Las Cuevas

Overview

Las Cuevas (The Caves) is a boat site at the base of Isla Desecheo with about a dozen caverns, tunnels, arches and triangular windows, some covered in orange soft coral, plus sea fans and black coral. Swim-throughs start as shallow as 10 feet, and current sources put the reef at 30 to 40 feet; a 1998 guide gave 25 to 50 feet. Look for glassy sweepers, French angelfish, squirrelfish and goliath grouper. It suits divers and snorkelers, but caves and overhangs are overhead environments.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Site characteristics

• Caves & swim-throughs^[1]

Habitat & marine life

• caverns with orange soft-coral-covered limestone arches^[1]
• canyons and arches; triangular windows^[2]
• natural tunnels and archways with sea fans and black coral^[4]
• numerous caves, overhangs and ledges^[5]
• glassy sweepers^[1]
• French angelfish^[1]
• squirrelfish^[1]
• goliath grouper^[5]

Marine life is what sources report having seen or commonly seeing — not a guarantee.

Safety considerations

• Overhead environment^[5]

Ocean conditions change daily. Dive within your training, plan with current local information and consider a local professional guide. Full safety note.

Depth reports by source