| Conger alley |
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Alternative Names: Ali’s reef
Type of Dive: Boulder slope
Suggested experience: Trainees to master divers
Travel directions: Take the A82 up Loch Lomondside to Tarbet. Take the LH fork onto the A83 and pass through Arrochar driving around the head of Loch Long. Two miles out of Arrochar is a long straight with a long tarmac lay-by for 15+cars opposite the loch about 100m north of Loch side Cottage.
Parking directions: There is a lay bye 200m from the path to the water but there is room for a few cars opposite the path. This is a dangerous road as the cars here travel very fast. Stay alert
From Little Chef, Dumbarton: 25.8 miles; 30 to 45 minutes
Lat & Long: 56:11:590N; 04:46:509W
Site entry/exit: Kit up in the lay bye or across the road on the pavement, walk 200m south from lay-by and step over a low fence opposite the white house. A path takes you to the site entry/exit by a cleared path running into the water. There is a large rock on your left as you enter the water.
Underwater directions: Head out at 90 deg to the
shore to the bottom at 30m and turn up the loch approx 30 deg keeping to the
edge of the slope. After a 1 min fin you come to the bottom of the bottom reef.
Zig zag up the reef to the top. At the top of the bottom reef continue up from
23m to 17m and you will come to the bottom of top reef. Stay here as long as your computer
or air lets you and then back to the small reef and then back 15m and out at the big rock .Tide Tables
If you head down to 12-15m turn left and fin to the middle of top reef; you miss
out the bottom reef completely. Few divers even look at small reef at all. If
you venture out on the muddy flat at 30m use a compass as it’s easy to get lost.
Come back to the reef on 315 deg.
Here you will see Congers and Goldsinney by the score. In Febuary there are usually a lot of dogfish in the shallows (6-10m)
Site Hazards: Fast cars and bikes on A83, Silt can cause poor visibility.
Nearest Public phone: Phone at entrance to Ardgarten campsite and the Esso petrol station
Mobile Network service: Orange / vodaphone
Pub: The Village Inn, The Arrochar Hotel
Cafe: Pit Stop Diner (greasy spoon) Left after the Arrocher hotel heading north.
Air & Nitrox fills: Aquarton Glasgow
Revision: 1
Surface Photos:
Underwater Photos:
The entry / exit
The top reef
The bottom reef
The small reef
Dive Map:
Back to Finstrokes ......... Back to divesites
Dive Report: Stevie 1262, Feb 07
I was there on Sunday. it was very busy with Divers so went in opp the layby and turned right...vis was crap down to 12m like warm soup...it looked like fresh water or plankton very odd.
Below this vis was really good 6-10m gin clear with ambient light at 19m, lots of life and some not bad pics although my camera had been knocked onto the wrong setting....dogfish, one big conger, shoals of mackerel and not another Diver on the reef, maybe the shallow bad vis...(well it was almost zero vis).. had put them off.