Canary Islands

Volcanic stone cooled by Atlantic swell, where an African current visits Europe.

Eight Atlantic islands of volcanic origin sit off the coast of North Africa, their black-sand slopes dropping into caves, arches and walls shaped by lava rather than coral growth. Warm-water and cold-water species overlap here in a way few Atlantic coasts allow.

Conditions

Season: Diveable year-round; calmest June–October
Temperature: About 18–23 °C across the year
Visibility: Often 15–30 m, swell dependent
Entry: Shore and boat entries; surge and current vary by coast

What this water asks
Comfort in surge and swell, and a slow approach to the sandy shallows where angelsharks rest half-buried.

The Blue Heart

Angelshark (Squatina squatina)

Once common across Europe's coasts, this flattened, well-camouflaged shark is now critically rare almost everywhere except the Canary Islands, one of its last significant nursery grounds.

Atlas sites here

This water is not yet linked to an Atlas guide.

Find a center near here

Presence here

Presence notes appear here once enough divers have logged this water — the same house number the Tide holds everywhere.

Safety first

Every practice here fits entirely inside your existing agency standards and dive plan. Slow, continuous breathing only — never breath-holding, skip-breathing or hypoventilation on scuba. No exercise sits in task-critical phases such as descents, ascents or gas management. Mindful Diving is complementary to, and independent of, SSI, PADI, CMAS and RAID.

Dive this water with a trained practice

MD-1 Mindful Diver™ is studied online and practised on the dives you already make — including this one.

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