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The Necklace 8-16 mts
Ireland · reef · intermediate
8–16 mintermediateOWboat entry
The Necklace 8-16 mts
A kelp gully you work uphill to 5 m before dropping into a rock bowl at 12 m, at the sheltered eastern end of the Magharee Islands.
Max depth8–16 m
Required levelintermediate
Entry typeboat
Visibility20 m
The dive
The Necklace is the shallowest of the sites Waterworld publishes for the Magharee Islands and the only one with a profile that goes up before it goes down. The centre's own description is precise about it: you drop into a kelp gully at 10 m and work up the gully to 5 m, where you drop into a rock bowl that bottoms at 12 m, and in the crevices of that bowl you find squat lobster and leopard-spotted gobies. The published band is 8 to 16 m. Both of the animals the centre names are in the occurrence records for this pin, which is a better hit rate than most dive-centre copy manages.
The pin sits at Illaunimmil, at the eastern end of the island group, and that position explains the kelp. The older Irish dive guide to the Maharees notes that winter Atlantic gales scour the south-west faces of these islands almost bare while the easterly faces carry kelp forest; this is one of the easterly faces. The 1996 BioMar survey dived the channel between Illaunimmil and Illaunboe, 390 m south-south-east of this pin, and found exactly that: coarse sand over cobbles and boulders with Laminaria saccharina the dominant kelp, along with Laminaria hyperborea and Saccorhiza polyschides, and a patchy red algae understorey beneath.
The same survey is the reason to take the tide seriously here. It describes that channel as tide-swept, and a second station south-east of Illaunimmil as current-swept cobbles at 20 m, with the hydroid Sertularia argentea growing in large clumps on the larger stones and brittlestars common under the boulders. Whatever the club guide says about the group being fairly non-tidal overall, this end of it moves.
Access is by boat, ten to fifteen minutes out from Scraggane Pier at Fahamore. The Necklace is 730 m from the Ridge Holes and 740 m from The Point, which are separate pins on Waterworld's list, and the shallow band makes it the natural second dive of the day rather than the first.
- A kelp gully worked uphill from 10 m to 5 m
- A rock bowl dropping to 12 m at the top of the gully
- Squat lobster and leopard-spotted goby in the crevices, both on record at this pin
- Laminaria and Saccorhiza kelp forest on the sheltered easterly side of the islands
- Shallow enough to be the second dive of the day
Please note before you go
- Tide-swept ground: the survey channel 390 m away is described as tide-swept and the guides advise diving slack at this end of the islands
- Dense kelp: Laminaria hyperborea and Saccorhiza forest, which is entanglement ground for trailing gear
- 8 to 17-18 °C water: drysuit or a thick wetsuit, and the training to use it
- Boat-only access with no shore exit anywhere on the island group
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Boat only, ten to fifteen minutes out from Scraggane Pier at Fahamore, north of Castlegregory. Waterworld's centre is about 30 m from the water at the pier and runs two boats, departing at 9am and 11am. A visiting club can launch its own RIB from the two slips at Scraggane, which has a wide gradually sloped slipway, toilets and ample parking, with no difficulty launching except possibly at very low tide.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Rules and permits
The reefs lie within Magharee Islands SAC (site code 002261), designated by the National Parks and Wildlife Service for the habitat Reefs [1170]. No diving permit or fee is published. Landing on Illauntannig is a separate question, as its early monastic settlement is a National Monument with restricted access.
Season
Roughly May to September. Waterworld puts the water at 8 °C at the start of the season and 17 to 18 °C in July, August and September, and the older Irish dive guide records that these islands take the full force of the Atlantic gales in winter. That same guide notes the easterly faces are the sheltered ones, so this site has a slightly wider weather window than the outer reefs at the Gurrig end. The BioMar survey dived the Illaunimmil channel on 19 May 1996 and DUSAC ran a club trip in June 2009.
Conditions
Visibility20 m
Currentmoderate
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range8–16 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsquiet
Waterworld gives visibility across its Maharees sites as about 40 m on very good days, around 20 m on average and about 7 m on bad ones; the Castlegregory village guide reproduces the same figures but caps the best days at 30 m, so plan on 20 m. Water is about 8 °C at the start of the season and 17 to 18 °C in July, August and September. Boats leave Scraggane Pier at 9am and 11am with a ten to fifteen minute run. Being on the easterly, landward side of the group, this site holds up in weather that shuts down the outer reefs.
On current: This end of the island group is tidal, whatever the general picture. The 1996 BioMar survey describes the channel between Illaunimmil and Illaunboe, 390 m from this pin, as tide-swept, and a second station south-east of Illaunimmil as current-swept cobbles; it also records moderately strong tidal streams in Magharee Sound. Against that, Dublin University Sub-Aqua Club, which dived the Maharees in June 2009, records the sites as fairly non-tidal with only a small drift even at mid tide, and the older Dive Ireland guide advises slack-water diving specifically at the eastern end of the group. Take the tidal reading and go on the boat's timing.
Best months: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep
Questions & answers
How deep is The Necklace?
Waterworld publishes it as 8 to 16 metres, the shallowest of its Magharee Islands sites. The centre's own profile is more specific: in at 10 m in a kelp gully, up the gully to 5 m, then down into a rock bowl that bottoms at 12 m. That keeps the whole dive inside Open Water depth limits.
What is the dive like at The Necklace?
It runs uphill before it runs down, which is unusual. You drop into a kelp gully at about 10 m and work up it to 5 m, then drop over the lip into a rock bowl at 12 m and search the crevices. Squat lobster and leopard-spotted goby are what the centre names, and both are in the occurrence records for this pin.
How do you get to The Necklace?
By boat only, ten to fifteen minutes out from Scraggane Pier at Fahamore, north of Castlegregory in County Kerry. Waterworld runs two boats from the pier with departures at 9am and 11am. Clubs bringing their own RIB launch from the two slips at Scraggane, which has a wide gradually sloped slipway, parking and toilets.
Is The Necklace good for beginners?
It is the most approachable of the Maharees dives. Sixteen metres is inside Open Water limits and the profile is shallow enough to stretch out, but it is still a boat dive in 8 to 18 °C Atlantic water on tide-swept ground, so a drysuit and some cold-water experience matter. Dense kelp is the practical thing to manage: keep gauges and alternate air clipped in.
Can you snorkel The Necklace?
From a boat on a flat, slack day, yes, and it is the only site in this group where that is true. The kelp canopy comes up to about 5 m at the top of the gully, so you can look down on the forest and the gully mouth. The crevice life the site is named for sits 12 m down and stays out of reach.
Is there current at The Necklace?
Yes, and it is the reason to dive it on slack. The 1996 BioMar survey describes the channel between Illaunimmil and Illaunboe, 390 m from this pin, as tide-swept, and a second station south-east of the island as current-swept cobbles. Dublin University Sub-Aqua Club calls the group as a whole fairly non-tidal, but the older Irish guide advises slack-water diving at this eastern end.
Why is there so much kelp here?
Because of which way the site faces. The older Irish dive guide to the Maharees records that winter Atlantic gales scour the south-west faces of these islands almost bare while the easterly faces carry kelp forest, and this pin is on an easterly face at Illaunimmil. The 1996 survey of the adjacent channel confirms it, finding Laminaria saccharina, Laminaria hyperborea and Saccorhiza polyschides on the boulders.
When is the best time of year to dive it?
Roughly May to September. Water is about 8 °C at the start of the season and 17 to 18 °C in July, August and September. Because this is a sheltered easterly face, it holds up in weather that closes the outer reefs at the Gurrig end of the group, so it is often the site that saves a marginal day.
Life recorded at The Necklace 8-16 mts
60 species within 1.5 km · OBISTursiops truncatusoccasional · 6 recordsMola molarare · 1 records
Halichoerus grypusoccasional · 24 records
Marthasterias glacialisoccasional · 6 records
Echinus esculentusoccasional · 5 records
Cliona celataoccasional · 5 records
All 60 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Halichoerus grypus | occasional | 24 |
| Marthasterias glacialis | occasional | 6 |
| Tursiops truncatus | occasional | 6 |
| Echinus esculentus | occasional | 5 |
| Cliona celata | occasional | 5 |
| Calliostoma zizyphinum | occasional | 5 |
| Clavelina lepadiformis | rare | 3 |
| Cancer pagurus | rare | 3 |
| Polyclinum aurantium | rare | 3 |
| Homarus gammarus | rare | 3 |
| Maja squinado | rare | 3 |
| Necora puber | rare | 3 |
| Sertularia argentea | rare | 3 |
| Aslia lefevrei | rare | 3 |
| Pachymatisma johnstonia | rare | 3 |
| Steromphala cineraria | rare | 3 |
| Pollachius pollachius | rare | 2 |
| Aplidium punctum | rare | 2 |
| Botryllus schlosseri | rare | 2 |
| Scyliorhinus canicula | rare | 2 |
| Cetorhinus maximus | rare | 2 |
| Asterias rubens | rare | 2 |
| Ophiactis balli | rare | 2 |
| Ophiothrix fragilis | rare | 2 |
| Thorogobius ephippiatus | rare | 2 |
| Taurulus bubalis | rare | 2 |
| Hemimycale columella | rare | 2 |
| Aplysia punctata | rare | 2 |
| Patella pellucida | rare | 2 |
| Halecium halecinum | rare | 2 |
| Holothuria forskali | rare | 2 |
| Diplosoma listerianum | rare | 1 |
| Diplosoma spongiforme | rare | 1 |
| Aplidium nordmanni | rare | 1 |
| Aplidium turbinatum | rare | 1 |
| Diazona violacea | rare | 1 |
| Dendrodoa grossularia | rare | 1 |
| Polycarpa scuba | rare | 1 |
| Munida rugosa | rare | 1 |
| Pagurus bernhardus | rare | 1 |
| Pagurus prideaux | rare | 1 |
| Inachus phalangium | rare | 1 |
| Xantho pilipes | rare | 1 |
| Obelia geniculata | rare | 1 |
| Nemertesia antennina | rare | 1 |
| Hydrallmania falcata | rare | 1 |
| Luidia ciliaris | rare | 1 |
| Henricia oculata | rare | 1 |
| Psammechinus miliaris | rare | 1 |
| Parablennius gattorugine | rare | 1 |
| Callionymus lyra | rare | 1 |
| Chelidonichthys cuculus | rare | 1 |
| Mola mola | rare | 1 |
| Dysidea fragilis | rare | 1 |
| Hymeniacidon perlevis | rare | 1 |
| Haliclona (Haliclona) simulans | rare | 1 |
| Raspailia (Raspailia) ramosa | rare | 1 |
| Thymosia guernei | rare | 1 |
| Cyanea lamarckii | rare | 1 |
| Chrysaora hysoscella | rare | 1 |
Nearby sites in Magharee Islands, Castlegregory
Explore all sitesTHE GULLY: 8-20mts0.5 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregoryA gully swum between two cliff faces on Inishtooskert, 8 to 20 m, with cave mouths off it the operator tells you to leave alone because of the swell.
POLLACK ALLEY: 12-16mts0.6 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregoryA 300-metre kelp wall dropping to sand at Inishtooskert, where big pollack hang over the sprat runs.
Square Rock 12-22 mts0.6 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregorySquared-off rock forming gullies and swim-throughs at 12 to 22 m in the channel between Inishtooskert and Illaunimmil; the only published description is one sentence long.
THE RIDGE HOLES: 10-22mts.0.7 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregoryA ridge crest pocked with very large round holes, often with crawfish or spiny spider crab sitting in them, worked between 10 and 22 m.
THE POINT: 18-22mts.0.7 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregoryBoulders, overhangs and anemone-covered canyon walls at 18 to 22 m, in the middle of the Magharee Islands where the dive centre's named sites cluster.
THE INNER REEF: 18-33mts1.5 km
Magharee Islands, CastlegregoryKelp on the top, then a clean rock wall running roughly half a mile down to sand at 33 m, on the landward side of Gurrig Island.
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