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Secca dei Vricci
Italy · wall · technical
27–62 mtechnicalDeepboat entry
Secca dei Vricci
A pinnacle off Palmarola found only in 2002: cap at 27 m, sand at 62 m, and a north wall of red gorgonians in between.
Max depth27–62 m
Required leveltechnical
Entry typeboat
Visibilitynot sourced
The dive
The Secca dei Vricci is a submerged mountain off Palmarola, the westernmost of the Pontine islands, and it is the most recently found of the archipelago's dive sites: the operators on Ponza date its discovery to 2002. It rises from white sand at about 62 m to a cap at 27-28 m. Ponza Diving's own programme quotes the working range as 30-62 m, and the Lazio region's dive itineraries give the same shape, a top standing 27 m below the surface off a 60 m bottom.
The two flanks are different dives. The north wall is the reason people come: it is steep and covered in red gorgonians whose branches overlap densely enough that both sources describe it as a forest, with crinoids anchored to the fans and their polyps open in the current, and the usual epibionts of paramuricea growing over them. The regional guide places the gorgonian band between 30 and 50 m. The east and south-east side is broken instead into crevices, and those hold lobsters, scorpionfish and large moray eels. Over the cap there are schools of anthias, dentex passing through, large groupers, and amberjacks in the migration season.
This is not a dive you talk yourself into. Both the operator and the regional guide reserve it for divers of proven experience, on the combination of a 27 m cap and strong current, and Ponza Diving states it suits open-circuit divers only with considerable experience as well as rebreather divers. The centre's own dedicated seccas week runs the Vricci alongside deeper Palmarola banks and asks for a rebreather qualification and a scooter, which is a fair measure of how the site is normally worked.
- North wall carrying a dense forest of red gorgonians between about 30 and 50 m
- Crinoids anchored to the fans with polyps open in the current
- East and south-east side broken into crevices with lobsters, scorpionfish and large morays
- Anthias schools, dentex, large groupers over the cap and amberjacks on migration
- Only found in 2002, the newest named dive in the Pontine islands
Please note before you go
- Strong current, with no shallow refuge: the top of the pinnacle is 27 m down
- 62 m maximum depth on sand, well beyond recreational limits
- Open-water descent onto an offshore pinnacle, with decompression carried out in the blue if the current runs
- Narcosis and gas planning on a wall whose main feature sits between 30 and 50 m
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Boat dive out of Ponza, run to Palmarola as part of the island centres' deep-secca programme. Both sources place the bank off Palmarola; the catalogue pin at 40.9414 N, 12.8973 E sits a few kilometres east-north-east of the island, between Palmarola and Ponza, so treat the position as approximate and take the operator's mark.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Restrictions
None specific to diving that we could source. The waters here fall inside the Natura 2000 Special Protection Area IT6040019, which covers Ponza, Palmarola, Zannone, Ventotene and Santo Stefano and incorporates the marine sites of community importance around each island, including the Fondali circostanti l'isola di Palmarola.
Rules and permits
Palmarola and its surrounding seabed lie inside ZPS IT6040019 and the associated marine SIC. No marine protected area with dive permits, quotas or per-dive fees has been established here as far as we could establish, so the practical constraint is the operator's own rules rather than a park's.
Season
No source names a best month. The one dated seasonal marker we found is that Ponza Diving schedules its dedicated Settimana delle Secche, which includes the Vricci, for late September, when the archipelago's deep banks are the focus of the programme. Otherwise the constraint is sea state and current on an exposed offshore bank rather than the calendar.
Conditions
Visibilitynot sourced
Currentstrong
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range27–62 m
Environmentwall
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsnot sourced
An exposed offshore bank between Ponza and Palmarola, frequently in current. The dive begins with a descent in open water onto a cap at 27-28 m and continues down a wall to a white sand bottom at about 62 m. No source publishes a visibility figure for the site, which is why we give none.
On current: Ponza Diving describes the site as characterised by strong currents, and pairs that with the depth of the cap as the reason it is reserved for experienced divers. There is no shallow escape: the top of the secca is 27 m down, so a current that comes up mid-dive is dealt with at depth. The crinoids on the gorgonians sit with their polyps open to the flow, which is a fair description of the normal state of the site rather than an exception.
Questions & answers
How deep is the Secca dei Vricci?
The cap of the pinnacle sits 27-28 m below the surface and the white sand around its base is at about 62 m. Ponza Diving quotes the working range for the dive as 30-62 m, and the Lazio region's guide gives the same shape, a top 27 m down off a 60 m bottom. The gorgonian wall that is the point of the dive runs between roughly 30 and 50 m.
Is the Secca dei Vricci suitable for recreational divers?
Only at the top end of recreational, and both sources say experienced divers only. Ponza Diving states the site suits open-circuit divers with considerable experience as well as rebreather divers, and the operator's own deep-secca week runs it with rebreathers and scooters. With a 27 m cap, a 62 m base and strong current, it is a decompression dive rather than a guided reef.
Is there current on the Secca dei Vricci?
Yes, and it is one of the site's defining features. Ponza Diving describes the bank as characterised by strong currents and gives that, together with the depth of the cap, as the reason it is reserved for experienced divers. There is no shallow shelter to retreat to, since the shallowest rock is already 27 m down, so any decompression may have to be run drifting in open water.
What will I see on the Secca dei Vricci?
The north wall carries red gorgonians dense enough that both sources describe it as a forest, with crinoids anchored to the fans and their polyps open to the current. The east and south-east side is broken into crevices holding lobsters, scorpionfish and large moray eels. Over the cap you can meet schools of anthias, passing dentex, large groupers and, in migration season, amberjacks.
How do I dive the Secca dei Vricci and do I need a permit?
It is a boat dive from Ponza across to Palmarola, run by the island's dive centres as part of their deep-secca programme, so you need an operator rather than a permit. The waters lie inside Natura 2000 Special Protection Area IT6040019 and the marine site of community interest around Palmarola, but we found no marine park charging dive fees or issuing dive quotas here.
When was the Secca dei Vricci discovered?
In 2002, which makes it the most recent named dive site in the Pontine islands. Both the operator that runs it and the Lazio regional dive itineraries give that date. It is one reason the site is written up much less than the older Ponza classics despite being one of the better gorgonian walls in the archipelago.
Marine life you can see at Secca dei Vricci
Animals divers commonly encounter in these waters. This site has no occurrence record of its own yet, so this list comes from the sea it sits in rather than from observations at the pin.
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