Sugarloaf Caves.
A group of sea caves and caverns cut into the cliffs beside Sugarloaf Rock, reached only by boat from Port St Mary or Port Erin. Most of the passages have an air surface, and shafts of sunlight entering through gaps in the rock give strong light effects. The deepest passage, the Cave of the Birds, is the one section with no surface until its end.
What's down there.
- Surfaceable caverns and swim-throughs
- Cave of the Birds passage
- The Fairy Hall, a long tunnel through the headland
- Light shafts through gaps in the rock
- Sugarloaf Rock sea stack
- Hydroids
- Sponges
- Anemones
- Grey seals
- Diving guillemots
About 12 m maximum; one account describes the main cavern running into the cliff base from about 8 m.
Boat dive only, and only on reasonably calm days. Torches are needed in the darker passages. Visibility up to about 10 m has been reported. Swell and surge can affect the caves.
How it got there.
Sugarloaf Rock was drawn by Daniel King in 1656; its Manx Gaelic names include Cashtal y Stackey ('the castle of the stack'). An 1896 guide described caves near the rock that 'have to be entered by boat' and whose walls were almost wholly covered with sea anemones, sponges and other animals.
5 dives.
From the reconstructed log — the dates follow the pattern I dived, so read them as representative rather than exact.