St. Croix · U.S. Virgin Islands · Wall · Reef
Cane Bay Wall
Nineteenth-century anchors lie along a wall that drops past 975 m
Area photo: NOAA Photo Library · CC BY 2.0
The wall lies about 91 m (100 yards) off Cane Bay Beach, reached either by boat or by swimming out from the beach to a mooring buoy in 8 m. Sand chutes run north between hard and soft coral gardens to a lip at 12 m, where the reef ends and the bottom falls away past 975 m. Reef sharks, turtles and barracuda are all likely, and large deep-water sea life comes up along the face.
Also known as Cane Bay Drop Off, The Wall.
Where it is and how deep
17.7743° N, 64.8104° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Shore dives start on the sand in front of the boat ramp at Cane Bay Beach. The swim out is about 91 m (100 yards), to a white mooring buoy set directly off the Cane Bay Beach sign, and the descent from the buoy lands you at 26 feet, roughly 8 m. Surge and surface swell run through the shallow part of that swim, so most divers keep it short and get under rather than fight it on the surface. The site is also run as a boat dive, which skips the swim entirely.
From the buoy you swim north. Sand chutes run between living coral gardens carrying soft and hard corals, and they funnel you towards the rim at 40 feet, about 12 m, where the reef simply stops. Below that the wall drops past 975 m (3,200 ft), and large deep-water sea life is found along it. Reef sharks, stingrays, turtles and barracuda are all likely, with schools of triggerfish, parrotfish, angelfish, trumpetfish and blue tangs over the coral behind them. Nineteenth-century anchors sit along the wall.
The return is the shallow half of the dive and it rewards slowing down. Look into the coral for flamingo tongues, banded shrimp, nudibranchs and the occasional octopus, and for the tree-shaped frames of The Nature Conservancy's coral restoration garden, where elkhorn and staghorn fragments are grown on for replanting. Visibility here runs from about 20 to 60 feet (up to 18 m) depending on the season and on runoff from rainfall, so a wet spell shows in the water before you get in.
Background
Nineteenth-century anchors lie along the wall, alongside the large deep-water sea life that comes up the face. Cane Bay is also home to a coral restoration garden run by The Nature Conservancy: tree-shaped structures on the shallow reef carry bits of elkhorn and staghorn coral, grown on until they are large enough to be planted out onto the reef. Divers pass them on the way in and out.
Marine life and season
- Reef sharks
- Sea turtles
- Stingrays
- Barracuda
- Reef fish swarms
- Nudibranchs
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows St. Croix: Nov–Jun is calmest and clearest; Aug–Oct is hurricane season, though the pier and shore walls stay divable in most weather.
Know before you go
- Surge and surface swell build in the shallows on the swim out to the buoy, so pick a calm day and drop below the swell rather than surface-swimming through it.
- The wall drops past 975 m with nothing to stop a runaway descent, so agree a turn depth at the buoy and check your gauge whenever you cross the rim.
Dive videos
Diving the Wall at Cane Bay, St Croix, USVI · Alan Smith’s Travels on YouTube
Cane Bay Wall · tkuhbander on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Can you dive Cane Bay Wall from the beach?+
Yes. The usual entry is the sandy area in front of the boat ramp at Cane Bay Beach, followed by a swim of about 91 m (100 yards) to the white mooring buoy off the Cane Bay Beach sign. The site is also run as a boat dive on the same mooring.
What is the visibility at Cane Bay?+
About 20 to 60 feet, roughly 6 to 18 m, depending on the time of year and how much runoff rainfall has pushed off the north shore.
Sources
- Cane Bay Wall Dive Site — GoToStCroix.com
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