North Bay (Racha Noi)
North Bay sits at the northern point of Racha Noi and offers three quite different dives. The shallow, sheltered bay has sand with small hard-coral bommies sloping to about 20 m – good for beginners – while on its eastern side a long pinnacle of granite boulders ends in a drop-off well beyond 40 m. The western side has rock formations unlike the rest of the island. Reef fish, giant morays and octopus are common, small schools of chevron barracuda follow the deeper boulders, and manta rays and leopard sharks occasionally pass.
Facts
- Region: Thailand – Phuket & Phi Phi
- Area: Racha Noi
- Depth: 5–40 m
- Level: intermediate
- Current: strong
- Type: bay, reef, pinnacle
- Coordinates: 7.5222, 98.3305 (approximate)
- Highlights: granite boulders, chevron barracuda, giant moray, octopus, manta ray, leopard shark, fusilier
- Tips: Outside the bay strong down-currents can occur at the ends of the boulder ridges – advanced divers only there.