The Aliwal Shoal dive site is a fossilized sand dune just under 5 kilometers (3 miles) in length and is home to 1,200 species of fish and two ship wrecks. With depths varying from 6 to 27 meters (20 to 88 ft.) and a water temperature of 19 to 26°C (66 to 79°F) the Aliwal Shoal is the perfect destination for scuba divers from open water through to advanced and dive master qualification levels.
Home of the Aliwal Shoal
The small, sleepy seaside town of Umkomaas is situated about 50 kilometers (30 miles) south of Durban in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province of South Africa, and is home to several top quality dive charters. The Aliwal Shoal is approximately 5 kilometers (3 miles) off shore and takes 15-20 minutes to reach by boat.
The launch from the mouth of the Mkomanzi River is considered to be a large part of the adventure as the swells can be extremely large until passed back line. Fortunately, all the dive charters have very experienced skippers and divers are in good hands.
Aliwal Shoal and its Wrecks
The shoal was named after a ship called the Aliwal which narrowly missed the reef in 1849. Sadly, two other ships were not so lucky. On the 20th May 1884 the steam ship Nebosank just north of the shoal and lays upside down at a depth of 25 meters (82 ft). Although not much is left of this wooden ship it is home to predators such as barracuda and tuna. In 1974 the cargo ship Produce also struck the reef and sank. She is lying upright in 32 meters (100 ft) of water. The bow and the stern are still intact but the center section has collapsed. Looking into the collapsed section you can watch lion fish hunting their prey and if the visibility is good you may encounter a tiger shark or giant brindle bass.
Raggies Cave Dive Site
At just 18 meters (60 ft) Raggies Cave is popular with open water divers. As the name suggests it is a favored spot of the ragged tooth shark (sand tiger shark). Early morning is the best time to encounter the sharks and on a good day there can be dozens of them. Raggies Cave is also a great place to find sharks' teeth in the sand.
Diving Cathedral
At 27 meters cathedral is better suited for advanced divers and is another popular resting place for ragged tooth sharks. On occasion you may spot hammerhead sharks around Cathedral but this is mainly in the summer months when diving the Aliwal Shoal can prove less predictable.
Diving the Inside and Outside Edge
These two dive sites are suitable for both open water and advanced divers although caution should be taken in some areas of outside edge as it reaches depths of up to 27 meters (88 ft). You will often spot the bigger residents of the shoal around these two dive sites including dolphins, rays and turtles. In the open waters you may spot hammerhead and tiger sharks
There are many other dive sites on the Aliwal Shoal such as pinnacles, south sands, eel skins and manta point. Each site holds a different adventure and is suited to a different level of qualification and competency.
Dive Season at the Aliwal Shoal
The summer months bring rain which causes run off from the rivers to silt up the sea. This makes the winter months of May to October the best time to dive on the Aliwal Shoal. During this time visibility in generally better, the sea is calmer and there are a lot more ragged tooth sharks on the shoal.
Aliwal Shoal is without doubt the best scuba diving destination in South Africa and was voted one of the top 10 Scuba Diving Sites in the world by Jacques Cousteau . The people of Umkomaas are friendly, the dive charters are reliable and professional and the shoal and its wrecks offer world class diving to every level of scuba diving qualification.
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