth, more than anything technical, is what makes this one of the more demanding dives in the reserve. Only experienced divers get down to the entrance at all.
What is down there is red coral, in a colony that is probably the finest in the area, covering the canyon. Around it you find lobster, nudibranchs and brown grouper, with gorgonians on the surrounding rock. Divers who do not want the depth can sometimes see part of that cast on a shallower profile above the canyon — less coral, but the same animals. Mooring is restricted to one boat at a time, so the site is quiet while you have it.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Nudibranchs
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Portofino Marine Reserve: May–Oct is the settled season; visibility is often best in late autumn, and winter storms close the exposed southern walls.
Know before you go
- Fifty metres and beyond is narcosis and decompression ground on air; the canyon mouth at 30 metres is a sensible hard limit for most divers.
Sources
- Area naturale marina protetta Portofino — Wikivoyage (IT)
More dive sites in Portofino Marine Reserve
Red coral and lobster on the rocks out towards open water
Pinnacle
Gorgonians and red coral on a pinnacle topping out at 13 m
Wall
A shrimp-filled cave at 37 m under a rock headland
Wreck
A 1943 merchant ship on the bottom at 90 m
Wreck
A 120 m cargo ship on her side between 20 and 39 m
Wall
A wall to nearly 40 m under a rock shaped like a lion's head
Cave & cavern
Three caves, the deepest at 30–35 m ringed with red coral
A 2.5 m bronze Christ standing on the seabed at 17 m
Similar dives elsewhere
A step at 30 m falling to a fan-coral plateau at 45 m
A north-south drop-off from a 5 m rock head into 45 m
Schools of grey sharks around a lone rock in late summer
A flat canyon with great light beside a steep lobster wall