Blocks diving site in Abu Dhabi, UAE

When I first decided to dive in the UAE I was very skeptical with regards to the marine life I could encounter, mostly due to the artificial islands and huge construction sites being undergone in the UAE's major cities. 

However, I discovered I was totally wrong.

The first site I visited is called Blocks (GPS coordinates: N24 38.982 E54 28.568) off the coast of Abu Dhabi, not far from the famous Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi's Formula 1 circuit. The site is called Blocks after the blocks of cement that have been placed off the coast to repopulate the coral reefs in Abu Dhabi. In fact, following the construction of the Yas Island and the other ongoing shore changes, the marine life suffered a lot and the corals became quite scarce, hence the need to repopulate it. 

The idea was to create offshore nurseries to re-create the coral reef and the best way to achieve that in an ecological manner was to place large concrete hollow blocks or cubes. In no time marine life started growing inside those blocks and around them, you can see thousands of fish from different species, colors and shapes. The quantity of fish is just amazing (cf. the photos below), especially that many of them follow the divers and are not intimidated by the visitors. In some rare occasions you might encounter rays, dolphins, turtles and barracudas. The maximum depth is 9 meters (30 feet) so you can dive safely for a very long time within the limits of the air in the tank.

The weather during summer time is quite harsh, the air temperature is around 45 degrees C during the day and around 35 degrees C during night time. The water temperature rarely goes below 35 degrees C during summer months. However, winter time is much more pleasant with spring temperatures from January to April. So there is no need for a wetsuit for summer dives and a 1mm or 3mm wetsuit is enough for winter diving.