Hilma Hooker
Bonaire
A 1984 cargo-ship wreck lying on its starboard side on a 30 m sandy plateau, its holds reachable through large openings.
- Advanced
- Wreck
- Barracuda
Where to dive with big schools of fish
72 destinations where big schools of fish are documented by published sources, with the months to go when we know them.
When to go
Dark: peak season. Light: regularly seen.
| Destination | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MoalboalPeak All year | ||||||||||||
| Cayman IslandsPeak Apr–Sep | ||||||||||||
| Bali & Nusa PenidaPeak Jul–Nov | ||||||||||||
| Bohol & PanglaoAll year | ||||||||||||
| MaldivesAll year | ||||||||||||
| PalauAll year | ||||||||||||
| Sipadan & SempornaDec–Oct | ||||||||||||
| GalápagosJul–Dec | ||||||||||||
| Cancún & Isla MujeresNov–Mar | ||||||||||||
| BelizeMay–Jul | ||||||||||||
| Florida KeysJun–Aug | ||||||||||||
| KomodoJul–Sep |
Also documented here
Sources confirm them, but don't say in which months.
- Andaman Islands (Havelock & Neil), India
- Anilao, Philippines
- Azores, Portugal
- Bahamas
- Bonaire
- Chuuk (Truk) Lagoon, Micronesia
- Cocos Island, Costa Rica
- Côn Đảo, Vietnam
- Coron, Philippines
- Cozumel, Mexico
- Crete, Greece
- Curaçao
- Dahab, Egypt
- Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island, Philippines
- El Nido, Philippines
- Fakarava & Rangiroa, French Polynesia
- Fernando de Noronha, Brazil
- Gili Islands, Indonesia
- Great Barrier Reef (Cairns & Port Douglas), Australia
- Grenada
- Gulen (Western Norway), Norway
- Hurghada, Egypt
- Koh Samui & Koh Phangan, Thailand
- Koh Tao, Thailand
- Kona (Big Island), United States
- Lundy Island, United Kingdom
- Mactan (Cebu), Philippines
- Mallorca, Spain
- Malta, Gozo & Comino, Malta
- Narvik & Lofoten, Norway
- Netrani Island (Murudeshwar), India
- Nha Trang, Vietnam
- Okinawa & Yonaguni, Japan
- Pembrokeshire & Skomer, United Kingdom
- Phú Quốc, Vietnam
- Phuket & Koh Lanta, Thailand
- Pondicherry, India
- Poor Knights Islands, New Zealand
- Port Hardy & God's Pocket, Canada
- Portofino & San Fruttuoso, Italy
- Puerto Galera, Philippines
- Raja Ampat, Indonesia
- Recife & Pernambuco Wrecks, Brazil
- Roatán & Bay Islands, Honduras
- Scapa Flow (Orkney), United Kingdom
- Sharm El Sheikh & Ras Mohammed, Egypt
- Similan Islands & Khao Lak, Thailand
- Siquijor, Philippines
- Socorro (Revillagigedo), Mexico
- Southeast Florida (Palm Beach to Miami), United States
- Southern Leyte (Sogod Bay), Philippines
- Sri Lanka West & South (Colombo to Unawatuna), Sri Lanka
- SS Yongala (Townsville), Australia
- Subic Bay, Philippines
- Taveuni & Rainbow Reef, Fiji
- Tofo, Mozambique
- Trincomalee & East Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka
- Tubbataha, Philippines
- Utila, Honduras
- Wakatobi, Indonesia
Dive sites known for big schools of fish
Jackfish Alley
Sharm El Sheikh & Ras Mohammed, Egypt
Ras Mohammed drift with sunlit swim-throughs at 5 and 15 m, then an alley of jackfish and whitetip reef sharks.
- Advanced
- Cavern
- Whitetip reef sharks
SS Thistlegorm
Sharm El Sheikh & Ras Mohammed, Egypt
WWII supply ship bombed on 6 October 1941; holds still carry Bedford trucks and Norton and BSA motorcycles.
- Advanced
- Wreck
- Turtles
Batu Bolong
Komodo, Indonesia
Tiny Central Komodo rock pinnacle with clouds of anthias, bigeye trevally and sweetlips, whitetips on the deeper slopes and common hawksbill turtles.
- Advanced
- Pinnacle
- Whitetip reef sharks
Richelieu Rock
Similan Islands & Khao Lak, Thailand
Schools of chevron barracuda overhead while tigertail seahorses, harlequin shrimps and ghost pipefish hide in fields of soft coral.
- Advanced
- Wall
- Whale sharks
Um El Faroud Wreck
Malta, Gozo & Comino, Malta
Called the best recreational wreck dive in Malta, it sits upright off Wied iż-Żurrieq from 15 m at the funnel to 36 m at the propeller.
- Experienced
- Wreck
- Barracuda
SS Yongala
SS Yongala (Townsville), Australia
Sunk by a cyclone in March 1911, the wreck lies on a 30 m seabed with its upper parts at 16 m; penetration diving is prohibited by law.
- Advanced
- Wreck
- Reef sharks
Moray Garden
Dahab, Egypt
Walk-in shore dive where holes and cracks hide morays, nudibranchs and scorpionfish, with a school of yellowtail barracuda at 7 m.
- Open Water
- Reef
- Whale sharks
Panagsama Sardine Run (House Reef)
Moalboal, Philippines
A sardine ball that spreads from 2 to about 15 m off Panagsama Beach, hunted by mackerels and tuna, with a thresher shark if you are lucky.
- Open Water
- Wall
- Whale sharks
Barracuda Point
Sipadan & Semporna, Malaysia
On Sipadan's north coast, divers can end up in the middle of a swirling vortex of chevron or blacktail barracuda.
- Advanced
- Wall
- Grey reef sharks
Bells to Blue Hole
Dahab, Egypt
Drop through the Bells chimney to a wall at about 25 m, then follow the wall to cross the 7 m saddle into the Blue Hole.
- Advanced
- Blue hole
- Manta rays
Blue Corner (Palau)
Palau
Hook in above the wall and watch resident grey and whitetip reef sharks, tuna and barracuda work the current.
- Experienced
- Wall
- Whale sharks
Photo credits
- Hilma Hooker dive site, Bonaire, Kris Mikael Krister, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Jackfish Alley dive site, Ras Mohammed, Roland Unger, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- SS Thistlegorm dive site, Northern Red Sea Wrecks, Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Batu Bolong dive site, Komodo, Indonesia, Alexander Vasenin, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Richelieu Rock dive site, Similan / Surin, Mr.CMBurns, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Um El Faroud Wreck dive site, Malta / Gozo / Comino, Pstraudo, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Yongala dive site, Australia, Orin Optiglot, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Moray Garden Dahab dive site, Dahab, Egypt, Yvesb, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sardine school over the reef at Panagsama, Moalboal, Iampjanz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Barracuda Point dive site, Sipadan / Semporna, Chen Wu from Shanghai, China, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Shore entry to The Bells, Dahab, Tim Sheerman-Chase, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Blue Corner (Palau) dive site, Palau, Matt Kieffer from London, United Kingdom, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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