Elphinstone Reef

Elphinstone Reef is one of the world’s most exciting diving destinations. A few small breakers are the only visible sign that just below the sea’s surface is the summit of a subterranean mountain, rich in colorful corals and fish species, and attracting the interest of hungry barracuda, dolphins and sharks.

It is two shark species in particular that attract divers looking for that unique once in a life-time close-quarters encounter with a big sea predator. The scarily curious oceanic whitetip and the oddly shaped hammerhead.

This is one of the few places where divers can regularly come eye-to eye with these feared but fascinating animals. The whitetip is categorized as vulnerable to extinction by the World Conservation Union and the hammerhead one level worse at endangered.

However these encounters are only for highly experienced advanced divers – not primarily because of the sharks who do not actively seek out human prey, but due to strong currents, which are common here.