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Certification required
AOW
El Shugarath
Egypt · reef · advanced
6–30 madvancedAOWboat entry
El Shugarath
An open canyon south of Dahab that spills out onto a wall of gorgonian fans, an hour by boat from anywhere.
Max depth6–30 m
Required leveladvanced
Entry typeboat
Visibilitynot sourced
The dive
El Shugarat, also written Shugarath or Shugurat, sits on the stretch of coast south of Dahab that has no road, next to Gabr el Bint and Shaab Said. Dive centres reach it by boat, roughly an hour out of Dahab, and the captain puts you in alongside the reef; Blue Ocean Dive notes it can also be approached overland by camel. The name is Arabic for the little trees, and it refers to what grows here rather than anything on the shore.
The dive works down a sandy plateau, with Kings Nefro Fleet describing it running from about 6 m to 35 m, to an open canyon whose top sits at around 16 m. Descending between the canyon walls to about 30 m brings two large black corals into view, one on each side. Technical operators diving the same ground describe the canyon continuing to around 45 m with passages, swim-throughs and overhangs off it, which is well past where a recreational dive should be.
Coming out of the canyon to the left puts you on the sloping reef wall and into the gorgonian fans that name the site: a field of them running down the wall and out of sight into deeper water. Longnose hawkfish sit in the fans, which is exactly where that species lives, and OBIS has it recorded at this pin. Nudibranchs, blue-spotted rays and crocodilefish are the other regulars, and turtles turn up without being reliable. On the way back up there are giant table corals near the reef table and a shallow lagoon with reef fish in it.
This is not a beginner's dive. Sinai Divers rates it advanced and records current as very common, and Circle Divers lists it as a drift. Add an hour's boat ride from the nearest support and a wall that keeps going down past anything you should be doing on air, and the discipline this site asks for is depth discipline.
- Open canyon with its top at about 16 m
- Two large black corals facing each other in the canyon walls at around 30 m
- Field of gorgonian fans running down the sloping reef wall, the feature the site is named for
- Longnose hawkfish living in the fans
- Giant table corals and a shallow lagoon at the reef table on the way out
Please note before you go
- The gorgonian wall drops away out of sight and the canyon continues to roughly 45 m: this is a site where depth creep is the actual risk
- Current is very common and the dive is run as a drift, so a missed pickup matters
- Boat-only, roughly an hour from Dahab, with no shore support at the site
- Camouflaged bottom-dwellers on the sand and reef: crocodilefish, false stonefish and lionfish are all in the OBIS records for this pin
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Boat only, roughly an hour south of Dahab along the roadless stretch of coast that also holds Gabr el Bint and Shaab Said. There is no mooring: the captain drops divers right beside the reef and picks them up down-current. Blue Ocean Dive notes the site can also be reached overland by camel, which is how some Dahab operators run the neighbouring bays.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Season
No source gives a seasonal window for this site and none is recorded here. What does gate access is sea state rather than season: the site is boat-only from Dahab with a long open run down an exposed coast, so a windy day removes it from the schedule regardless of the month.
Conditions
Visibilitynot sourced
Currentmoderate
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range6–30 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsquiet
A boat drop straight onto the reef after roughly an hour's run south from Dahab, usually with current running, so the dive is planned as a drift from the moment you hit the water. The profile is front-loaded: canyon and black corals early and deep, gorgonian wall on the way back, then a slow shallow finish over the table corals and lagoon. There is no mooring and nothing on shore.
On current: Current is the defining condition here: Sinai Divers records it as very common and Circle Divers lists the site as a drift dive, so the boat drops you and picks you up rather than waiting on a mooring. Depth is where the sources part company. Kings Nefro Fleet describes a sandy plateau from 6 m to 35 m and puts the canyon top at 16 m with black corals at 30 m; Sinai Divers gives a 40 m maximum; Circle Divers quotes 0-30 m; and technical operators plan the same wall to 40-60 m with the canyon running to about 45 m. The conservative 30 m is the figure recorded here, and it is where the two black corals are, which is a natural place to turn the dive.
Questions & answers
How deep is El Shugarat?
The plateau runs from about 6 m to 35 m and the canyon top sits at around 16 m, with the two black corals at roughly 30 m. Sinai Divers gives 40 m as the site maximum, while technical operators work the same wall to 40-60 m and describe the canyon running to about 45 m. Thirty metres is the sensible recreational turn, since the gorgonian wall below simply keeps going.
How do you get to El Shugarat?
By boat only, roughly an hour south of Dahab on the roadless stretch of coast that also holds Gabr el Bint and Shaab Said. There is no mooring: the captain drops you right next to the reef and collects you down-current. Blue Ocean Dive notes the site can also be reached overland by camel.
Is El Shugarat suitable for beginners?
No. Sinai Divers rates it advanced and records current as very common, and Circle Divers lists it as a drift dive. Kings Nefro Fleet will take Open Water divers with fifteen logged dives, but the combination of a drift entry, a wall with no visible floor and no shore support an hour from Dahab makes the advanced rating the one to plan around.
What does El Shugarat mean?
It is Arabic for the little trees, and the trees in question are underwater. Both Blue Ocean Dive and Circle Divers tie the name directly to the forest of gorgonian fan corals covering the sloping reef wall. Kings Nefro Fleet glosses it more loosely as tree or big garden, which points at the same thing.
What will I see at El Shugarat?
The gorgonian fans on the reef wall are the point, along with the two large black corals set in the canyon walls at around 30 m. Longnose hawkfish live in the fans and are recorded at this pin in OBIS. Nudibranchs, blue-spotted rays and crocodilefish are the other regulars, and turtles turn up occasionally. Giant table corals and a shallow lagoon with reef fish finish the dive.
Is there current at El Shugarat?
Usually, yes. Sinai Divers records current as very common and Circle Divers classifies the site as a drift, which is why the boat drops divers on the reef and picks them up rather than staying put. Plan it as a drift, carry a surface marker, and do not expect to swim back to a fixed point.
Can you snorkel at El Shugarat?
Technically yes, and Sinai Divers lists snorkelling as available, but it is a poor use of the trip. From the surface you get the shallow lagoon at the reef table and the giant table corals around it. The canyon at 16 m, the black corals at 30 m and the gorgonian wall below them are all diving depth, and you would spend two hours on a boat to see none of them.
How is El Shugarat different from Gabr el Bint next door?
They are neighbours on the same roadless coast south of Dahab and are usually run on the same boat trip. El Shugarat is built around its open canyon and the gorgonian field on the wall beyond it. Gabr el Bint, less than a kilometre away, is described instead as massive boulders, steep walls and its own gorgonians, and technical operators work it at 40-60 m.
Life recorded at El Shugarath
28 species within 1.5 km · OBISRhinecanthus assasirare · 2 records
Pseudanthias squamipinnisrare · 2 records
Paracirrhites forsterirare · 2 records
Pomacanthus imperatorrare · 2 records
Macolor nigerrare · 2 records
Caranx melampygusrare · 1 records
All 28 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Rhinecanthus assasi | rare | 2 |
| Pseudanthias squamipinnis | rare | 2 |
| Paracirrhites forsteri | rare | 2 |
| Pomacanthus imperator | rare | 2 |
| Macolor niger | rare | 2 |
| Caranx melampygus | rare | 1 |
| Chlorurus gibbus | rare | 1 |
| Coris aygula | rare | 1 |
| Grammatorcynus bilineatus | rare | 1 |
| Halichoeres hortulanus | rare | 1 |
| Heniochus intermedius | rare | 1 |
| Oxycheilinus digramma | rare | 1 |
| Papilloculiceps longiceps | rare | 1 |
| Parupeneus cyclostomus | rare | 1 |
| Pseudobalistes fuscus | rare | 1 |
| Pterois miles | rare | 1 |
| Scorpaenopsis diabolus | rare | 1 |
| Stegastes lacrymatus | rare | 1 |
| Stethojulis albovittata | rare | 1 |
| Variola louti | rare | 1 |
| Abudefduf sexfasciatus | rare | 1 |
| Amblyeleotris steinitzi | rare | 1 |
| Oxycirrhites typus | rare | 1 |
| Siganus stellatus | rare | 1 |
| Amphiprion bicinctus | rare | 1 |
| Anampses meleagrides | rare | 1 |
| Anampses twistii | rare | 1 |
| Caesio lunaris | rare | 1 |
Nearby sites in Sinai
Explore all sitesGabr el Bint0.7 km
SinaiTwenty kilometres south of Dahab with no road: a gorgonian wall reached by boat or by camel, and almost nobody on it.
Shaab Said1.4 km
SinaiA shallow drift over coral pinnacles and two lagoons on the Gabr el Bint boat run, dived only when the weather is right.
The Caves6.9 km
SinaiUndercut shoreline south of Dahab: the caves are overhangs, the entry is the hard part, and the real find is the small stuff.
Um Sid7.3 km
SinaiA wide sand corridor cut into the reef 400 m north of The Caves, with a garden-eel slope and gorgonians deep, skipped by most Dahab groups because of the current.
Three Pools8.9 km
SinaiThree sandy lagoons in the reef plate, three to four metres deep, that you walk into and swim through to reach the drop-off.
Moray Garden9.2 km
SinaiA sandy shore entry in Dahab's Southern Oasis that runs out to golden coral blocks, usually dived as a one-way drift with the site next door.
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