Gordon Reef, Strait of Tiran

Gordon Reef is the first of four reefs lying in a north-east line in the Strait of Tiran and is easily identified by the wreck of the Louilla, a Panamanian cargo ship, that ran aground on the reef in 1981. The "classic" dive here runs along the north side of the reef, however the reef on the southern and western side is, for me, far prettier, more pristine and has a lot more variation.

My favourite dive here (which can be done as a fixed mooring dive or drift dive), starting from one of the westerly moorings, takes you east to the drop-off where you encounter numerous giant sea fans. From here, proceeding in a south-westerly direction, you follow a large extensive plateau (approixmately 24m), skirting around the outside of what is known as the Amphitheater (a large circular sandy depression). In this area you generally find hundreds of schooling bannerfish, numerous twin-spotted snappers and trevally (orange-spotted and barred). If you are fortunate, you may encounter turtles, large rays (such as the spotted eagle ray) or even sharks (such as the leopard shark, grey reef shark or white tip reef shark). Eventually the plateau turns north leading you back to the mooring area (a sandy area full of fire corals as well as a pile of cables and metal bars). If conditions are favourable, you can continue the dive as a drift along the western side of the reef which has an extensive area of pinnacles.