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Certification required
AOW
Abu Kafan
Egypt · reef · advanced
5–40 madvancedAOWboat entry
Abu Kafan
A 300 m sliver of reef standing up out of deep water off Safaga, with a plateau at each end and a wall between them that goes down past 100 m.
Max depth5–40 m
Required leveladvanced
Entry typeboat
Visibility25 m
The dive
Abu Kafan is an isolated, elongated reef lying roughly north-south about 75 to 90 minutes out from Safaga or Soma Bay. It is around 300 m long and it rises out of very deep water; one operator puts the surrounding seabed at about 400 m. The name is usually translated as "father of the deep", and the reef earns it: the north-east side falls away close to vertical to around 110 m, where a ledge about 10 m wide sticks out before the wall carries on down.
The reef is dived as two ends and a wall, which is why catalogues carry an Abu Kafan North and an Abu Kafan South alongside this main entry; operators say you need at least two separate dives to see both. The northern plateau starts at about 15 m against the reef and slopes to around 30 m before the ground goes. There is a sandbank there that forms a channel about 12 m deep. The southern plateau starts around 18 m and runs away to the south, deepening to roughly 50 m, with its own erg splitting off the reef and a channel about 18 m deep and 10 m wide. The shallows at the south end hold dense life from about 3 m down.
A typical dive is a zodiac or RIB drop up-current, a drop onto the wall or the plateau edge and a drift back along the reef. The wall below 30 m thins out into black coral, long whip corals and purple and orange soft coral, with big gorgonians and overhangs. The upper reef and the plateau tops are the opposite: dense soft and hard coral with sea goldies over them, coral hind, coronation trout, giant moray in the cracks, blue-spotted reef stingray on the sand, butterflyfish and wrasse everywhere.
The reason experienced divers keep going back is what sits off the edge. Grey reef sharks and whitetip reef sharks are the regulars, hammerheads turn up occasionally, and barracuda, tuna and trevally hunt in the current. Turtles and humphead wrasse are on the reef itself. None of it is guaranteed, and the current that brings the pelagics is the same current that makes this a site operators grade for advanced divers.
- One 300 m reef rising out of about 400 m of water, dived as a north end, a south end and the wall between
- North-east wall near-vertical to roughly 110 m with a 10 m ledge on it
- North plateau from about 15 m sloping to 30 m; south plateau from about 18 m running out to about 50 m
- Grey reef and whitetip reef sharks in the current, hammerheads occasionally
- Black coral, whip coral and large gorgonians below 30 m
Please note before you go
- Medium to strong current, running north down the reef and across both plateaus
- The north and north-east sides get rough on the surface, with high waves as well as current
- The north-east wall is close to vertical down to about 110 m; there is no ledge to stop you inside recreational range
- The channels between the reef and its coral outcrops can run too hard to swim against
- Isolated offshore reef 75 to 90 minutes from port, with no facilities and no shore
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Day boat from Safaga or Soma Bay, roughly 75 to 90 minutes each way. There is no shore and no shelter at the reef. Divers are dropped by zodiac or RIB up-current of the chosen end and drift back, with the boat following.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Season
April to October is the window operators give for Safaga, when water tops out near 29 degrees. The shoulder months at either end of that tend to bring the calmest seas, which matters here because the northern half of this reef is the exposed half and a northerly pushes boats onto the sheltered south-west side or off the site entirely.
Conditions
Visibility25 m
Currentstrong
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range5–40 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsnot sourced
Open water with nothing around it, so the day is decided by the wind. Visibility is generally good: one operator gives 20 to 40 m with an average of 30, another 25 to 30. Water in the Safaga area runs to about 29 degrees at the peak of summer and stays around 22 degrees or a little above through the cooler months. Expect current on the plateaus and swell on the northern end.
On current: Current normally runs from the north down the length of the reef, and the plateaus are swept by it. Operators rate it medium to strong and warn that the north and north-east sides get rough, with high waves as well as current; the south-west is the sheltered side and is where a dive gets moved to when it blows. The channels between the reef and its ergs can run hard enough to be effectively unswimmable against. Dives are planned as drifts with a zodiac pickup for exactly this reason.
Best months: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct
Questions & answers
How deep is Abu Kafan?
The reef rises out of water several hundred metres deep, so the numbers that matter are the plateaus. The north plateau starts around 15 m and slopes to about 30 m; the south plateau starts around 18 m and runs out to roughly 50 m. The north-east wall drops near-vertically to about 110 m, where a 10 m ledge sticks out. Recreational dives here work between roughly 5 and 40 m.
How do you get to Abu Kafan?
By day boat from Safaga or Soma Bay, about 75 to 90 minutes each way. There is no shore and nothing on the reef, so everything comes from the boat. Divers are usually dropped by zodiac or RIB up-current of the end being dived and drift back with the boat following.
Is Abu Kafan good for beginners?
No. Some listings say all levels with advanced recommended, others say experienced divers only, and the conditions back the stricter reading. Current runs down the reef and across both plateaus, the north-east wall has nothing under it inside recreational depth, and the northern end gets rough on the surface. Come with drift and wall experience and an SMB.
What is the difference between Abu Kafan, Abu Kafan North and Abu Kafan South?
They are the same reef. Abu Kafan is a single elongated reef about 300 m long, and the north and south entries are its two ends, each with its own plateau. Operators say you need at least two dives to cover both, which is why the catalogue carries them separately.
What will I see at Abu Kafan?
Off the edge, grey reef sharks and whitetip reef sharks are the regulars, with hammerheads occasionally and barracuda, tuna and trevally hunting in the current. On the reef expect sea goldies over dense soft coral, coral hind, coronation trout, giant moray, blue-spotted reef stingray on the sand, turtles and humphead wrasse. Below 30 m the wall thins into black coral, whip corals and large gorgonians.
Is there current at Abu Kafan?
Usually. It normally sets from the north and runs the length of the reef, sweeping both plateaus, and operators grade it medium to strong. The channels between the reef and its coral outcrops can run hard enough that swimming against them is not realistic. The south-west side is the sheltered one and is where dives get moved when the north is up.
When is the best time to dive Abu Kafan?
April to October is the Safaga season, with water reaching about 29 degrees at the height of summer and sitting around 22 degrees from November to March. The calmest seas tend to come at the edges of that window, which matters at this reef because the exposed northern half is the first thing a northerly takes off the plan.
Can you snorkel at Abu Kafan?
Technically yes over the reef top and the southern shallows, which are alive from about 3 m, but it is a poor use of the trip. The reef is 75 to 90 minutes offshore with current running down it, and the boats out there are running deep wall and plateau dives. A sheltered inshore bay gives a snorkeller far more.
Life recorded at Abu Kafan
59 species within 1.5 km · OBISGymnothorax javanicusrare · 2 recordsTaeniura lymmarare · 2 recordsBalistoides viridescensrare · 1 records
Cephalopholis miniatarare · 4 records
Pseudodax moluccanusrare · 4 records
Amphiprion bicinctusrare · 4 records
All 59 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Cephalopholis miniata | rare | 4 |
| Pseudodax moluccanus | rare | 4 |
| Amphiprion bicinctus | rare | 4 |
| Myripristis murdjan | rare | 4 |
| Variola louti | rare | 3 |
| Chaetodon semilarvatus | rare | 3 |
| Monotaxis grandoculis | rare | 3 |
| Naso elegans | rare | 3 |
| Heniochus intermedius | rare | 3 |
| Bodianus diana | rare | 2 |
| Chromis pembae | rare | 2 |
| Caesio suevica | rare | 2 |
| Chromodoris quadricolor | rare | 2 |
| Coris caudimacula | rare | 2 |
| Fistularia commersonii | rare | 2 |
| Genicanthus caudovittatus | rare | 2 |
| Gymnothorax javanicus | rare | 2 |
| Priacanthus hamrur | rare | 2 |
| Halichoeres hortulanus | rare | 2 |
| Hipposcarus harid | rare | 2 |
| Paracirrhites forsteri | rare | 2 |
| Oxycheilinus digramma | rare | 2 |
| Pseudocheilinus evanidus | rare | 2 |
| Scarus niger | rare | 2 |
| Taeniura lymma | rare | 2 |
| Arothron diadematus | rare | 2 |
| Thalassoma rueppellii | rare | 1 |
| Theonella swinhoei | rare | 1 |
| Tursiops aduncus | rare | 1 |
| Amblyglyphidodon indicus | rare | 1 |
| Arothron stellatus | rare | 1 |
| Mulloidichthys vanicolensis | rare | 1 |
| Phyllidia varicosa | rare | 1 |
| Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus | rare | 1 |
| Clathria (Clathria) arbuscula | rare | 1 |
| Anampses twistii | rare | 1 |
| Arothron hispidus | rare | 1 |
| Balistoides viridescens | rare | 1 |
| Bodianus anthioides | rare | 1 |
| Cephalopholis sexmaculata | rare | 1 |
| Chaetodon austriacus | rare | 1 |
| Chaetodon lineolatus | rare | 1 |
| Chaetodon melannotus | rare | 1 |
| Chlorurus sordidus | rare | 1 |
| Ecsenius dentex | rare | 1 |
| Flavocaranx bajad | rare | 1 |
| Gymnothorax griseus | rare | 1 |
| Lutjanus fulviflamma | rare | 1 |
| Naso hexacanthus | rare | 1 |
| Naucrates ductor | rare | 1 |
| Ostracion cyanurus | rare | 1 |
| Parupeneus cyclostomus | rare | 1 |
| Parupeneus forsskali | rare | 1 |
| Pomacanthus imperator | rare | 1 |
| Pseudobalistes fuscus | rare | 1 |
| Rhinecanthus assasi | rare | 1 |
| Sargocentron caudimaculatum | rare | 1 |
| Scarus ferrugineus | rare | 1 |
| Siganus stellatus | rare | 1 |
Nearby sites in Safaga
Explore all sitesAbu Kafan North0.4 km
SafagaThe north end of Safaga's narrow offshore pinnacle: a negative entry onto a 25 m plateau, then a drift northeast to the eastern drop-off.
Abu Kafan South0.4 km
SafagaThe south end of the Abu Kafan reef: a mooring dive out past a large erg that meets the main reef at 18 m, and the end that still runs when the north drift does not.
Shaab Claude4.2 km
SafagaA small outer reef south of Sha'ab Sheer with a ridge of fused ergs and shallow swim-throughs at 4 to 6 m.
Shaab Hamdallah4.7 km
SafagaA group of tall coral towers standing off the south tip of the Sha'ab Sheer plateau, dived only on days flat enough to leave a boat with no shelter at all.
Salem Express, wreck4.9 km
SafagaA 1991 ferry disaster on Hyndman Reef. Hundreds of people are still inside her, and that is the whole of what this dive is.
Sha’ab Sheer East4.9 km
SafagaThe eastern end of Safaga's boomerang reef, where three ergs stand off the reef and leave a shallow channel that decides how the dive goes.
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