Crystal Rock

A current swept pinnacle in the far north of Komodo National Park, 300 m from Castle Rock, rising from open water to break the surface at low tide. A submerged spur falls away to a saddle near 20 m, its walls stacked with giant sea fans, barrel sponges, and soft coral in reds and orange. The water is famously clear, often well past 25 m, which is how the site earned its name. When the tide runs, grey reef and whitetip sharks hold in the flow on the up current side while clouds of fusiliers, snapper, and surgeonfish wrap the slopes and anthias swarm the shallows. Plate corals around 17 m shelter resting whitetip pups.