West End diving
West End has calm sea conditions. You will have different opportunities for diving here that include shore diving, wall, reef diving, and wreck diving. The marine life is abundant and divers will encounter stingrays, turtles, sharks as well as small underwater life. The new highlight in the West End is the Kittiwake Wreck that was recently sunk.
Always dive according to your level of training. Never enter the water without checking with the local dive center for safety, additional information, level required for each dive site and without being accompanied by a professional.
All the information provided is purely informative for our readers and shouldn't be used as is to plan your immersion.
West End's dive sites are numerous and there will be something for both novices and experienced divers. For non-divers the snorkelling is fantastic.
A dive spot called the Aquarium is great for novices. The depth range is between 30-40 feet (9-12 metres) and you have the sensation of being in an aquarium. There's clear water and lots of fish that include snappers, wrasse parrot fish and trunkfish to name a few.
Stingray City is also a great shallow dive site. The depth is only about 15 feet (4.5 metres) and has a sandy bottom. Resting on the sandy bottom you get the chance to interact with the playful stingrays that are already used to divers and snorkelers.
There's the Mini wall in West Bay that is a spectacular shallow wall dive that boasts vibrant colours. On this is shore dive you will see a lot of sea life that will include critters.. From the West End Eden Rocks and Devils Grotto are popular dives. Devil's Grotto has several coral swim-throughs. Eden's Rocks is next to Devil's Grotto and while diving here you may encounter plenty of herring.
For the more experienced divers there are some great wall dives here. The wall at Northwest point is breathtaking. Although it starts at a depth of only 55 feet (16 metres) the caves plunge to a depth of 100 feet (31 metres). Although the maximum depth to which you are allowed to dive in the Caymans is limited at 130 feet (about 40 metres) you should be cautious. The water is so clear that you may not realize when you go deeper than you should. Some of the walls plunge to depths of over 1000 feet (305 metres).
For wreck divers there are some wrecks to discover in the West Eden. One of them is the Oro Verde a steel ship that was sunk on May 31, 1980. Apparently this ship was used by drug smugglers before. The wreck is not deep. It lies in about 55 feet (17 metres) of water and this makes it suitable for novices as well. It is a great place for underwater photography as there is a lot of sea life to be seen which include groupers, angelfish and yellowtail snappers. There are some corals and sponges as well.
The newly sunk Kittiwake Wreck just off Seven Mile Beach is a must see for wreck enthusiasts. The wreck, a former US military vessel, is big and therefore has many places to explore and rests at a depth of about 65 feet (20 metres). The top of the wreck is visible at only about 10 feet (3 metres) of water which means that snorkelers can also get a view! Since the sinking of the ship there has been some marine life moving around it. Some juvenile blue tangs, squirrelfish and sergeant majors have been seen and hopefully these and many more will make the wreck their home.
