Tortola

British Virgin Islands

practice with swell, and be careful of being inside cave, good site lots of fun.

Boat, from the moorings in the bight, sail west around the point then hug the shore till you see the balls, or the cave, there is no anchoring here it is very rocky.

The Caves is also known as Norman Island Caves.

Road Town

The Caves

Large Barracuda, Elkhorn Coral, Tarpin, Hacksbill turtles, Stingrays and many fish

Northwestern Point of Norman Island

Kellys Reef

A shallow dive, good for new divers.  The southern portion of the dive gives the opportunity to swim through some canyons where there can be some surge.  Some eagle rays and stingrays, snake eels and moray eels.  Recently (2008/2009) a couple of turtles have taken up residence in the area, and are known to be extremely friendly towards divers, sometimes swimming right through the middle of groups.


By boat only.  Dive is the western tip of Norman Island.  Approximately 4 minutes by boat from the Bight on Norman Island, or about 25 minutes by boat from Nanny Cay on Tortola.

Angelfish Reef

Spyglass is a good introductory dive for new divers.  A relatively shallow reef (about 15 feet) drops down relatively sharply to a sandy bottom (at about 60 feet) given a relatively short wall dive.  Divers usually swim out along the bottom and the circle back along the top, thereby doing an extremely long safety stop!  The marine life is fair but not spectacular by BVI standards.

By boat only.  The site is approximately 5 minutes from the Bight on Norman Island, or about 25 minutes from Road Town on Tortola.

Mooring balls have been fixed on the site by the National Park trust.

Spyglass is also known as Spyglass Wall.

Spyglass

Ring Dove Rock is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in British Virgin which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Ring Dove Rock

Nice corals, and a tunnel which scuba divers may pass through...

West side of Pelican Island

The Indians

Santa Monica Rock is a pinnacle which rises from just under 100 feet to just 20 feet below the surface in otherwise open waters.  It is teeming with life and is approximately an acre in total size.  The top of the pinnacle varies in height, and lots of valleys, ridges and ledges give lots of areas to explore.  

Because the dive is in an are of open sea, strong waves mean that the site can only be dived in calm conditions.  The reef is in superb condition and supports a wide array of marine life: sharks, moray eels, lobster, turtle, grouper and others.

By boat only.  Dive site is approximately 1.5 miles southeast of the tip of Norman Island, a few minutes boat ride from The Bight (the popular mooring area on Norman Island), or about half an hour by boat from Road Town.

Like all BVI dive sites, there is a mooring ball placed by the National Parks to tie up to.

Santa Monica Rock is also known as Santa Monica.

Santa Monica Rock

One of the more intriguing dives in the British Virgin Islands, Brown Pants features a large number of ledges, caverns, nooks and crannies.

The site was named when discovered on an exploratory dive by Ducan Muirhead, off Cuan Law, who was chased back to the boat by a pack of bull sharks, and promptly christened the site appropriately.

The site is known for good marine life, in particular lobsters, turtles and eels.  Despite the name of the site, shark sitings are not frequent.

By boat only.  Site is located on the southern coast of Norman Island.  Approximately 35 minutes by boat from Road Town, Tortola, or about 15 minutes from The Bight, Norman Island.  

Site is very exposed, and can be difficult to locate or moor at in rough seas.

Mooring balls have been placed on the site by the National Parks trust.


Brown Pants

Dive is the mirror image of the more popular "Spyglass" dive site on the north side of Norman Island.  A reef shelf starting at about 30 feet and sloping down to 70 feet and a sandy bottom.  Unlike Spyglass, the sandy bottom leads to another wall on the other side, leading to a broad east-west canyon with two walls to explore.

Marine life is not the best, but the topography is very nice.

By boat only.  Approximately 12 minutes from Road Town, Tortola or about 8 minutes from the Bight on Norman Island.

Mooring ball has been placed on the site by the National Parks Trust.

Black Forest is also known as West tip of Peter Island.

Black Forest

Willy T underwater pirate ship

A double pinnacle located in otherwise open water between two islands.  Not a deep site, but prolific marine life.  Lots of ledges.  Abundance of sharks, lobster, morays and turtles.

Takes its name from nearby Carrot Rock, but coincidentally viewed from above, the shape of the two pinnacles do look slight like a carrot and its leaves.

Access by boat only.  Located between the southeastern tip of Peter Island and the northwestern tip of Norman Island.  Approximately 30 minutes from Road Town, or 10 minutes from the Bight on Norman Island.

Mooring buoys have been placed on the site by the National Park trust, but can sometimes be difficult to locate in heavy swells.

The Caves

Snorkeling and Scuba Diving at The Caves