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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the Ari Atoll location page.
Overview
Barkley Sound on Vancouver Island offers rugged cold-water diving amidst lush temperate rainforests. Divers can explore a vibrant marine ecosystem, characterized by intricate rock formations, walls adorned with colorful anemones, and kelp forests teeming with life. Known for encounters with large marine invertebrates and various fish species, this area presents a unique Pacific Northwest diving experience.
Briefing note
Strong currents can be present; advanced cold-water diving experience recommended.
What you'll see
3 species curated- year-roundGiant Pacific Octopus
- year-roundWolf Eel
- year-roundLingcod
Sightings evidence
3 records on file- high confidenceGiant Pacific Octopus
- Last confirmed
- May 2024
- Recent records
- 15 within 25 km
- Cluster months
- Year-round
- high confidenceWolf Eel
- Last confirmed
- Apr 2024
- Recent records
- 8 within 25 km
- Cluster months
- Year-round
- high confidenceLingcod
- Last confirmed
- Mar 2024
- Recent records
- 20 within 25 km
- Cluster months
- Year-round
Sources & methodology
How we summarise this
We aggregate confirmed occurrence records from GBIF and OBIS within a fixed radius of each dive site. Occurrence records confirm presence and reveal seasonality clustering, but they DO NOT measure per-dive probability — there is no eligible-effort denominator. We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.
Sources
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility — GBIF Secretariat
- Ocean Biodiversity Information System — IOC-UNESCO
- OBIS-SEAMAP — Duke University Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab / OBIS
- iNaturalist — California Academy of Sciences & National Geographic Society
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — International Union for Conservation of Nature
- WoRMS — World Register of Marine Species — Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ)
- FishBase — FishBase Consortium
- Atlas of Living Australia — CSIRO / GBIF Australia
- REEF Volunteer Fish Survey — Reef Environmental Education Foundation
Conditions
| Month | Water | Visibility | Current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8–10 °C | 5–10 m | moderate |
| Feb | 8–10 °C | 5–10 m | moderate |
| Mar | 8–10 °C | 7–12 m | moderate |
| Apr | 9–11 °C | 8–15 m | moderate |
| May | 9–11 °C | 8–15 m | moderate |
| Jun | 10–12 °C | 10–15 m | moderate |
| Jul | 11–13 °C | 10–15 m | moderate |
| Aug | 11–13 °C | 10–15 m | moderate |
| Sep | 10–12 °C | 8–12 m | moderate |
| Oct | 9–11 °C | 7–12 m | moderate |
| Nov | 8–10 °C | 5–10 m | moderate |
| Dec | 8–10 °C | 5–10 m | moderate |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Next step
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