St. Eustatius · Caribbean Netherlands · Wall
Drop Off
An almost vertical drop at the island's southern tip
Area photo: SV Zanshin · CC BY-SA 3.0
At the southernmost point of the island the sea floor falls away almost vertically, and this is the dive that works that edge. Deep lava flows run down the face, groupers hold on the rock and reef sharks patrol along it, and the open water off the wall is where the pelagic action happens. Both operators list it as an advanced dive.
Also known as Drop Off East.
Where it is and how deep
17.4550° N, 62.9730° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The southern tip of the island is where the sea floor stops shelving and goes down almost vertically. Deep lava flows run out and over that edge, and the dive follows them: you drop onto the top of the drop-off, pick a working depth and swim the face rather than trying to reach a bottom that lies below anything recreational.
Reef sharks patrol along the wall and groupers sit into the rock, so the near face is worth watching as closely as the blue. Off the edge is where the pelagic traffic goes through, and the site is listed for it. Depth ratings differ between operators, from 30 m and beyond to past 40 m, so the sensible plan is to agree a maximum before splashing and work back up the face for the ascent.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Reef sharks
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime |
Season follows St. Eustatius: December to April is the drier stretch; August and September carry the hurricane peak, and diving may pause in September.
Know before you go
- The wall goes far deeper than recreational limits and there is no shallow ground to drift onto, so fix a maximum depth and a turn pressure before the dive rather than following the terrain down.
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Drop Off dive on Statia?+
Golden Rock lists it at 30 m and beyond, Scubaqua past 40 m; either way it is run as an advanced dive on an almost vertical wall.
What can you see at Drop Off?+
Groupers on the rock, reef sharks patrolling the face, and pelagic fish in the open water off the wall.
Sources
- Dive Sites at St. Eustatius — Golden Rock Dive Center
- St. Eustatius Dive Sites — Scubaqua
More dive sites in St. Eustatius
Muck & macro
Seventeenth-century Dutch beads in the sand at 17 m
Reef
Coral-covered lava bombs standing out of white sand at 16 m
Wall
Fan-covered vertical walls and creole wrasse past 40 m
Wall
Steep lava flows and narrow cracks dropping past 40 m
Reef
A small coral island with a vertical wall, to 19 m
Reef
Ballast, cannon, anchors and yellow Dutch bricks at 19 m
Reef
Ballast fused into the shape of a ship, and two anchors at 18 m
Artificial reef
A sponge-covered barge, a pipe and a tug on sand at 20 m
Similar dives elsewhere
Turtles and nurse sharks resting on sand at the wall's base
A V-shaped notch in the wall where nurse sharks rest on the reef top
A face that starts at 15 m and drops straight into the blue
Steep cracked wall over sand that starts at 25 m and keeps going