Bohol Alona Beach - Arco

If there was one site in the Alona Beach Area I would have to call my personal favourite that site would be "Arco".  So named for the Arc formed at the top of a crevasse in the wall arco is a shallow wall just bustling with marine life and fish activity.

Being an Easterly facing wall Arco is best done during the morning hours of the day as the morning sunlight lights up the wall beautifully; bringing out the wall's true colors.  The wall is covered in an array of soft and hard coral formations filled with lots of macro life to shoot.  Make sure to check the soft corals for the ever present candy crabs found within, and the numerous bubble corals for the little orangutan crabs hiding between the bubbles.  And dont forget to keep an eye out for the nudis as they are present here in great numbersand varying colors and species.

Dont forget to explore the bottom of the shallow wall which is at about 18m/60ft.  The sandy bottom provides a home to some interesting creatures like the mantis shrimps who usually burrow into the sand; and if your really lucky they'll even be out and about searching for their next meal.

Descending even further search the elephant ear sponges for the giant frogfish hanging on the insides camouflaging themselves with the colour of the sponges that they hang onto.

Slowly ascend to the walls top at about 10M and explore the reef above; critters such as cuttlefish, clown frogfish and turtles are numerous and quite unnerved by the presence of divers giving you a chance for up close encounters with these marine creatures.

No matter how many times I dive Arco I always find something new to see; and though it is quite a boat ride from Alona's main beach the dives here are more than worth it.

For Packages to Bohol feel free to email me at m.santos@bluewaterexpeditions.net