Raa Atoll · Maldives · Reef
Madi Gaa
Two manta cleaning stations, at 13 m and 20 m, active December to April
Area photo: Samee Shafeeg · CC BY 3.0
Madi Gaa is a manta cleaning station on the north corner of Uthuru Maafaru in Raa Atoll, 25 minutes by boat from You & Me Maldives. The site is split into two stations, a shallow one at 13 m and a deeper one at 20 m, and mantas visit them from December to April. Divers settle low beside the reef and wait for the animals to come in to be cleaned rather than swimming a route.
Also known as Uthuru Maafaru North Corner.
Where it is and how deep
5.7004° N, 72.8389° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The boat run from You & Me Maldives on Uthuru Maafaru takes about 25 minutes to the island's north corner. Madi Gaa is not a route to swim so much as a place to wait: the reef here is divided into two manta cleaning stations, and your guide picks one according to where the animals are working that day. The shallow station is at 13 m, so most groups descend to it first, settle low beside the reef and keep still, leaving the water above the station clear for the mantas to hover in.
The deep station is at 20 m. Moving between the two means a swim along the corner, and the 20 m station is where the rest of your no-decompression time goes if the mantas are down there rather than on the shallow blocks. The season runs from December to April; outside those months the same corner is a reef dive without the animals. Work back up to the 13 m station for the last part of the dive and ascend from the shallow reef.
Marine life and season
- Manta rays
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good |
Season follows Raa Atoll: Dec–Apr is the calm, clear window and when mantas use the Uthuru Maafaru cleaning stations; the south-west monsoon (Jun–Nov) brings rain and a choppy surface.
Know before you go
- Mantas leave a cleaning station when divers swim at them or hang above the blocks; stay low, still and to the side, and let the animals come to you.
Questions divers ask
When are mantas at Madi Gaa?+
Mantas use the cleaning stations from December to April. Outside those months the corner can still be dived, but the mantas are not reliable.
How deep is Madi Gaa?+
There are two cleaning stations, one at 13 m and one at 20 m, so the dive stays within Open Water depth when the mantas are on the shallow blocks.
Sources
- Madi gaa — Scubago
- Uthuru Maafaru North Corner — Scubago
- Uthurumaafaru, Maalhosmadulu Uthuruburi — OpenStreetMap
More dive sites in Raa Atoll
Pinnacle
A broken rock in many blocks, with everything between 18 m and 30 m
Drift
Two-tier drift: overhangs at 10-15 m for beginners, 25 m for the experienced
Wall
Straight drop from 10 m to 35 m with soft-coral overhangs at 12-18 m
Reef
Gentle coral slope with overhangs, 8 m to 20 m
Pinnacle
Round channel thila at the atoll's eastern end, 5 m down to 35 m
Overhang-cut wall to 30 m with a small thila rising from 33 m to 18 m up-current
Reef
Healthy coral and macro life on an easy reef from 2 m to 20 m
Pinnacle
Overhangs on the channel side shelter stingrays and nurse sharks
Similar dives elsewhere
Coral reef below the Indian subcontinent's only active volcano
Manta cleaning station worked from April into November
Giant mantas over two small reefs, March to October
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Shallow coral and a multitude of small reef fish