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Scuba Diving in the Maldives
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Dive Site: Kuda Rah Thila
Location: Dhigurashu Channel, South Ari Atoll, Maldives
Description: Reef dive from a boat
Depth: 13 - 30 metres (43 - 100 feet)
Visibility: 15 - 25 metres (50 - 80 feet)
Rating: *****
This is a really beautiful dive. We started by going through a beautiful arch covered in coral. There were coral and reef fish of all colours on top and lots of snappers, fusilier and anthias. On the top of the thila was a large turtle, moray eels, angelfish, coral groupers, soldierfish, nudibranchs, triggerfish and various puffers. There are also large overhangs with beautiful coral in the roof.
We dived this site twice, the second time had a mild current. I have never seen so many blue striped snappers, they were weaving in and out of the overhangs in a continuous stream. There was also a circling white tip shark. In addition all the corals were doing the equivalent of flowering. Visibility was poorer but this dive was incredibly exciting.
Anna Wright, PADI Advanced Open Water
I had the good fortune to dive this reef again on 26/02/07 with a medium/strong current. From the onset at about 6m there were schools of lieutenant surgenfish taking notice of us and just coming to see us and trying to sit on our heads. There were thousands of blue striped snappers below hugging the reef slope and overhangs waiting for our approach down. I passed honeycombe morays, banner shrimps and hawksbills on the way not quite knowing where to look next. The young sleeping white tips never made a murmur as i drifted past, around and upwards towards the end of the reef tip where the current was at its strongest. I hovered looking over and into the blue following with my eyes the 1.2m long white tips rushing backwards and forwards hunting.
There seemed to be a pecking order for food as the large schools of jacks steam in for the kill as three massive giant trevallys stood their ground and took the spoils. The corals described by Anna Wright is still an accurate discription of this reef and i would reccommend this dive to advanced and over if the current is medium to strong but can also be perfect for open water divers when the conditions are more favourable.
I stayed at the Lilly Beach Resort which has a great house reef and many good dive sites near the island. Currents are fairly strong Dec/Jan/Feb then slow down but there are many shelterd reefs here so lots for everybody.
Nick Howell, Rescue Diver
I also dived this as Nick Howell's buddy. I saw twice as many things as Nick and had to point out most that he saw as he's short sighted. I taught him everything he knows. Saw a lot of nudibranchs which Nick missed. Everything else he described is accurate.
Mark Randell, Advanced Open Water
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