Small Giftun, which most boats call the Police Station after the tower on the island above it, is an exposed reef with a plateau at 15 to 25 m running out to a shoulder and then a wall that drops past 100 m. It is dived as a drift, the current is usually strong, and the reason to come is the big blue on your shoulder while the reef runs past on the other side.
- Depth
- 18-30 m
- Visibility
- 15–25 m
- Season
- Apr - Nov
- Boat ride
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- Advanced
Small Giftun · Police Station
The plan of the reef
On the chart
Small Giftun · Police Station
80 min from the marina
Topography and dive profile
A plateau at 15 to 25 m along the top, dropping to a shoulder between 18 and 30 m that carries the dive, and beyond that a steep wall falling past 100 m into open water. Giant fan corals stand out from the wall where the current feeds them.
There is a tunnel at around 45 m. It is beyond recreational range and we do not dive it · it is on the plan because it is on the reef, not because it is on the itinerary. Turtles work the plateau, Napoleon wrasse patrol the shoulder, and barracuda and tuna hang off the wall in the blue.
What you'll see
- ◇Giant fan corals
- ◇Green turtles
- ◇Napoleon wrasse
- ◇Barracuda
- ◇Tuna in the blue
Who it suits
PADI Advanced Open Water, and honestly a little more than the card. The current is often strong, the wall gives no visual floor to judge depth against, and a drift here means committing to a direction. This is not the site to do your first drift dive on.
When the captain runs this site
About 80 minutes out, run as a drift · we drop you upcurrent and the boat picks you up wherever you surface. The captain calls the direction on the day and will move the dive if the current is running harder than the group can handle.
Frequently asked
There is a police post on Small Giftun above the site, and the boats named the dive after the landmark. You will hear both names for the same reef. Erg Somaya, which we also dive, sits just north of the same tower · close enough that the names sometimes get swapped.
Past 100 m, which is another way of saying it does not have a bottom you will see. We dive the plateau and the shoulder between 18 and 30 m. There is also a tunnel at about 45 m that is outside recreational limits, and we leave it alone.
Often, not always. It is an exposed site and that is what makes it good · the current is what feeds the fan corals and brings the pelagics in. If it is running too hard for the group on the day, the captain moves us somewhere sheltered rather than making it a fight.