Portofino Marine Reserve · Italy · Cave & cavern · Wall
Colombara
Three caves, the deepest at 30–35 m ringed with red coral
Area photo: Stefan Schäfer, Lich · CC BY-SA 4.0
Three submerged caves cut by fissures in the rock on the eastern side of the promontory, on ground that descends along the coast in varied rocky surfaces. The deepest opens at around 30 to 35 m and is ringed with red coral; a smaller one sits at about 22 m; the third is shallow, with two entrances, an internal air chamber and gorgonians at the mouth.
Where it is and how deep
44.3105° N, 9.1765° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Work it deep to shallow. From the mooring the ground descends along the coast in varied rocky surfaces rather than one clean wall, and the first opening is the deepest — around 30 to 35 m, with the site bottoming out at 36 m there. Red coral surrounds it. Between the caves the rock carries gorgonians, solitary corals and sea anemones, and there is enough relief that a group spreads out quickly if nobody is watching it.
The second cave is smaller and lies at about 22 m. Red coral grows in the cave overhangs, out of the light, and Mediterranean cowries are found in the cave environments. Scorpionfish sit still on the rock, groupers hold off the openings, and moray eels, large congers and spiny lobsters use the crevices — a good reason to keep hands off the rock when you look in.
The third cave is the shallow one and makes a natural finish. It has two entrances and an internal air chamber, with red and yellow gorgonians around it. You come up the rock from the deeper openings, work the shallow cave, and complete the ascent inside the circle of 50 m radius around the mooring that the reserve allows here.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- 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
- All three openings are overhead environments and the deepest, at 30 to 35 m, is the one to treat with most care — depth and an overhead together leave little margin.
- Moray eels and large congers live in the crevices around the cave mouths, so keep hands and fins clear of the rock when looking into them.
Dive videos
COLOMBARA - PORTOFINO MARINE PARK, LIGURIA, ITALY · Luca Smecca on YouTube
SCUBA @ Grotta della Colombara, Portofino, Italy · Ludovico Cavedon on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep are the Colombara caves?+
The deepest cave opens at around 30 to 35 m, with the site reaching 36 m there. The second is at about 22 m and the third is near the surface. The reserve publishes the site as 10 to 30 m and rates it medium difficulty.
Sources
- Colombara (7) — dive site — Area Marina Protetta di Portofino
- Colombara (OSM node) — OpenStreetMap
More dive sites in Portofino Marine Reserve
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Probably the finest red coral colony in the reserve
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Rare false black coral on the points at 50 m
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A submerged tunnel through the rock at 18 m
Red coral and lobster on the rocks out towards open water
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A shrimp-filled cave at 37 m under a rock headland
Large red gorgonians on the slope under the lighthouse
Green ball algae at 12–20 m, nudibranchs on the deep wall
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