Princess Alice Bank — Pico Offshore
Dive site
From Lajes do Pico on Pico's south coast, Princess Alice Bank is a two-hour run across open Atlantic — a seamount plateau rising to 35 metres that concentrates blue sharks, mako sharks, oceanic whitetips and giant mobula rays from June through October. The Pico approach gives access to the western edge of the bank, where the wall drops steeply and current-driven upwelling pushes nutrients — and the animals that follow nutrients — in a compressed column. Mako sharks are the headline act from July: fast, curious, and frequently seen at close range on upcurrent drifts across the plateau. Ride-alongs with sperm whale research vessels are occasionally possible for divers who book directly with cetacean study programmes based in Lajes.
Conditions
Depth
35 to 80 m
Advanced depths
Current
Usually gentle
Can pick up on the edge
Visibility
25 to 40 m
Clearest in the calm season
Water
15 to 24°C
5mm wetsuit
Month by month
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water (°C) | 16 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 16 |
| Vis (m) | 15 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 22 | 20 | 15 | 15 |
| Current | Strong | Strong | Strong | Moderate | Moderate | Gentle | Gentle | Gentle | Gentle | Moderate | Strong | Strong |
Field journal
No sightings recorded here yet.
Upload the first sightingDived here recently?
Your sighting helps us track reef health at this site in real time.
Submit a sightingPlanning to dive Princess Alice Bank — Pico Offshore?
Your underwater photos help scientists track reef health here in real time.
What to photograph: fish and marine life, coral (especially anything pale or unusual), anything unexpected.
How to capture it: shoot JPEG, keep location on, note your depth and the date.
Dived Princess Alice Bank — Pico Offshore recently?
Your photos help track reef health.
Up to 10 photos · JPEG or PNG · max 20 MB each
📷
Drag photos here, or tap to select
GPS in your photo will auto-detect the dive site
Gear