The Drop Off
The Drop off is situated directly in front of Borneo Divers dive lodge on Sipadan Island and is the site for all unaccompanied dives that occur during your stay on Pulau Sipadan.
It is here that your checkout dive will occur and this dive site is widely regarded as the best beach dive in the world. The photographs of Pulau Sipadan always include schools of fish (jacks or barracuda) circling above the diver but I thought that this was purely for the benefit of the promotional literature and that it was unlikely that I would see anything of the kind on a short trip to the island. Within five minutes of entering the water I looked up and saw a replica of the photos I had drooled over in the dive travel magazines. Several hundred jacks were circling overhead and these proved a serious distraction from the many grey reef sharks and green turtles along the route.
The wall has a wide variety of coral and sponges but I will need
to go back to identify them as the larger animals drew my attention.
If an award exists for the best checkout dive in the world then
The Drop Off must rank as a very high contender.
The Drop Off Reef Basics: Wall dive
Depth: 5 - >40m
Visibility: 15 - 30m
Currents: Can be strong
Surface Conditions: Can be rough
Water Temperature: 27 - 30°C
Experience Level: Intermediate - advanced
Diving Season: All year round
PADI Course Compatibility: Great for underwater photography
Distance: 10 paces from the island jetty or 15 km (15 mins) south of Mabul
Access: Beach dive from Pulau Sipadan or Mabul and Kapalai dive resorts
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