Rondao do Alvo

Rondao do Alvo is a round, elevated reef rising off Lagos, built from pronounced rock formations that stand several metres off the seabed. Interconnected canyons and crevices cut through it, opening onto the signature feature: an overhead cave at 18 metres that takes divers in low and surfaces them back out over the top of the reef, with no side window involved. Conger eels and morays shelter through the cut and the darker crevices beyond it. Currents here are generally light, and the canyons reward slow, methodical work instead of a fast swim past them.

Rondao do Alvo's overhead passage is one-way: divers enter low at 18 metres and exit high, surfacing above the reef itself and never doubling back through the same opening. Conger eels and morays are a shared draw on this stretch of the Lagos coast, but the passage is the specific, checkable detail that distinguishes this dive from a generic rocky reef.

The cave calls for steady buoyancy and comfort with overhead diving: hold level trim and work the passage slowly rather than rushing it. A torch is worth carrying too, for the darker stretch of the cut and the crevices where the eels shelter.

Depth figures vary a little by source: most converge on 14 to 22 metres, with one catalogue reporting a somewhat shallower 10 to 20 metres for the same reef. Plan your gas and profile around the deeper figure.