Diving the Metridium Fields is one of the most beautiful locations you can dive at Breakwater Cove. The protected cove and easy access makes it a local favorite for teaching new students and going on easy dives. The Metridium fields requires a longer surface swim than usual (around 800 feet from the beach) but the site is well worth it. Visibility can vary but during summer you usually have to deal with a lot of algae in the water.

See the Breakwater Cove page for local area information and safety concerns.

Finding the Dive Site

Click on the map markers and lines for more information.

1. Enter the water at the North Beach. (Yellow Marker) You’ll be swimming around 800 feet, so take your time and enjoy the waves.
2. Align yourself with the edge of Backscatter (Building with the large whale on it) and the pier/farthest bluff. This should be the green line and marker on the map. Depth should be around 30 feet and you should drop pretty close to the pipe. To the north is a small reef at around 32 feet, with sand to the south around growing progressively more shallow.
3. When you’ve found the pipe, follow it to the north-east. You’ll swim at a 45deg heading for about 400 feet. Eventually the pipe will end. Depth should be around 45 feet.
4. If you have good visibility, you’ll see the reefs ahead of you. If not, swim due north (0deg heading) for 60 feet. This will take you to the largest reef measuring about 55 feet long and 25 feet wide. Depth is around 50 feet at the bottom and 45 feet at the top. (Blue Marker)
5. You can swim at a 90deg heading for 45 feet to reach the other smaller reefs. You’ll find the first reef you come to with a 50’x10′ dimensions, followed by around 40 feet of smaller round reefs.

Mapping Project by Matthew Jones, Marcelo Bossi, and Yenling Liu.

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Published @ March 19, 2014 1:02 am