Barracuda Alley
Dive site
A stretch of outer reef edge at Watamu Marine National Park where prevailing currents converge and concentrate pelagic predators. The dive runs along a spur and groove reef from 8 to 28 m with an open-water blue beyond the outer edge. Great barracuda hang in loose groups of up to sixty individuals at 12 to 18 m, facing into the current with the practiced patience of apex predators that never need to hurry. Dogtooth tuna patrol the deeper blue beyond the wall, and on the reef face itself a series of cleaning stations attract whitetip reef sharks queuing alongside hawksbill turtles. The current is the engine that makes the whole thing work.
Conditions
Depth
8 to 28 m
Open water and up
Current
Often strong
Can pick up on the edge
Visibility
5 to 12 m
Clearest in the calm season
Water
23 to 30°C
5mm wetsuit
Month by month
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water (°C) | 27 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| Vis (m) | 15 | 15 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 15 |
| Current | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Strong | Strong | Strong | Strong | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
Your chances of seeing each animal
Great barracuda
Photo: Christian Amador Da Silva · © all rights reserved
Sometimes
About 1 in 3 dives
Whitetip reef shark
Photo: Craig Fujii · CC BY-NC-ND
Sometimes
About 1 in 3 dives
Hawksbill sea turtle
Photo: Kevin Bryant · CC BY-NC-SA
Sometimes
About 1 in 3 dives
Dogtooth tuna
Photo: Luis P. B. · CC BY-NC
Rare
Now and then
Field journal
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Gear
Basic kit
For this site
- SMB + reel · Drift exit off the outer reef edge. An SMB is mandatory — the boat cannot always track your position from the surface in the channel between reef and open ocean.
- Reef hook · The best barracuda viewing position is holding station in the current facing the open blue. A reef hook on limestone substrate lets you hover in the strike zone without finning and disturbing the group.