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Calm morning water over a shallow fringing reef seen through palm fronds, with small forested islets and Sulawesi's hills beyond — Togian Islands

Togian Islands · Indonesia · Wall · Reef

Reconnect House Reef Bukabuka

A mini wall with overhangs, hard coral and orange sponges

Area photo: Arian Zwegers · CC BY 2.0

The house reef at Buka-Buka is a mini wall with overhangs cut into it, dominated by hard coral formations and orange sponges. The wall bottoms out between 45 and 50 m depending on the tide, so the floor is a moving reference and the dive is planned to a set depth rather than to the sand.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Reconnect House Reef Bukabuka: typical dive to 45 m (to 148 ft), deepest point 50 m (164 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit45 m50 m maxtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 60 m (197 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

0.7509° S, 121.7586° EPublished position for this site.

The dive

The typical dive here follows a mini wall drop-off with overhangs cut into its face, so the route is a traverse along the wall with the overhangs as the points of interest: places to slow down, look up under the ledge and then carry on. The wall is dominated by hard coral formations, with orange sponges standing out against them, and that combination is consistent enough to be what the area is known for.

Depth is the one variable. The foot of the wall sits somewhere between 45 and 50 m depending on the tidal conditions on the day, which is deeper than a recreational dive should be going, so the useful part of the site is the upper wall. The published figure is that moving maximum rather than a profile, which makes the turn depth something to agree in the briefing before anyone gets in rather than something to read off the bottom.

Marine life and season

  • Pristine corals
Month-by-month season rating for Reconnect House Reef Bukabuka
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
FairFairGoodPrimePrimePrimePrimePrimeGoodGoodFairFair

Season follows Togian Islands: Mar–Sep is driest and calmest; the wet season from November to February brings rain and rougher inter-island crossings.

Know before you go

  • The foot of the wall moves between 45 and 50 m with the tide, so the bottom is not a fixed reference and following it down can put you deeper than the last dive did.

Sources

  1. Reconnect House Reef Bukabuka dive site, Togian Islands — Scubago

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