Seychelles · Seychelles · Pinnacle · Cave & cavern
Ile au Vache
Granite boulders and small caves to a maximum of 30 m
Granite rocks and small caves off Mahe, dived to a maximum of 28 to 30 m in a current that is often strong. Entry is a backroll and the boat collects the group wherever the drift ends. Hawksbill turtles, eagle rays and white tip reef sharks pass the rock while octopus, wrasse and triggerfish stay among the boulders.
Where it is and how deep
4.6844° S, 55.4321° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
It is a backroll entry and a drift from the moment you are in: the boat drops the group and then collects them wherever the dive ends, so nobody is swimming back to a fixed point. The structure is granite, rounded rocks with small caves between and beneath them, and the working depth is a maximum of 28 to 30 m, which keeps the dive short by design.
Look into the gaps in the rock for octopus, wrasse and triggerfish, and away from it for eagle rays, stingrays and white tip reef sharks. Hawksbill turtles use the boulders, and angelfish and butterflyfish hold close to the granite where the water is quieter. Current is often strong here, so most of the effort goes into steering and staying together rather than covering ground.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
- Eagle rays
- Stingrays
- Reef sharks
- Octopus & cuttlefish
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Good |
Season follows Seychelles: Inter-monsoon periods (Mar-May, Oct-Nov) are calmest with the best visibility; whale sharks pass through the inner-island channels August through October.
Know before you go
- Current is often strong and the pickup is wherever you surface, so carry an SMB and keep the group tight from the entry onwards.
Sources
- Ile au Vache - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Seychelles
Protected marine park reef, nothing deeper than 20 m
Pinnacle
The current is the point here, and it is dived September to May
Pinnacle
Granite drift at 20 m with white tip reef sharks
Wreck
Wreck on sand at 24 m, white tips passing now and then
Wreck
Three sections of a Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker in 55 metres
Drift
Drift a 200 m passage where eagle rays school
Pinnacle
Grey and whitetip reef sharks over an offshore pinnacle
Wreck
Two barges on one mooring, at 22 m and 19 m
Similar dives elsewhere
Dived day and night, with sharks working the coral
A narrow swim-through and mantas on a current-split point
A 4 m coral top, soft coral at 15–25 m and almost no current
Granite canyons in the channel between Praslin and La Digue