Monkey Shoals.
Monkey Shoals is a submerged coral bank roughly a mile across, lying offshore in the channel between St Kitts and Nevis. The top is a shallow limestone hardground with large star and brain corals, and the edges slope away to a sand terrace. It holds several distinct dive sites, including a circular sand patch known as the Donut.
What's down there.
- Shallow coral bank about a mile across
- The Donut, a circular sand patch with a small patch reef and undercut ledge
- Large star and brain coral heads
- Reef edge sloping to a sand terrace
- Nurse sharks
- Rays
- Spiny lobsters
- Moray eels
- Flying gurnards
- Parrotfish
- Grunts and snappers
- Flamingo tongues
Usual dive range 12–25 m; the flat top of the bank is about 10–15 m and the reef edge slopes to a sand terrace at 30–40 m.
Visibility is generally excellent. The site is exposed, so current, wind and choppy seas sometimes prevent diving; it is dived when the sea is calm. Suitable for most levels in good conditions.
83 dives.
From the reconstructed log — the dates follow the pattern I dived, so read them as representative rather than exact.