Spotlight on Anemone Reef diving

Anemone reef is dived by boats from Phuket, Krabi and Phi Phi.

It is located half way between Phuket and Phi Phi. Boats from Phi Phi and Krabi normally dive Anemone reef together with nearby Shark Point or the King Cruiser Wreck. Boats from Phuket tack on a third dive at Koh Doc Mai which is on the route between anemone reef and Phuket.

Anemone reef can be dived all year round.

No prizes for guessing how Anemone Reef got it’s name. Anemone Reef is a similar type of dive site to Shark Point, actually they are only a few hundred metres apart. It’s a submerged pinnacle but it goes a little deeper that Shark Point and where as Shark Point can be seen from the surface, Anemone reef doesn’t quite break the surface (the King Cruiser Wreck sank because it hit Anemone reef).

Anemone reef can be a more challenging dive if there is a current running because there is less rock to shelter behind and for that reason it is dived less often than Shark Point. Ideally divers descend to the bottom of the pinnacle and work their way shallower as they circumnavigate the rock in ever decreasing circles. If currents are strong then dives must be focused on the current shadow site of the reef, zigzagging slowly upwards,

Leopard sharks are seen at Anemone Reef in the sandy patches at the edge of the reef. Lots of critters are also seen including seahorses, frog fish and ghost pipe fish. It’s an incredibly pretty dive site especially in the shallow areas where the sun shines onto the multi-coloured anemones.