Salt del Pastor

The boat ties to the mooring buoy and a guide rope leads down through the upper rocky section. On the summit at 5 m, nudibranchs cover the rock faces and sea bream move in loose groups — the dive starts calmer than it finishes. Following the wall southwest, the terrain opens into cavities and crevices: groupers fill the shadows, morays extend from the gaps, and sandy pockets in the deeper crevice floors lift if disturbed. Splitting into buddy pairs in the narrower crevice sections reduces the silt stir for everyone behind.

The arch is on the southwest wall face. Bring a torch. Inside: scorpionfish on the ledges, red coral patterning the walls, crab movement in the corners. It is a limited-overhead feature, not a through-penetration — natural light enters from both ends and the route is not technical. After the arch, the descent continues to the open area at 22m, where most dives turn and begin the return.

The gorgonias are on the return circuit. Paramuricea clavata fans grow in the deeper crevices, not on the main wall — they are not visible unless a diver slows down and shines a torch inside. This is the section most divers miss. The safety stop on the summit at 5m, with nudibranchs on all sides, is not wasted time.

Salt del Pastor is not the most talked-about site on the Montgrí coast. That is partly why it works. The arch is the feature that separates it from the standard wall-and-reef pattern: a large opening in the wall face, accessible to any diver comfortable with a torch and a partial overhead, with scorpionfish and red coral inside. The gorgonias in the crevices add a second layer that most divers at this site don't reach — they are off the main line, requiring a deliberate search. Puig de la Sardina has gorgonian walls from 14m down; Salt del Pastor has gorgonias hidden in rock cracks at 22m. Different character entirely.

The absence of the Medes crowds is part of it. No quota, no advance booking, no shared mooring. The only people here are the divers in the water.

A torch is not optional. The arch and the gorgonias in the crevices are the reason this site is worth the trip, and neither is properly visible without one. Buoyancy control matters in the cavity sections — poor trim disturbs the sand and ruins visibility for the divers behind you. The Montgrí coast is exposed to tramontana from the north; conditions change without much warning. Confirm with your operator the morning of the dive. Dive Paradís in L'Escala and the major L'Estartit centres all run this site as part of their Montgrí coast rotation.