Depth Range:
19 ➜ 24m
Diver Level:
Advanced & Very Experienced
The office reef is a massive rock pinnacle full of activity rising over 70 meters from the sea bed and is approximately a 20 minute boat ride (17km) north east of Barra and only 4km South of the Amazon Reef, so double tanking this dive is a good idea if your venture continues north. The reef boasts 3 manta cleaning station and has a topography very similar to that of the well known Manta Reef. The Office Reef is a must for all diving enthusiasts though it is important that divers have mastered the negative entry technique due to unpredictable currents than can occur.
There are 2 drop zones, one on the northern side of the reef and one on the southern end. The northern drop puts divers on top of a 3 meter high wall that runs east in an 'S' shape. As soon as you've reached the wall at 24 meters in depth, you'll be conveniently placed near the first manta cleaning station where you'll see mantas queuing up, waiting patiently to get 'groomed' by various cleaner wrasse. Rarely sighted ray species such as the small eyed stingray, reef manta ray and giant manta are often seen lining up to be cleansed amongst each other - these are some of the largest rays recorded, some reaching a wingspan of up to 2 meters.
As you head east along the 'S' curved wall, you'll come across numerous overhangs and ledges where you'll be greeted by potato bass, loggerhead turtles and giant resident honeycomb morays. Divers also have the option to explore deep gullies and 3 huge boulders rising up from the sand at the bottom of the 'S' shaped wall. Within the gullies you have a good chance of encounter numerous species of sharks like the white tip reef shark, spotted leopard shark and the grey reef shark, some of which can be seen sleeping in these gullies. blotched fantail rays can also be seen gliding around the sea bed whilst spearing mantis shrimp, yellow banded, humpback snappers bright blue palette surgeon, old woman angelfish, moorish idols, fishweedy scorpion fish and the rarely seen ribbon eels that reside along these huge rocks and in between colourful soft and hard corals.
As you head to the end of the 'S' curved wall, you'll approach another manta station along with a 4 meter cave. Divers will then head south going uphill through large shoals of beautiful glassies and over a few shallower gullies up to 20 meters in depth where more sharks can be caught napping as well as loggerhead turtles.
The advantages of diving a reef like The Office so far out is the fact that you're closer to the migratory path of the humpback whale where you'll be able to hear the humpback whales 'singing' during winter months, to the point where you can actually feel it vibrating through your body! This is a fascinating an unforgettable experience for any diver! In fact, you may even be lucky enough to see a humpback whale passing over the reef but although this isn't common, it's not an unlikely event to happen.
The Office Reef also attracts massive schools of pelagic game fish like the kingfish, barracuda and jackfish.
Click on the tabs above for more information
