Sozopol & St. Ivan Island · Bulgaria · Cave & cavern
Goat Cave
A cavern at St. Ivan Island open to Open Water divers
Photo: Chrumps · CC BY-SA 4.0
Goat Cave is a cavern at St. Ivan Island off Sozopol, the largest Bulgarian island in the Black Sea. Because it is a true cavern rather than a closed cave, divers with an Open Water certificate can go in, which puts this overhead dive within reach of newly certified divers.
0Where it is and how deep
42.4386° N, 27.6925° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The dive leaves the boat at St. Ivan Island and enters the Goat Cave, an actual cavern rather than a closed cave, which is why Open Water divers are taken inside; the whole visit remains above 15 m.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Sozopol & St. Ivan Island: June and July pair water that feels quite warm with the last of the seahorses; the sea stays quite warm into September and feels very cold from December to April.
Sources
- Dive sites near Sozopol, Bulgaria — Sozopol Diving Center
- St. Ivan Island — Wikipedia
Photo credits
- A low, flat island on a calm blue sea under a clear sky, with a smaller islet off its right end by Chrumps, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Sozopol & St. Ivan Island
Wreck
A 1964 fishing vessel sunk off Sozopol as an artificial reef
Reef
A living reef that fishing nets cannot work
Wreck
A fishing boat scuttled beside St. Ivan Island, now coated in mussels
Wreck
A 1941 mine casualty, one of Bulgaria's best-known wrecks
Cave & cavern
A one-diver-wide tunnel into a cave in the Ropotamo reserve
Fossil tree trunks standing out of the sand off Sozopol
Similar dives elsewhere
The Shrimp Hole cavern at 24 m and a cave that holds 10 divers
A 50 m training cavern at 17 m, 15 minutes from Moraira port
Shafts of light turning the cave chambers an intense blue
An air dome at the end of the first cave