The Quirimbas Archipelago - St. Lazarus Bank

St. Lazarus Bank lies some 50 nautical miles east of the Quirimbas Archipelago of northern Mozambique. It rises from the seabed at approximately 2,000 m to it's shallowest point of approximately 13 m. It is approximately 10 nautical miles long by 4 nautical miles wide. It lies in a north-east direction and is located well into the southerly running Mozambique Current.

The place has a misterious feel to it, and lying at anchor so far offshore with no island in sight, surrounded only by water and the natural beauty beneath it, does tend to push you into a meditative and phylosophycal state. Although prevailing currents can be anywhere between 1 to 6 knots at any one time, there are dive sites that are out of the main current stream. Visibility is usually anywhere between 30 or more metres, and the best visibility we've recorded there is 62 m.

Due to the offshore nature of the bank, the place teems with large game fish. There are countless sharks there. The stocky Silvertips dominate the reef, while Silkies dominate the deeper waters away from the reef. Tiger Sharks, Grey Reef Sharks, Blacktip Sharks, Bull Sharks, and migrating Scalloped Hammerhead Sharks are common sightings too.

Corals there are untouched and impressive. Huge schools of Blue and Yellow Fusiliers, Rainbow Runner, and Surgeons of all types and sizes line the reef drop-off's, and can also be found around shallower monolithic bommies. Drop just below the top of the reef on the current side and you will find no current at all.

Large Potato Grouper, Giant Grouper, Malabar Grouper, Coral Trout, Napoleon Wrasses, and the mighty Dogtooth Tuna will swim right up to you and be your 'hosts' for the rest of the dive. Pick a spot on Lazarus and you will be amazed. It is difficult not to be.

Trips to Lazarus are done only on a live aboard yacht for 4 nights or more, where the longer duration trips would include stops to the islands of Quisiva, Medjumbe, Vamizi, the Metundo Canyon, and some other island of choice. If you start to get bored at Lazarus, which is highly unlikely, we can step it up a notch and do a night dive.....At the moment, we are the only company in East Africa that is dedicated to offering live aboard diving to St. Lazarus Bank.

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