Vieques · Puerto Rico · Artificial reef · Night

Mosquito Pier

Turtles and tarpon along a wartime breakwater, entered from the shore

Area photo: https://www.flickr.com/people/jwilde/ · CC BY 2.0

Mosquito Pier is a former military pier and breakwater on the north shore of Vieques, built during the Second World War. It is an easy shore dive from about 1 m to 12 m (40 ft) along the structure, with turtles, rays, lobsters, eels, octopus and schools of tarpon, and it is also dived at night.

Also known as Rompeolas.

Where it is and how deep

Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

18.1320° N, 65.5120° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

Entry is an easy walk-in from the shore beside the pier and breakwater, in an area sheltered from surge. Divers follow the structure out, keeping clear of pilings, debris and boat traffic. The bottom starts at about 1 m (3 ft) and reaches a maximum of 12 m (40 ft), so the whole dive stays shallow and dive times often run past an hour. The long breakwater, built by the Navy with an old pier at its very end, has the character of a wreck.

Hawksbill and green turtles are regular company along the structure, with rays, lobsters, eels, octopus and schools of tarpon. Large green and smaller goldentail moray eels live here, and a nurse shark sometimes cruises past. Southern stingrays, goliath groupers, dolphins and manatees visit, and swarms of parrotfish and bar jacks move along the pier. The dive ends back at the same shore access, surfacing away from active boating lanes.

The pier is also a night site, where guided dives look for macro life and a local centre runs fluorescent-light dives for experienced divers. Lights help in the pier holes, and a cutting device is worth carrying because fishing line snags on the structure; the pier has been opened to recreational fishing. Visibility can drop after bad weather, and calm days with less boat traffic are the time to go.

Background

The pier, known locally as Rompeolas, is a seawall reaching out from the north side of Vieques, west of Isabel Segunda, towards the main island of Puerto Rico. It was built during the Second World War as the beginning of a breakwater intended to shelter the British fleet if the British Isles had been conquered. Built by the Navy, it carries an old pier at its very end and now works as an artificial reef.

Marine life and season

Sea turtles
Stingrays
Octopus & cuttlefish

Month-by-month season rating for Mosquito Pier
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Fair	Fair	Fair	Fair	Fair	Fair	Good

Season follows Vieques: June to November is hurricane season, although visibility is usually better in summer and much more variable in winter.

Know before you go

Sharp metal and concrete on the pier structure; keep good buoyancy and a gap from pilings and debris.
Fishing line snags on the structure now that the pier is open to recreational fishing; carry a cutting device.
Boat traffic uses the water near the pier; fly a dive flag or SMB and surface away from active boating lanes.
Current can run along the pier, and visibility can drop after bad weather.