Black Head Reef
Dive site · UK
Is it worth the trip?
57Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: Sea: flat, Visibility about 5 m, Water 14 °C
Mon 2 · 57 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 14 kn
- Gusts
- 22kn
- Air
- 12°C
Tue 3 · 53 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 18 kn
- Gusts
- 24kn
- Air
- 12°C
Wed 4 · 2 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.9 m
- Wind
- 23 kn
- Gusts
- 32knboats in
- Air
- 10°C
Thu 5 · 50 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.7 m
- Wind
- 20 kn
- Gusts
- 28kn
- Air
- 12°C
Fri 6 · 63 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 11kn
- Air
- 11°C
Sat 7 · 65 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.1 mflat
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 10kn
- Air
- 9°C
Sun 8 · 67 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.0 mflat
- Wind
- 0 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 10°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 166, good
- Mon 257, fair
- Tue 353, fair
- Wed 42, poor
- Thu 550, fair
- Fri 663, good
- Sat 765, good
- Sun 867, good
- Mon 962, good
- Tue 1064, good
The site in four facts
- Down to 10 mits deepest
- Open Waterand up
- Water 14 °C7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit
- Faces Eswell from there reaches it
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know currents, the visibility on the day or your certification.
Suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. Scored for Advanced divers.
| Day | Score | Sea | Wind | Gusts | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 66, good | 0.3 m | 10 kn | 16kn | 11°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 57, fair | 0.4 m | 14 kn | 22kn | 12°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 53, fair | 0.6 m | 18 kn | 24kn | 12°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 2, poor | 0.9 m | 23 kn | 32knboats in | 10°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 50, fair | 0.7 m | 20 kn | 28kn | 12°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 63, good | 0.4 m | 5 kn | 11kn | 11°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 65, good | 0.1 mflat | 5 kn | 10kn | 9°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 67, good | 0.0 mflat | 0 kn | 9kn | 10°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 62, good | 0.3 m | 10 kn | 15kn | 13°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 64, good | 0.2 mflat | 7 kn | 14kn | 11°C |
Sea is the waves near the site, in metres; wind and gusts in knots. "Boats in": gusts that keep dive boats in. More
Tide
- Sun 1 NovLow 03:42 −1.4 mHigh 10:20 +1.4 mLow 16:21 −1.4 mHigh 23:10 +0.9 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 04:40 −1.1 mHigh 11:39 +1.1 mLow 17:30 −1.1 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 00:42 +0.8 mLow 05:52 −0.8 mHigh 13:09 +1.1 mLow 18:52 −1.0 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Slack water, the safest time to dive where there is current, is about half an hour either side of each high and low. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Map
the site, its town, photos
Black Head Reef on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.
One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Photos of Black Head Reef
More diving near here
2 places
- Peronne 8.9 km away
- SS Bretagne 9 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Black Head Reef
It goes down to 10 m. It suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. The coast faces E: swell from the E reaches it, and wind from the W blows out to sea. 1 dive centre or shop within 10 km, the nearest 8.4 km away. The sea is about 9°C in March, its coldest month (drysuit), and 17°C in July, its warmest (7 mm wetsuit and hood). The town to stay in is Torquay.
- What it is No source states what kind of site it is.
- How deep Down to 10 m.
- Who it suits Suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres 1 dive centre or shop within 10 km, the nearest 8.4 km away.
Water about 14°C: 7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
Visibility about 5 m. Typical for the time of year, estimated from ten years of NASA satellite water clarity, not a forecast. Clearest in Jan, Feb, Mar, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct and Nov (about 6 m).
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,100–US$2,080 each
about US$1,100–US$2,080 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to EXT, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$435–US$911 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$67–US$114 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$281–US$469 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$583 |
| Total | about US$1,100–US$2,080 |
Guided dives are not priced yet: we have no sourced price, so it is not in it. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Torquay
4 min by car · 320 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Torquay its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$107 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 16h 25m
About 16h 25m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → EXT, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 50 min by road
Flights ORD → EXT on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Dives and courses in Torquay · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Torquay · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
Teign Diving Centre 8.4 km
Edge Watersports 17 km
The nearest named dive centres and shops within 25 km, in a straight line; training agencies where the map states them. Listings, not a recommendation. Dive centres: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits
What you might see
Animals divers and surveys have recorded within 2 km of this site in the last 15 years. A record says someone saw it here, not that you will.
Dogfish Scyliorhinus caniculaShark
Seen in 37 records.
Roker Raja clavataRay
Seen in 15 records, mostly Oct to Mar.
Anemonia viridis
Seen in 60 records, mostly May to Sep.
Brown crab Cancer pagurus
Seen in 59 records, mostly May to Sep.
Common hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus
Seen in 52 records, mostly Apr to Jul.
Antedon bifida
Seen in 50 records, mostly Jun to Jul.
Bib Trisopterus luscus
Seen in 40 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Maja squinado
Seen in 38 records, mostly May to Sep.
Dead man’s fingers Alcyonium digitatum
Seen in 33 records, mostly May to Jul.
Common sea star Asterias rubens
Seen in 31 records, mostly May to Jul.
Maja brachydactyla
Seen in 29 records, mostly Mar to Jun.
Calliactis parasitica
Seen in 22 records, mostly May to Sep.
Records: OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System, IOC-UNESCO), from the datasets named here, CC0 and CC BY records only. Names: WoRMS, through OBIS; common names from Wikidata. Largest datasets here: Marine Recorder Snapshot extract of surveys entered by SeaSearch; DATRAS: ICES Database of trawl surveys; Marine Recorder Snapshot extract of surveys entered by Natural England; Great Eggcase Hunt - citizen science observations of chondrichthyian eggcases; Basking Shark Project - citizen science observations of Cetorhinus maximus. Credits
This week: visibility about 7 m, clearer than usual (satellite plankton reading, 24 Oct). Estimated from the month's typical visibility and this week's satellite chlorophyll against the site's normal; heavy rain before a dive can still muddy it.
The current no free forecast gives. Ask a dive centre before you book.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.