diving7seas tricted within the marine park, but there is no reason not to dive provided you adhere to the relevant rules. The protected area is approximately seven kilometres long, around 600 metres wide and extends from the surface to a depth of 50 metres. It has long been known that the Reserva Natural Parcial do Garajau is one of the top diving areas in the whole of Portugal.
The highlight of the national park can only be reached by boat, a journey of around eight minutes: at Cap Garajau, several resident, tame groupers, growing up to 1.5 metres in length, make their home. These giants are 50 to 60 years old and remain almost completely unfazed, even during a photo shoot. The only way to approach them is by descending into open water, meaning a free fall of 20 metres into the blue: it‘ s our first ace.
A little further west, two rocky outcrops rise from a depth of 30 metres to just 12 metres below the surface: we dive at the T-Reef, which the Portuguese call‘ Mama’. It takes the fast dive boat about ten minutes from the
Photos: Frank Schneider
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