As the Marmara Sea and its around is surrounded by mucilage, we went south for new dive rotations and took a look at the dive sites on the Hatay coast, which is called as “Red Sea” of the Eastern Mediterranean.
Turkey is a paradise in terms of dive sites, but the mucilage that has been seen at Marmara Sea and its around change somewhat this situation. The mucilage seen on the shores of the Marmara Sea also showed itself in the North Aegean coasts, although not in large amounts. The mucilage is disintegrated after Bozcaada, for now is not expected to reach all Aegean coasts. However, mucilage, which still exists in the Marmara and threatens the Aegean coasts, albeit with a low probability for now, seems to change our dive rotation this summer. That is why, as Saatolog we compiled dive sites on the coast of Hatay, known as “Red Sea” of the Eastern Mediterranean.
Let us remind you once again that one of the most effective measures we can take individually before moving on to dive sites is to be more conscious about waste oils.
Samandağ
Our first stop is in Samandağ, known as Turkey’s Red Sea. Samandağ is less well-known than other diving points but is quite diverse in terms of underwater richness. Also it is the 10th longest beach in the world, and one of the places where migratory fish are seen quite often due to its proximity to the Suez Canal. Samandağ is a perfect diving point to observe underwater diversity. In addition, you can explore the crowded stingray population of 7 different species living on the sandy floors of the seabed.
Mount Kel
This time, we take a deep breath to dive into an underwater cave located in Mount Casius that lies on the shore of the sea in the southeast corner of the Mediterranean. You can dive into the water cave from 20 meters below the sea. Under the Mount Casius, which is a dormant volcano, the underwater cave looks like a fairy chimney. The underwater cave, which has approximately 130 caves, cavities, and chimneys, was named the “Big Cave” by guide fisherman Mahmut İğde and his diving partner Cihan Öztürk. You can enter from the Beyaz Kumsal (White Beach) to this underwater cave.
Karamağara Bay
Karamağara Bay is also in Yayla Mount, you can get to Karamağara Bay by boats from Samandağ. The bay with its clean water has managed to become one of the favorite diving points of enthusiasts for several years. We give pirates credit for they used this sheltered and untouched structure of Karamağara as a pirate haven once time.
