White Rock
North of St. John’s there is a circular reef, with its own beautiful and turquoise inner lagoon. The site is called White Rock because of a huge boulder standing out of the water, which cannot be missed and can be seen from far away. Underwater, there are some nice coral towers up to five meters high and some shallow caves that provide shelter for moray eels and the occasional shark. At a depth of 15 meters, the generally sloping plateau changes to a dropping wall reaching down more than 40 meters. Reef fish, such as parrotfish, angelfish and Anthias are frequently spotted; and with a bit of luck you may even encounter a grey reef shark.


Rocky Island
The small, but absolutely beautiful Rocky Island lies south of the island Zabargad at only a short sailing distance. Rocky Island is a legendary dive site, which will astonish many divers. The strong currents provide nourishment for the outstanding quantity of coral and fish life. Sheer walls with beautiful soft corals, gorgonians, hard and black corals, and a range of inhabitants from glittering tiny reef fishes to large tunas and massive sharks can all be met here. Encounters with colossal sharks on Rocky Island are almost always guaranteed.

The reef is vaguely shaped like Shaab Sharm, but is surrounded by a beautiful shallow reef plateau, which is home to many strange and familiar reef fishes. Rocky's steep walls are covered with stunning forests of soft corals, sponges, sea fans, and are dropping sharply to astonishing depths, although the most interesting features and life forms are found above 12 meters.

The south-east corner of the island is the best place for sharks and pelagic life. The shelf at 25 meters can be a great place to watch all the action. A squadron of patrolling grey sharks and oceanic white tips are cruising the waters of this exposed corner, along with large schools of barracuda, tuna and jacks. Hammerheads are sometimes shooting for the surface, to give divers a mental jolt, before disappearing again into the deep; juvenile white-tip reef sharks sleeping under huge and very scenic overhangs, silvertips, sometimes a manta or a whale shark – diving at Rocky is certainly exciting. Sometimes, you may observe the elegant predators swimming their circular patterns from the top deck of the liveaboard.


Zabargad
The large island of Zabargad is located south-east of Ras Banas, just five and a half kilometers from Rocky Island. The bare island, with several large pointed hills, was already known in the time of the Pharaohs for its “Chrysolite” or “Olivine”. “Chrysolite” is a semi-precious stone and because of its color resemblance with olive oil, it is also called "Olivine".

Because of its geological importance, the area was intensively studied by geologists during several expeditions in the seventies and the eighties. Zabargad appears to be a “tectonic” island, i.e., it became present above sea level after African and Asiatic continental plates converged to cause rocks in the lower crust to be uplifted. During this process, minerals came from the Earth mantle to the surface. The island of Zabargad is considered geologically unique, as it is one of the rare areas, where it is possible to study the geological, chemical and physical composition of the minerals constituting the Earth's crust. Nowadays, the desert island is a military zone. The large island has a triangular shape. It is a peaceful place, with a stunningly beautiful turquoise lagoon and massive reefs with stunning coral landscapes sloping down gradually. Because of its size and shelter, it is used as a base for diving Rocky Island. Its pristine beaches attract nesting turtles, which can be seen underwater, especially in August.

Snorkeling along the side of the southern lagoon is still a beautiful experience. With only your mask and fins you can explore the marvelous labyrinth of swim-troughs.

On the north-eastern side of the island, close to the jetty, you can dive the wreck of a cargo boat. The wreck is in perfect condition and the detailed superstructure offers a beautiful scenery for photographers. On the southern side of the island, a sandy slope runs gradually down to about 20 meters, before plunging over a sheer wall. The slope is dotted with beautiful coral towers, which are densely populated. The reef wall on the eastern side slopes steeply to a depth of about 25 meters and ends on a plateau, which goes down to about 35 meters and then steeply disappears into the depth. Reef pillars, coral towers with overhanging boulders, small holes, caves and crevices cover the plateau.

The abundance of diverse coral and fish life makes this area a paradise for underwater photographers. Grey reef sharks and hammerheads can be spotted here on a regular basis. With some luck, you come across a thresher shark, a resting leopard shark or a nurse shark. Amazing dives are guaranteed!


St. John’s Reef
Just 16km from the Sudanese border, the massive reef system of St. John’s is our next destination. St. John’s spans 20km wide and 13km in length, and due to its remoteness it is one of the last Red Sea wildernesses hideaways. The reefs rise up from an enormous undersea plateau. Some parts are tiny and have yet to reach right up to the surface. Known as Habilis, these virgin reefs offer virtually no protection to dive boats, but they make breathtaking dives.

Sharks are commonly encountered at St John’s. Hammerheads, threshers and even oceanic white tips are sometimes seen, whilst grey sharks and white tips are regular visitors. Millions of orange Anthias, yellow and black banner fish, groupers and regal angelfish, bushes of black coral and beautiful purple and orange soft corals are also a part of the stunning underwater scenery.

At Shaab Martin, named after the Ghazala Voyager skipper Martin De Banks (one of the last European skippers operating in the Red Sea), you can come across huge shoals of fusiliers, banner fish, butterfly fish and snappers, forests of black coral and stunning sea fans.

Many of St. John’s sites have yet to be given proper names and are relatively unknown, but there are a few exceptions. Sha'ab Mharus is a fairly large reef, with sheer walls adorned with beautiful sea whips and soft corals, and riddled with caves. Sha'ab Farag, a large circular reef, is also very scenic with a huge overhang, which dominates a plateau on its southern end, while along its eastern wall, a couple of caves are coupled by a short tunnel and make an entertaining exploration. Close by, is a huge field of anemones and resident clown fish. Fish life at St John’s is refreshing: plenty of large shoals, with Napoleons and jacks during just about every dive. On a couple of reefs, even bump head parrotfish, a species normally found further south in Sudan, can be encountered.