L'Abym
Depth is the range from the top of the site to its usual maximum; "recommended cert" is the mainstream-agency level operators usually ask for, not a legal rule. Currents and visibility change daily, so treat everything here as planning ranges.
The name is Creole for the abyss, and the wall delivers on it: a near-vertical volcanic face beginning within sight of the village shoreline and dropping past any depth a recreational diver should contemplate. The face is upholstered rather than bare, layered with plate corals, rope sponges, and black coral fans, and small life rewards a slow hover, with seahorses and frogfish recorded on the wall itself. The drama is in the scale and the color of the water, an inked-out blue that gives even shallow portions a sense of hanging over something vast.
The moment you come for: True vertical wall off a village shoreline, black coral and sponge tapestry
Topography: Sheer volcanic wall falling from the shallows into the caldera deep
Know before you splash
Hazards: No bottom within sight for most of the dive; strict depth discipline required.
Permits & rules: Within the Soufriere-Scott's Head Marine Reserve; user fee applies.
Nitrox: Worth it here: profiles sit in the range where enriched air meaningfully extends no-stop time (with the training to use it).
Who you'll meet
Great Barracuda
Frogfish
Hawksbill Turtle
Seahorses
Sperm Whale
Humpback Whale
Lionfish
Porcupinefish
Also recorded nearby
"Charted here" species were listed by our editors from the sources on this page. Counts are GBIF occurrence records: observations logged within about 5 km of the charted position since 1990, matched only against the species in our catalogue. They show what has been seen there, not a promise of what you will see.
For photographers
Wide angle: ★★★★☆ · Macro: ★★★☆☆ (editors' 1–5 rating of what this site gives each style of shooting)