Pescador Island, Moalboal

Pescador Island, Moalboal Topography

Pescador is mentioned as on dive site but you can dive here at least four times, it's a truly great dive site. The dive starts mostly in the south where the boat is sheltered if there is an Amihan wind. Starting from here you can go two ways depending on the current. The slope in the south is 12 m deeper, then it becomes a straight drop off to the depth of 33m and then start sloping down. The walls all around the island are going very deep, please watch your buoyancy, depth gauge and no decompression limit. Half way the dive in the south-east site is a deep rocky slope, here you can see a school of Jacks, the Big eye Trevally. 

At the north-east of the island at 7m is a platform with a great coral garden with an aquarium of fish, great for night diving. Spend most of the dive-time in this area, look in the corals for special things like shrimps, Nudibranchs and frogfishes. Going to the west side you will see at 25m the cathedral. Entering the cathedral and lookin up into the light, will give you on bright sunny day especially if you make the dive in the afternoon, this is known as cathedral or church glowing light effect. There are two smaller openings where you can dive through and one in the roof, there's another hole which you can enter and ascent up to 9m. The cathedral is lowcated on the north-west side of Pescador Island, bring a dive light to look inside the cave.

Pescador Island Side View

Dive Direction. Start in the south, slope/wall on your right shoulder going north/west to the cathedral. Also possible is the other way - start in the south slope on your left shoulder going east in the beginning, later to north-east to the shallow platform.

District: Basdiot, Moalboal 

Distance: 4km from Panagsama Beach 

Travel Time: 11min by banca boat 

GPS Coordinates: 

N.09° 55.302′ E.123° 20.617′ Is south entry point 

N.09° 55.410′ E.123° 20.641′ Is east entry point 

Composition: North and west deep wall, steep slope in the south. The Cathedral in northwest.

Snorkeling: Excellent 

Experience: Open Water Diver 

Visibility: 10-30m 

Current: 0-3 knots 

Interesting depth: 7-20m Marine life: 450 spieces of hard coral, pyramid butterflyfish, tuna, nudibranches, snake eel, frog fish, barracuda and white tipped reef shark.

Topography.
The walls have everything: caves, crevices, overhangs and a large vertical funnel called the "The Cathedral". They are covered in Tubastrea cup corals, colorful soft corals and gorgonian sea fans.

Interesting Finds.
The barrel sponges, Elephant ear Sponges and blue tube sponges are covered in Alabaster Sea Cucumbers. Shoals of sweetlips, surgeonfish, snappers, fusiliers, anthias, catfish, chromis, jacks, damsels and Moorish Idols abound. Royal and Emperor Angelfish, pennantfish, rabbitfish, lizardfish, moray eels, lionfish, scorpion fish, trigger fish, puffer fish, soldier fish, squirrel fish, trumpet fish and cornet fish hover in holes among the corals, Stonefish are common.

There are many different varieties of sea cucumbers, sea stars, nudibranchs, flat worms, anemones and clownfish, while Napoleon Wrasse and small Whitetip Reef Sharks can be seen in deeper water. At times of strong currents pelagic species are common, so you might be lucky and occasionally see a Whale Shark or Manta Ray. Very big Spanish Dancer nudibranchs are found on night dives.

You can comfortably fill four days of good diving here.