- Napantao MPA
Icons:
Location: Near San Francisco town
Depth: 10-140+ ft. (3-40+m)
N
apantao is the oldest marine
protected area in Sogod bay.
Coral Cay Conservation is based in
the area and as a result, there is not
a lot of illegal fishing in the
sanctuary. It is said to be one of the
top 10 wall dives in South East Asia.
Napantao is a fantastic wall dive
starting at around 45 ft. (13m) and
drops down past safe diving limits
to 160 ft. (50m). Currents can be a
bit tricky but this is a plus as when
currents are strong pelagic fishes
are often seen. Tuna, wahoo, devil
rays, rainbow runners and midnight
snappers all school in the area and
can be seen with the fusilier masses
in the blue water. The wall is
covered with red soft corals
gorgonian fans and green Tubastrea
sp.tree corals that open their
polyps when the currents are strong
for a burst of reef color.
The best time to dive Napantao is
mid morning. The colors can be
tremendously nice with the right
sunlight on the upper reef. There are
two walls with the major one
shaped like a horseshoe. It has a big
and deep crack past 140 ft. (42m)
full of sweetlips and spotted
groupers. It is normally dived with
the prevailing current and divers
zig-zag up the wall. At the top of
the wall there is an abundance of
marine life and hard and soft coral.
Look for the occasional whitetip
reef sharks in the limestone caves.
There’s also a second almost mini-
wall that is also very colorful and
drops down deep. Look for batfish
schools and hiding frogfish on this
wall. Divers can do both walls in
one dive if the current is strong.
Napantao is a must to dive when
visiting Sogod Bay.MandarinfishTable corals