Soufrière & the Pitons - Southwest Coast - Saint Lucia

About Soufrière & the Pitons - Southwest Coast

The southwest coast inside the Soufrière Marine Management Area is the beating heart of Saint Lucia diving, a protected corridor of reef, wall and pinnacle that mirrors the volcanic drama of the Pitons above it. Beneath the surface the island does not ease gently into the deep: coral shelves studded with giant barrel sponges end abruptly in walls that fall out of sight, sea-whip gardens sway along the drop-off, and volcanic peaks like the Keyhole Pinnacles rise from the blue to almost break the surface. Twelve signature sites pack into a few protected miles - the famous shore dive of Anse Chastanet Reef, the drift past the Petit Piton at Superman's Flight, the healthy plateau reefs of Trou Diable and Grand Caille, turtle country at Turtle Reef, and the sculpture reef off Canaries - all reached in minutes from the Soufrière and Tet Paul boat bases. A marine-area permit, contributed by every diver to the SMMA, funds the patrols and moorings that have kept these reefs among the healthiest in the Caribbean, and the sheltered leeward position keeps them diveable virtually year-round.

Highlights

• ✓Superman's Flight - the iconic drift along the Petit Piton's coral wall, made famous under water in Superman II
• ✓Anse Chastanet Reef - the island's premier shore dive, gliding over coral to the South Piton wall
• ✓Keyhole Pinnacles - volcanic peaks rising from the deep to within a few feet of the surface
• ✓Trou Diable and Grand Caille - plateau reefs with barrel sponges the size of cars
• ✓Turtle Reef and Coral Gardens - green and hawksbill turtles grazing at the foot of Gros Piton
• ✓Anse La Verdure - an underwater sculpture park colonising the reef off Canaries

Getting There

Most divers reach the southwest from Hewanorra (UVF) in the south - roughly an hour and a half up the coast road to Soufrière - or from George F.L. Charles (SLU) in the north via Castries and the Soufrière Road; allow two hours in either case. Boats launch from the Soufrière and Tet Paul bay fronts and from the resort jetties at Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain, running the SMMA grounds inside five to fifteen minutes, while Anse Chastanet Reef itself is dived straight from the beach. Soufrière-based operators arrange the marine-area permit at the shop, so divers do not need to organise it themselves.