Mangel Halto Reef / The Kappel Wreck

A shallow protected reef lagoon with mangrove-fringed shore, extensive coral gardens and seagrass beds that provide a diverse, sheltered shallow-reef experience. The site’s focal feature is the Kappel Wreck, a small steel tugboat or pilot boat deliberately sunk as an artificial reef, which attracts encrusting corals and a variety of reef life. Entry is a shore walk-in from the mangrove-lined beach or adjacent platform, swimming over a shallow sand channel to the reef. The reef begins in about 1–2 m and slopes gradually to roughly 15–16 m; the Kappel sits on the sand at about 12–16 m. Water temperatures are typically around 26–29°C and visibility often exceeds 20 m in good conditions. The site is inside a barrier reef so currents are minimal, there are no overhead hazards and it is commonly used for training; occasional surface boat traffic leads divers to often deploy a surface marker buoy. The Kappel is the steel hull of a small tugboat or pilot boat deliberately scuttled as an artificial reef. It lies upright and partially covered by sand with the main cabin still intact and swim-throughable. Corals, sponges and algae encrust the wreck and fishes such as snappers and wrasse, along with lobsters and the occasional moray eel, shelter in and around its crevices.