Southeast of Hamata and 13 km north of Ras Banas, lies the reef group the Fury Shoals. Although it belongs to the region of Hamata geographically, we have dedicated a separate section to this popular diving area. The Fury Shoals extend 9 km from north to south and 30 km from east to west and comprise about twenty bank reefs with a variety of beautiful dive sites. Strictly speaking, the area consists of two reef groups: the reefs in the northwest belong to the Wadi Lahmi Group, and the reefs in the southeast belong to the true Fury Shoals, starting with the reefs Camilla, Farewell and Abu Galawa Kebira to the east. The term “Fury Shoal” has, however, largely been established for all reefs in this area.
Not all reefs have suitable dive sites—some have barren and rocky underwater landscapes, such as Gota and Habili Bohar, while others are heavily frequented by fishermen, such as Abu Galawa Kebira South. The majority of the reefs, however, offer divers impressive dives—both novice and experienced divers will find appropriate diving conditions and fascinating underwater worlds that leave nothing to be desired.
Easy dive sites, such as Shaab Claudio or Small Gota Sataya, allure divers with their rich coral growth, whereas divers who prefer steep drop-offs, currents and big fish can find them at Shaab Maksour. Even wreck divers can find what they want here: in front of Abu Galawa Kebira lies the Tien Hsing (see page 1-4-3), a beautifully overgrown tug that is easy to explore, between Farewell and Camilla the Adamantia K. has found its final resting place, and at Abu Galawa Soghayr lies a sunken sailing yacht. Furthermore, an ancient ship laden with amphoras sunk centuries ago in the lagoon of Sataya. Though nothing is left of the ship itself, some remnants of its cargo can still be found on the seabed.
The 5 km long reef Sataya in the south offers good shelter from the wind and waves making it an ideal place to moor at overnight. The lagoon itself is excellent for snorkelling, and with some luck you might even encounter its local dolphin population. The stop here is always a welcomed change from the usual daily routine and even daily boats come here occasionally. Depending on the resort’s location and the boat’s speed, it takes one to two hours to sail here from the mainland.
The Fury Shoals are a mainstay of every tour to the south and justify a stay of at least one full day.
