Shark Reef and Yolanda Reef sit at the tip of Ras Mohammed National Park, off Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, and together they form one of the most celebrated dives in the Red Sea. It is a single drift that links two dramatic pinnacles: a sheer wall alive with pelagics, then a shallow garden littered with the cargo of a wrecked freighter. This guide explains the layout, the life, and how to dive it well.
What makes it special
Two coral pinnacles rise from very deep water, so the reef drops away into blue on nearly every side. Divers ride the current from Shark Reef's wall around to Yolanda Reef, all in one continuous flight.
Yolanda's twist is unforgettable: the cargo of the Yolanda, a freighter that sank in 1980, spilled bathtubs, toilets and sinks across the sand. Diving past a scattered bathroom on a coral shelf is one of the sport's odder pleasures.
Marine life
The wall attracts big schools of barracuda, batfish, snapper and jack, often hanging in silvery clouds against the blue. Grey reef sharks, whitetips and the occasional hammerhead cruise the deep.
In summer, huge aggregations of surgeonfish and unicornfish gather to spawn, drawing predators in. Napoleon wrasse and turtles round out the cast on a good day.
Level and conditions
Currents can be strong and unpredictable where the two reefs meet, so this is an Advanced-level drift usually run from a boat. Good buoyancy and comfort in blue water matter more than raw depth.
The Red Sea is famously clear, with visibility often exceeding 25 meters, and water ranging from about 22 degrees in winter to 28 in summer.
Best time and how to reach it
You can dive it year round, but the pelagic schools peak in summer (June to September), while winter offers calmer, cooler diving. Most trips launch from Sharm el-Sheikh by day boat or liveaboard.
Sharm has an international airport with direct flights across Europe and the Middle East, making Ras Mohammed one of the more accessible world-class reefs.
The same blue, in Colombia
A wall that falls into open blue, thick with schooling fish and cruising sharks, is exactly what draws advanced divers to Bushnell off Isla Fuerte. There the deep, open-water sites bring hammerheads and whitetips, and the reef edge teems with snapper and jack much like Ras Mohammed on a calm day.
If the Red Sea is on your list, treat Isla Fuerte as the place to sharpen your drift and blue-water skills first. See what advanced diving here looks like on our interactive dive map, or browse more guides.
