Woodhouse Reef.
The longest of the four Tiran reefs, a narrow reef just over 0.8 mile (about 1.3 km) long. It is almost always dived as a long drift. The route crosses a canyon separating the main reef from a small satellite reef and ends in an area of coral garden where the current can run in several directions. Sharks are often seen resting on the sand patches below the wall.
What's down there.
- Wall with sand patches below
- Canyon at about 25 m separating the main reef from a satellite reef
- Plateau at about 15 m with small pinnacles
- Coral garden and the 'washing machine', where current runs in several directions
- Saddle towards Jackson Reef
- Whitetip and grey reef sharks
- Jacks and tuna
- Turtles
- Red anemone with anemonefish
- Crocodilefish
- Blue-spotted rays
- Giant moray eels
- Octopus
The reef top comes to within about a metre of the surface. At the southern entry point the wall reaches about 30 m. There is a canyon at about 25 m partway along and a shallower plateau at about 15 m (Red Sea Diving College; Oonas Dive Club). Wannadive gives a maximum of 40 m, and liveaboard.com describes a deep drop-off beyond a canyon.
Strong current is common. The reef is dived as a drift from the south or the middle of the reef heading north, sometimes continuing towards Jackson Reef if conditions allow. If the western side is rough, the dive may have to end at the coral garden (Red Sea Diving College). Visibility is often very good (Oonas Dive Club). It is rated intermediate. Boat time from Na'ama Bay is about 85 minutes (pro-taucher). Protected status: Tiran Island was part of Ras Mohammed National Park (Wikipedia); the sources consulted do not state the reefs' own designation or whether a park fee was charged for them in 2007–09. pro-taucher says passports and the full Egyptian visa were needed for trips to the Tiran reefs. Tiran Island was transferred to Saudi Arabia in 2017 (see region notes).
How it got there.
Like the other Tiran reefs, it is named after a British cartographer (Wikipedia).
3 dives.
From the log — the dates follow the pattern I dived, so read them as representative rather than exact.