Pretty Bush runs along Utila's south shore, where the reef starts at the shoreline, reaches out at about 4.6 metres and then drops away to roughly 30 metres. Broken walls and sand channels give the site its shape, and the two depth bands hold different things: juveniles on the shallow reef, larger animals along the wall.
Where it is and how deep
16.0840° N, 86.9169° WPublished position for this site.
The dive
The reef here begins at the shoreline and runs out to about 4.6 metres before dropping to roughly 30 metres, so the dive divides neatly in two. Most divers take the wall first, following the broken sections and the sand channels that cut between them, then come back up onto the shallow reef with whatever gas is left for a long, easy finish over the top.
Along the wall, spotted eagle rays pass the drop, and angelfish and trumpetfish work the coral on the face. The shallow reef is the macro half of the dive: juvenile yellowtail damselfish sit tight over their own patch of coral, and lettuce sea slugs are frequent on it if you look at the right pace. The sand channels are worth crossing rather than avoiding, since they break the reef into sections and give you clear ground to search.
Marine life and season
- Eagle rays
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Good |
Season follows Utila: March to May is dry, clearest and best for whale sharks; October and November bring the heaviest rain and some runoff.
Sources
- Pretty Bush - Utila — Scubago
More dive sites in Utila
Seamount
Utila's blue-water seamount, with whale sharks passing over
A small sailboat wreck that shelters green morays and nurse sharks
Wreck
An old shrimp boat at 18 metres, full of small life
A 1998 artificial-reef wreck dived for its critters
Sand slope
A sand break through the reef, beach to past 30 metres
Reef
Black coral on a south-side drop, marked by four buoys
Reef
Hawksbill and green turtles at the reef's western end
Wall
A large seahorse in the garden eels at 18-24 metres
Similar dives elsewhere
A cave under the overhangs, and reef sharks out in the blue
Tarpon and jack schools over a drop-off at 25 m
Black coral colonies and a cave at 23 metres
Finger coral, a small tug and a slope to 28 metres