Punta de sa Gavina

Beyond Punta Pedrera, the cape with the old watchtower is the mooring for this dive in the Es Freus reserve. A platform at about 8 m leads to a vertical wall dropping to about 20 m with Posidonia and white sand, then two huge rock spires rising from about 23 m form a canyon you can swim through, with a small cave on the far side. Walls carry yellow encrusting anemones, false coral and sponges; big moray eels, octopus, sea bream shoals, brown meagre and the odd grouper are typical. Position from the Consell de Formentera dive catalogue.

Facts

• Region: Spain – Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera
• Area: Formentera
• Depth: 6–23 m
• Level: beginner
• Current: moderate
• Type: reef, wall, cave
• Coordinates: 38.71985, 1.3804
• Highlights: two big rock spires forming a canyon, small cave, moray eels and octopus, sea bream shoals
• Permit: Inside the Freus d'Eivissa i Formentera marine reserve (13,617 ha). Recreational diving in the Balearic marine reserves needs an authorisation from the Govern de les Illes Balears; dive centres on the Balearic register hold it and arrange it for guided dives, individual divers need a valid certification. Sources conflict: the Formentera tourism page says scuba diving is strictly forbidden throughout the reserve, while the Govern's authorisation page and the Consell's dive catalogue list Es Freus sites as authorisable – dive with a local centre and confirm current rules.
• Issuer / contact: Govern de les Illes Balears – Direcció General de Pesca i Medi Marí, Servei de Recursos Marins (marine reserves)
  • Phone: +34 971 17 61 14
  • Website: https://www.caib.es/sites/reservesmarines/es/
• Tips: Catalogue rating: all levels; check the reserve authorisation with your centre.

Sources

• https://www.formentera.es/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/cataleg_busseig_ITA.pdf
• https://vellmari.com/inmersiones/
• https://illesbalears.travel/en/formentera/the-best-places-to-dive-in-formentera