Dahab, South Sinai, Egypt

Canyon

The Canyon is one of Dahab's signature sites, a long fissure cut into the reef plateau north of Dahab town. Divers enter from a sandy lagoon and swim out across a coral garden to the entrance ('the Fish Bowl'), a circular sandy depression at 18 metres surrounded by coral. From there the canyon descends as a narrow vertical fissure to a sandy floor at around 30 metres, with a small exit window ('the Fishtank') at 25 metres. The fissure is very narrow in places, requiring single-file passage and excellent buoyancy; air pockets at the top trap exhaled bubbles and have caused serious incidents in the past. Inside the canyon glassfish schools fill the cracks, soldierfish patrol the walls and a large blue-spotted stingray is often resting on the sand. Beyond the canyon the reef drops to 70 metres, where technical divers continue. Visibility 25 metres. The site is best dived in the morning before the sun moves off the canyon mouth.