Seychelles · Seychelles · Seamount
Willy's Rock
A seamount that tops out at 13 m
A seamount off Mahe with a maximum depth of 13 m, about fifteen minutes by boat from either Beau Vallon or Bel Ombre. The shallow rock carries the everyday reef cast, parrotfish, triggerfish, angelfish, butterflyfish and damselfish, with moray eels in the cracks and hawksbill turtles passing over the top of it.
Where it is and how deep
4.6265° S, 55.3806° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
About fifteen minutes from Beau Vallon beach or Bel Ombre marina, the boat anchors on the sand beside the site and the dive is a circuit of the seamount. The maximum depth is 13 m, so gas rather than no-stop time is the limit, and the light stays good the whole way round, from the top of the rock to the sand at its base.
Reef fish do the work here. Parrotfish graze the rock, triggerfish and damselfish hold above it, angelfish and butterflyfish move along the sides, and globefish hang in the shelter of the boulders. Moray eels occupy the cracks, and hawksbill turtles come over the top of the seamount. Current runs light on most days and strong on some, which decides how far around the rock a group gets.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
| 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.
Sources
- Willy's Rock - Scubago — Scubago
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