Scuba Diving in Calpe Spain
Scuba Diving around the area of Calpe is primarily focused around the
Penon de Ifach – a towering rock stretching out into the Mediterranean
Sea, which is visible from Benidorm to Moraira and for miles around. At
the Penon de Ifach there are several dive sites from the shallow shore
dive at Pebble Beach to the beautiful Arches at Los Arcos and all the
sites in between. The temperature in the water ranges from 27șC in the
summer to 13șC in the winter.
Fish life is abundant around the Calpe area as the Penon is a protected
area. During the months of May
through October we regularly see eagle rays, sting-rays, large schools
of barracuda and sometimes if we are lucky the odd shaped Ocean Sunfish.
Amongst the many other species, our all year round residents include
octopus, moray and conger eels, Thornback rays, groupers, scorpion fish,
large schools of cow bream and damselfish.
 The area of Calpe enjoys good visibility within a range of 10m-40m with
an average visibility of 20m. There are several dive sites within a 5-10
minute boat ride of the various ports around Calpe and double that
amount within a 45 minute boat trip. All of the diving around the area
is very scenic with wall dives, arches and swim-throughs as well as some
impressive caves and caverns.
For those new to diving, or those who prefer the shallower, more
relaxing dives we have a few shore dives including the tranquil bay and
wall dive at Les Basetes port, maximum depth of 6m and various boat
dives including Los Arcos and Flatrock.
 The
dive site at Los Arcos has evolved over hundreds of years to become the
favourite that it is today. In the past boulders have fallen from the
Penon de Ifach forming a maze of arches and swim-throughs encrusted with
soft corals and anemones. At this site you will usually find large
schools of the smaller local residents – damselfish, wrasse and
sea-bream. If you look closely among the rocks you can find octopus,
moray eels and scorpion fish.
The dive site of Flatrock runs along the shore line of the Southern side
of the Penon and has a jumble of large rocks exploding with fish life.
Anything from dive-bombing cow bream feeding from the plentiful Neptune
grass to schools of stripped barracuda up to two or three hundred in
number. This site starts at around 5m and drops down a slow sloping
ledge to around 25m where the elusive Sunfish can sometimes be seen.
For the more experienced and adventurous divers there are many deeper
dives around the Calpe area to a depth of 35m. At Toix, the headland
South of Calpe there are some impressive cave and cavern dives and
another cave dive at Cumbre Del Sol to the North of Moraira
At the tip of the Penon de Ifach there is a 30m dive – The Bowl. This
site can only be dived when the sea is
calm. The dive starts in a cave at the point of the Penon and continues
through a swim through to an area of the rock carved out by the sea to
form a perfect soup bowl into which 4 to 5 divers can fit. In this area
lots of the larger fish congregate including wrasse, grouper and from
time-to-time barracuda.
The south side of the Toix headland is very interesting with numerous
caves and caverns – most can be entered with ease although this dive is
recommended only for experienced divers. Torches are essential here as
in some of the caves there is no natural light. As well as the caves,
this site offers a wall dive with many swim throughs coated with soft
corals.
Cumbre Del Sol is a popular cave dive. At the beginning of the dive you
can swim through a wide, low cave opening and surface inside the open
air cave. From there you dive back out of the cave entrance and follow
the wall along until you reach a second cave. This is a very large entry
which takes you into the cave where a fresh water river pours into the
sea. As you surface in this cave you come up through salt water into the
fresh water. This sits on top of the salt water forming a salicline and
is like travelling through an underwater fog
 Our
thanks for this introduction to the underwater world of Calpe to
Del and Petra of the
Les Basetes Dive
Centre in Calpe which appears in this photograph on the left.
Les Basetes Dive Centre
Puerto Les Basetes
Ctra Calpe-Moraira, Km2
Calpe, 03710
Alicante
Spain
Tel/Fax - 00 34 965 835 428 |
