St. Eustatius, Netherlands Antilles

Dive Statia

If you like low key, great visibility, and no crowds, Statia is for you. Larry and I dove close to twenty dives over seven days and with the exception of two days, we had the dive boat to ourselves. Even on the two days that we shared the dive boat, there was a maximum of five divers. Diving was great and all of the dive sites are within a fifteen minute boat ride from the dive shop.

Diving conditions are great and there is plenty to see. Lots of lobsters, turtles, drum fish, stingrays, barracudas, and black tip reef sharks. Statia is one of the few dive locations in which you have a high probability to run into a turtle or shark. The visibility was always good, the reefs are in great condition, and very little current to deal with (unless you were Larry. lol). On this dive trip, I got a chance to focus on the little critters, and there were plenty of them. Night diving is very good as lobsters by the dozens come out to investigate the suface dwelling intruders on their reef. Turn off your dive light and let the phosphoresce light your way. It is estimated that over 250 ships met their end in Statian waters since the 1600's, although there are only a few that are divable. Most of the ships were wooden galleys and merchant ships and have long since been claimed by the environment. Diving on the many reefs, you wonder ....did this reef have its beginnings in a wreck?

Here are a few pics of Statia from our trip:

click on image to enlarge


Kevin - Our Divemaster	Rob Outside of Dive Shop	Lowertown - Cows Outside of Dive Shop

Kevin Taking the Boat Out	Overboard	Underwater

Dive Sites

Drop-off (80-130 feet, Advanced) - One of my favorite dives. Both dives on this site I encountered black tip reef sharks and a hugh barracuda.
Mushroom Gardens (60 feet, Moderate/Novice) - Another excellent dive, especially for multidiving. Has a wide array of coral and sea life. Also saw turtle and black tip reef sharks here.
Stingray Wreak (50 feet, Moderate) - Although not deep, this site does have a slight to moderate current. As the name suggests, you will see lots of stingrays and a sunken barge and tugboat wreak. The barge is fully intact and open and is good for penetration diving. Becareful not to land on a stingray on your descent.
Anchor Reef (60 feet, Moderate/Novice) - Another good site for mutildiving, Anchor Reef is marked by a large anchor. Expect to see a large lobster population.
Blare's Wreck (60 feet, Moderate/Novice) - A fair dive, nothing spetacular in comparison to the other dive sites. Makes an easy night dive.
And many more I am having trouble remembering at this time.

Dive Statia - Click here to learn more about diving in Statia.

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