Sandy Bay and West End Marine Reserve Dive Sites

Sandy Bay Caves sites: White Hole | Bear's Den | Peter's Place

Coconut Tree Divers strongly supports the conservation and restoration efforts of the Roatan Marine Park, a volunteer organization that oversees the protection of the Sandy Bay - West End Marine Park. All snorkelers and divers are asked to contribute to this worthy cause through the purchase of a $10 marine park reef braclet. All proceeds from this tag go to the marine park to ensure that our beautiful reef can be enjoyed by future generations.

Min. Depth: 6m/20ft Max. Depth: 40m/130ft Avg. Max: 30m/100ft Nitrox Mix: EANx32 Difficulty:

White Hole

Wedged between Bear's Den and Spooky Channel, White Hole offers many of the spectacular features of its more famous neighbors in conditions more suitable for all experience levels. The sheer wall drops to a sandy slope at 40m/130ft, making it an ideal spot to find southern stingrays while doing your Deep Diver specialty. A large arch-shaped swimthru takes you from 28m/90ft to 23m/75ft; just don't be surprised if a school of glassy sweepers makes the tunnel a bit more congested. Curious black groupers and dog snappers will trail you as you drift along the wall while turtles can be found dining on the sponge-encrusted plate coral outcroppings.

The shallows, which range from 6m/20ft to 10m/30ft, contain many twisting sand channels sheltering toadfish in their recesses. Scorpionfish and lobsters blend in with the coral heads while porcupinefish and whitespotted filefish hover near the reef crest. The site earns its name from a circular sand patch near the mooring line where peacock flounders and yellow jawfish make their home. Careful exploration will yield a plethora of swimthrus to the southwest, while a drift to the northeast will land you in the gaping maw of Spooky Channel.

Marine life: southern stingrays black groupers, dog snappers, turtles, glassy sweepers, scorpionfish, lobsters, porcupinefish, whitespotted filefish, peacock flounders

Don't miss... doing your Peak Performance Buoyancy specialty on this site. The "White Hole," a sheltered sand patch at 6m/20ft, is a great place to fine-tune your skills. You can then put your skills to the test in the swimthrus on your way towards Bear's Den.

Min. Depth: 6m/20ft Max. Depth: 30m/100ft Avg. Max: 18m/60ft Nitrox Mix: EANx36 Difficulty:

Bear's Den

At first it just appears as a small dark spot at the back of a canyon at 8m/25ft. You may feel a bit nervous as you squeeze through the narrow entrance. Once inside the Bear's Den itself, however, you'll be blown away by the prehistoric beauty of this mammoth cave. Two large chambers resembling an ursine abode are naturally illuminated by laser-like beams of sunlight. Schools of glassy sweepers spiral overhead, trying in desperation to dodge the flickering light. Lobsters and octopi hide in the stony crevices, so bring a torch to illuminate these reclusive creatures. While entirely naturally lit, Bear's Den still poses some additional hazards inherent in cave diving. Penetration should only be attempted under the direct supervision of a Coconut Tree instructor by Advanced Open Water divers who are comfortable in enclosed spaces.

The shallows and wall at Bear's Den are equally impressive. You'll start the dive by swimming through a long tunnel at 12m/40ft which shoots you out onto the wall at 18m/60ft. The wall is mostly vertical, though a large plate coral outcropping at 24m/80ft provides some additional opportunities for deep exploration. Black groupers and dog snappers frequently trail the group on the wall. The shallows range from 6m/20ft to 10m/30ft and feature a nice variety of pillar corals and canyons. Look for scrawled filefish, king crabs, flamingo tongues, and turtles as you make your way to the cave.

Marine life: lobsters, octopi, glassy sweepers, silversides, black groupers, dog snappers, oceanic triggerfish, scrawled filefish, king crabs, flamingo tongues, turtles

Don't miss... finding the swimthrus to the southwest of the mooring. After dropping through the tunnel and exploring the Bear's Den, head into the ironshore and you'll find a twisting series of swimthrus immediately adjacent to another cave (this cave is dark and narrow, so use proper line penetration techniques if you plan to enter).

Min. Depth: 10m/30ft Max. Depth: 30m/100ft Avg. Max: 30m/100ft Nitrox Mix: EANx32 Difficulty:

Peter's Place

Peter's Place is an excellent gentle drift dive known for its population of large, curious black groupers that will follow your group the entire dive. The wall alternates between a steep dropoff into the trench and a gentle slope of plate coral outcroppings while maintaining an average depth of 30m/100ft, making this site an excellent candidate for Enriched Air Nitrox diving. You and your grouper guides will occasionally be joined by a passing eagle ray or turtle as you part through schools of creole wrasse and black durgons. Look for goldspotted moray eels and lobsters snuggled under a barrel sponge during your ascent.

The 12m/40ft shallows contains multiple coral fingers criss-crossed by pronounced canyons, some of which cut directly into the reef crest, creating miniature caves. Swirling schools of glassy sweepers in front of a dark hole serve as indicators for the cave entrances. Even if swimthrus are not your cup 'o' tea, you will still enjoy finding orange-spotted flamingo tongues clinging to sea rods in this area. Also watch for peacock flounders scurrying along the sand, scrawled filefish picking at pieces of algae, and sleek barracudas waiting to ambush their drifting prey.

Marine life: black groupers, Nassau groupers, eagle rays, turtles, goldspotted moray eels, green moray eels, lobsters, glassy sweepers, flamingo tongues, peacock flounders, scrawled filefish, barracudas

Don't miss... a rare encounter with a live dolphin! Anthony's Key Resort hosts their dolphin dive in a neighboring channel to the south. Some of these mammilian wonders occasionally stray over to Peter's Place, giving you an priceless Underwater Photography opportunity.

Next: El Aguila Wreck ->