Don’t forget that when diving in themarine environment, we are just visitors.For this activity to be sustainable ourpresence should be as unobtrusive aspossible. Please remember:­ Do not feed animals or do anything toalter the environment and the balance ofnature­ Control your buoyancy. The environ­ment around you is fragile and easilydamaged by knocks.­ Refrain from spearfishing, there areother ways to enjoy marine life whilerespecting the environment. Pleaseremember that spearfishing is prohibitedin Reserve Zone A.­ Avoid interacting with marine mammalsmay approach you.­ Those interested in underwater photo­graphy or night time diving should limitthe use of artificial light as this disturbsmarine life.­ Do not remove anything from theseabed except the waste you may find(fishing weights, lines, nets, fishing lines,tins, plastic etc)­ Extreme caution should be taken inunderwater caves and hollows. Avoidthem unless you have been properlytrained.

Where can I dive?­ In Zone A with authorization and in ZoneB with 15 days prior notification.­ Night diving requires authorization for allzones.­ Due to their fragility, the abrasionplatforms in zone A1 are out of bounds tothe general public including divers.Where and how do I get authorization?­ To dive in Zone A you need to apply to"la Consejería de Agricultura, Pesca y

Medio Ambiente" presenting the followingdocuments: application, map, the boat’sseaworthiness certificate (“Certificado deNavegabilidad”), proof of ownership (“Hojade Asiento”); a valid scuba diving federa­tion licence (FEDAS) except for thosecompanies catering for active tourism. Youcan also apply online at the Consejería deAgricultura, Pesca y Medio webpage.

Yellowsub(CETS Information point)

www.yellowsubtarifa.comCies Sub

www.divetarifa.com

Participating companies

Scubadiving

The Parque Natural del Estrecho is aterrestrial and maritime nature parkcovering 18,931 hectares. Half of thisarea is made up of the waters whichextend one mile out to sea runningparallel to the shore from Cabo deGracia in Tarfia to Punta de San Garcíain Algeciras.Located between the Atlantic and theMediterranean, it is an area of consi­derable biological and biogeographicinterest particularly as it is the point ofconvergence between three marine pro­vinces: Lusitanian, Mauritanian andMediterranean.

The coastal waters of the Strait ofGibraltar forms one of the areas ofgreatest biodiversity in Europe with morethan 1900 species of marine fauna andflora, some previously unknown to thescientific community. It is therefore anamazing place for scuba diving.This Parque Natural forms part of what,in 2006, was named the Reserva de laBiosfera Intercontinental del Medite­rráneo.

How can I help protectthe marine environment? Regulations for scuba diving

Useful addresses

Caetearíawww.caetariabuceo.com

Scorporawww.buceoscorpora.com

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Oficina del Parque Natural del EstrechoC/ Coghen, 3San Fernando (Cádiz)Tlf. 856 58 00 10Pn.delestrecho.cma@juntadeandalucia.es

Punto de Informacióndel EstrechoCtra N­340, km 77,5Tarifa (Cádiz)Tlf. 671 590 877

Centro de VisitantesHuerta GrandeCtra N­34, km 96El Pelayo. Algeciras.(Cádiz)Tlf. 671 590 887

CEGMA(Centro DeGestión delMedio Marino)Algeciras (Cádiz)Tlf. 956 673 835

Isla de TarifaIsla de Tarifa is the southernmost point ofEurope and also marks the geographicaldivide between the Atlantic and theMediterranean. Parts of the seabedaround the island are quite unique andare notably different from those foundelsewhere on the Cádiz coast. In thelowest sandy depths you can find“forests” of Laminaria ochroleuca. There arealso coral and gorgonian colonies as wellas sponges and ascidia – a trueunderwater paradise. Fish seek refugeand feed around the island and in itscaves, providing a spectacle of immensebeauty.

Another attraction that makes this anexceptional spot for scuba diving is thevarious shipwrecked vessels which lie onthe seabed near the island. Theseinclude the San Andrés and LasCalderas which sank at the end of the19th century.The Shipwreck of SanAndrésIn April 1856 the Heredia family ofMálaga chartered the Ribera del Miño tosail to the Port of Seville. Around 100’clock at night it was struck by theEnglish frigate HMS Minden and just afew minutes later it sank along with 64 ofthose on board. The shipwreck gets itsname from the vessel’s lead ballastwhich came from the San Andrés mines.

Anchoring boats to be used forunderwater activities:

Anchorage

To facilitate sustainable scuba diving inel Parque Natural del Estrecho there aredesignated buoyed areas for the exclu­sive use of boats taking part in under­water activities, Please note:­Authorization from el Parque Naturaldel Estrecho is required­A maximum of 2 boats per structure ispermitted on a first come first servebasis.

To help preserve the seabeds in elParque Natural del Estrecho, the ancho­ring of boats outside designated placesin Zone A and at depths of less than 20metres in Zone B is strictly prohibited.

Las Calles05º 36,902´36º 00,558´13 m

Los Pasillos05º 36,777´36º 00,284´13 m

Las Calderas05º 36,793´36º 00,124´

Punta Marroquí05º 36,793´36º 00,027´20 m

Las Piscinas05º 36,395´36º 00,182´

10 mEl San Andrés

05º 36,482´36º 00,040´

15 mMarroquí Este

05º 36,563´35º 59,970´

15 m

ISLA de TARIFAA ZoneB ZoneA1 Zone

Barco de las Habichuelas05º 26´ 22,23´´36º 03´49,27´´

7 m

AnchorageALGECIRAS

Anchor point(WGS 84)LongitudeLatitudeDepth (m)

ALGECIRAS 05º 26,000´36º 06,250´

4 mPunta San García

Bajo del Bono05º 26,60

36º 03,183´30 m

Punta Carnero05º 25,290´36º 04,510´

9 m

05º 25,390´36º 04,970´

10 mTimoncillo

AlgecirasTwo different types of shoreline arediscernible on either side of the Island ofTarifa. The coast that stretches to PuntaCarnero is formed by rocky cliffs where

you can find arenose­loamy flyschformations from the Quaternary periodand characteristic abrasion platforms.Attractive spots in this area to scuba diveinclude:Bajo del BonoA gravel bed leading up to a rockyoutcrop or peak. Well worth observingare the coral colonies on the rocky wallsas well as the numerous shoals of fish.Punta San GarcíaWhile the seabed is principally rocky, youcan also find sand and gravel accumu­lations in certain areas. Here the sealifeis abundant and the great variety ofgorgonian colonies with their differenttones make this spot particularlybeautiful.

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AnchorageISLA de TARIFA

Anchor point(WGS 84)LongitudeLatitudeDepth (m)

The anchorages have been co­financed by MedPAN NORTH project and have beenadapted to the seabed with an ecological design.