Diving in Cabo de Gata

Imagine for a moment that we have arrived at the beautiful Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park in the province of Almeria, close to the capital of the province, and when we get out of the car we are surprised by the breathtaking landscape that sweeps across the horizon.

With more than 60 km of coastline between beaches and cliffs, the whole Natural Park is an earthly paradise that is preserved thanks to government protection and to the care of its inhabitants and tourists who help to maintain the area.

The crystal clear waters of the Cabo de Gata invite you to explore them and enjoy them first hand, and that is why the Natural Park has a wide range of water activities, among which is diving. There are many companies and initiatives that assist adventurers to properly equip themselves for the submarine voyage, with classes, courses and excursions that can be fully exploited by everyone, from the newest to those who are already experts in scuba diving.

Of course, you must always comply with the appropriate safety parameters for the healthy enjoyment of all.

Cabo de Gata seabed

These diving excursions will allow you to safely observe the vast underwater diversity of the Natural Park, which has some 12,000 hectares of protected environment, housing more than a thousand species of marine flora and fauna that live on the seabed.
  The tours will enable you to explore the caves and courses that give continuity to many of the cliffs that we see from the coasts, and show you up close that much of the geography of the area is of volcanic origin. This, combined with the erosion of the sea, will allow you to discover scenes that will take your breath away.
 
If you wish, you can take your first trip with a snorkel, then progress later to a dive.

The more you enter the confines of this ecosystem, the more you will see the landscape change. For example, in areas where the bottom is 5 metres deep you can see sea urchins, crabs and starfish living with different fish among the algae of that level.

And if we go a little further towards the Plains of Posidonia, there is an area similar to an underwater meadow full of plants that oxygenate the sector. Usually at about 20 metres deep, we can observe the common octopus. It is possible that with luck and patience, we could capture it in a photograph or keep it in our memories forever. We may also get a picture for unique postcards that will make us remember this adventure, leaving us wanting to return on every possible occasion.

Scientific interest

There are several reasons to practise diving in the Cabo de Gata that go beyond the pursuit of adventure. You will also experience first hand a greater rapport with nature underwater, where you can participate, even temporarily, in the complex maritime life and admire its balance and synergies.

One reason for this is diving as part of scientific research, which is also done on the coast of Cabo de Gata and in many areas of the Natural Park. This is due to its privileged location in the Mediterranean Sea as a meeting point for the ecosystems of the Iberian coasts with the characteristic systems of the African coasts.