The Channel
Conditions & tides
Scored by DiveConnect's site-physics model
Marine forecast via Copernicus Marine. Score is a rule-based guide from swell/wind vs. the site's exposure — always dive your own assessment.
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About this site
The Channel, also known as Big Fish Country, is a dive site at the Maratua atoll in the Derawan Islands of Kalimantan Timur, Indonesia. It is a channel opening in the atoll, and it is known for strong currents, large pelagic fish and drift diving.
A large school of barracuda lives here, and tornado-like barracuda formations are a feature of the site. When the current is running hard, grey reef sharks cruise against the flow. Divers hook on to the flat plateau at the mouth of the channel and watch from there. Eagle rays also school here, and divers have reported whale sharks and mola-mola on occasion.
Marine life here
Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.
Acropora solitaryensisReported here · unconfirmed
Brush CoralAcropora hyacinthusReported here · unconfirmed
Acropora floridaReported here · unconfirmed
BarracudaBarracudaReported here · unconfirmed
Eagle rayEagle rayReported here · unconfirmed
Whale SharkRhincodon typusReported here · unconfirmed
Mola mola (ocean sunfish)Mola mola (ocean sunfish)Reported here · unconfirmed
Durable tips from divers — access, hazards, marine life, facilities. For day-of conditions, use the report tool in the conditions card above.
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