Neil Island

Neil Jetty

The muck dive nobody expects to enjoy

Depth
4 - 10 m
Visibility
5 - 12 m
Minimum level
Open Water Diver
Site type
Shore
Entry
Shore entry
Water
28 - 31°C
Four to ten metres of silt and pilings under the old jetty. It looks like nothing and it holds more strange animals than any reef on this page.
  • Shore
  • Neil Island

Muck diving is an acquired taste and this is where people acquire it. The bottom is grey, the visibility is variable and the structure is entirely man-made - and then somebody finds a frogfish and the dive turns into ninety minutes of not wanting to leave.

What you will see

Seahorses on the pilings, frogfish sitting still enough to be mistaken for sponge, mantis shrimp in the rubble, juvenile everything using the structure as a nursery. It is the best macro photography we have and the guides will hand you a pointer and let you take your time.

How it dives

Walk in, drop down, and stay off the bottom. Silt is the whole hazard here - one careless fin stroke ends visibility for the group behind you, so we dive it in pairs with a guide and we do not take anybody whose buoyancy is still finding itself.

What you will see

  • Seahorses on the pilings
  • Frogfish and mantis shrimp
  • The best macro photography site
  • Shore entry, no crossing

When to dive it

Best conditions: November - April

Outside those months the site still gets dived - visibility and sea state just move around, so ask us what the water is doing the week you are here.

What the water is doing

The figures our guides brief on. They are what the site usually gives you - the sea gets the final say on the morning, and the boat briefing always wins.

  • Depth4 - 10 m
  • Visibility5 - 12 m
  • Water temperature28 - 31°C
  • CurrentMild current
    • No current
    • Mild current
    • Moderate current
    • Strong current

    Comfortable for a diver holding their own buoyancy.

Before you dive

The rules every diver on this site is held to, whichever trip brings you here. None of them are negotiable, and none of them are a surprise on the day.

  • Minimum age

    Ten years old for a first guided dive, twelve and above for certified diving. Ask us if you are travelling with younger children.

  • Medical declaration

    You will complete a diver medical questionnaire before entering the water. A "yes" to any question means a doctor has to sign you off first, so tell us early rather than on the boat.

  • Flying after diving

    Leave at least 18 hours between your last dive and your flight. Book your trip home with that gap already in it - we cannot shorten it for you.

  • Insurance

    Bring travel insurance that names recreational scuba diving, including chamber treatment and evacuation. We will ask to see it.

This is general guidance for recreational diving, not medical advice about you. If any of it is a question rather than a formality, speak to a doctor before you travel.

Questions divers ask about this site

  • Why is the visibility so much lower here?

    Because the bottom is silt rather than sand, and any movement lifts it. That is also why the animals that live here live here.

  • Do I need good buoyancy?

    Yes, and we will say so honestly if we think you are not there yet. It is not a safety issue - it is that a diver on the bottom ends the dive for everybody else.

  • Can I bring a camera?

    This is the site to bring it to. Macro lens, and expect to spend the whole dive within twenty metres of where you descended.

More diving around Neil Island

Want this site on your log? Tell us when you are on the island and we will put you on the boat that goes there.

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From our divers

What people say once the boat is back in

  • Best first dive I could have asked for. The instructors were unbelievably patient - I panicked at four metres on the first attempt and nobody made me feel stupid about it. Second attempt went fine and I finished the course three days later.
    Rahul MenonOpen Water Diver
  • Only one of us dives. Every other operator we spoke to had a plan where the other one sat on a beach for four days. Aqua Nomads put the snorkel line off the same boat, so we were in the same water the whole week - and by day three I had done a Discover Scuba dive too. The sunset sailing on the last evening was the best hour of the trip.
    Priya and Arjun NairHoneymoon, February
  • They called the Dixon crossing on our first morning because of a swell, and I was quietly annoyed. We dived Jackson Bar twice instead and it turned out to be the best day of the week. Getting Dixon on day three in flat water made the point - they were right and I was wrong.
    Daniel OseiAdvanced Open Water Diver
  • Two teenagers, neither of whom had dived. The instructors worked one-to-one with both of them for the first two dives without us asking, and my daughter has since booked her Open Water for next December. Whatever they did, it worked.
    The Fernandes familyFour divers, two of them under fifteen
  • I cannot swim well and I said so when I booked. They ran the whole thing one instructor to one diver, stayed in the shallow half of the bay, and never once made it feel like a concession. I have since done the swim assessment and the full course.
    Aditi SharmaOpen Water Diver
Call +91 90000 00000