Costa Brava · Spain · Reef
Les Balelles
Twin islets that stand 2 m proud and drop to 22 m
Area photo: Enric · CC BY-SA 3.0
Two twin rocks lying offshore between Sant Feliu de Guíxols and Sant Pol, in front of Cala del Molí and Cala de l'Ametller. They stand about 2 m out of the sea and sink to 22 m, so the dive is a circuit of two islets: rock walls with octopus, gobies and nudibranchs, and posidonia meadows on the sand around them.
Where it is and how deep
41.7797° N, 3.0487° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The rocks are small — about 2 m of them shows above the surface — and they sit offshore between Sant Feliu and Sant Pol, in front of Cala del Molí and Cala de l'Ametller, so this is a boat dive with an obvious mark to descend on. From the surface the rock falls away to 22 m where it meets the seabed, and a circuit of the two islets is the plan the shape of the site suggests.
The walls are where the life is: octopus in the crevices, gobies on the ledges and nudibranchs for anyone diving slowly enough to find them. Out on the sand around the base there are meadows of Posidonia oceanica, which give the second half of the dive a different texture, and the shallow tops of the rocks are the natural place to spend the last of the gas.
Marine life and season
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Nudibranchs
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Costa Brava: Centres in Sant Feliu and Platja d'Aro dive all year; logged sightings peak July to September and the water sits at 13 °C from January to March.
Sources
- Les Balelles — Scubago
- Diving in Sant Feliu de Guíxols — Submarinisme Costa Brava
More dive sites in Costa Brava
Cave & cavern
A cave below the Eden Roc hotel, wide enough to swim through
Deep rock at 26–35 m rising to a garden at 8 m
A rock off the town's port, 5 m down to 24 m
Wall
A holed and cracked wall from 15 m to 30 m
Pelagic & blue water
Sunfish and tuna on a pelagic passage at 20–34 m
Reef
Five rocky spurs and the corridors between them
Reef
A protected cove at 5–20 m with passages to swim
Similar dives elsewhere
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