News
Rocking Ras Mohammed
Ras Mohammed is, almost certainly, the most popular dive area for any divers who come to Sharm el Sheikh. It is located on the southernmost tip of the Sinai Peninsular and has been a national park since 1983, with both fishing in the sea and building on the land being stopped to prevent the once ever growing Sharm extending into this beautiful headland. It provides some of the best diving in the Red Sea with the atmospheric wreck of the Dunraven close by, wondrous reefs, caverns and a whole bunch of toilets!
As we board our pristine dive boat, Camel Tribe, we chat to the other divers on the boat about what is in store for us. The journey will take us about an hour and many of those on the boat have dived here before, but a couple are here for the first time and we cannot wait to see their reaction when they get back up onto the boat. We have done two trips to Ras Mohammed during our stay here, and could have easily done two more given enough time. First stop – Shark & Yolanda. During the summer months, huge schools of fish aggregate here, but in the winter, it is no less exciting. We started our dive on Shark Reef. A gorgeous wall dive, with purple and red soft corals and thousands of orange and purple anthias to entertain you as the current gently nudges you along the vertical. As you round the corner, the current dies off and this leaves you plenty of time to explore for huge moray eels, lionfish, stonefish and turtles. Soon you reach Yolanda, a reef system that was hit by the cargo ship Yolanda in 1980, which deposited her cargo of bathroom supplies onto the sea bed. Rows of toilets and baths are now covered in coral and marine life. We were also joined here by a huge Napoleon Wrasse who seemed more than happy to cruise by our group of divers, dwarfing us in size, and always swivelling its eye to keep you in sight. This is a dive site that we could do over and over again and it would be different every time. You can dive across the saddle, rather than around the wall, or do a mixture of both… it really is a truly world beating dive.
The Dunraven Wreck is another great dive that lies within the Ras Mohammed National Park. This wreck is much older than Yolanda, having sunk in 1876, and whilst it is broken up, you can still get inside her upturned hull and swim through to the boilers, where numerous glassfish have made their home. There is an old BBC documentary about her discovery over 40 years ago that wreck lovers may enjoy:
If you want to dive the Dunraven, you have to set off from the dive centre (in our case, Camel Dive Club) a little earlier to allow for the additional distance to travel. It is certainly worth the early start though!
Jackfish Alley offers divers an extraordinary marine landscape. Cut into the reef are two caverns that give divers a very special light show. Sunlight streams in through tiny cracks in the reefs and the beams dance on the cavern floor below. As the Sun is always shining here, you could spend your whole dive in here, especially as a photographer. But the reef has plenty to offer too, with huge table corals providing shelter for butterfly fish pairs, anemonefish dart out to “greet” you from their anemones on the sea floor and the shallow reef at the end of the dive is spectacular. Red Fire Coral reflects on the surface as you do your safety stop – it is truly breath-taking.
Whilst there are loads of other dive sites here to explore, we only had time for one more dive and this was on Ras Ghozlani. This is the most northerly dive site within the national park and its name means headland of the Gazelle. The dive is situated near the protected area where divers are not allowed, due to nesting turtles, and it is a visual treat. Once again you have beautiful fringe reef, a sandy plateau with coral covered pinnacles to explore.
Ras Mohammed should be on every diver’s wish list and it is one of the highlights of diving in Sharm el Sheikh. The area offers diverse diving at a world class standard; the coral is vibrant and healthy, the marine life covers every inch of the reef, there are great wrecks and there is always the chance of a fantastic encounter with one of several pelagics that cruise the area.
www.egypt.travel/diving-in-egypt
For more from Nick and Caroline visit www.frogfishphotography.com.
Gear News
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Blogs
Northern Red Sea Reefs and Wrecks Trip Report, Part 3: The Mighty Thistlegorm
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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