Coral Gardens
Also known as: Coral Garden · CORAL GARDEN N
Dive siteFrom Puerto Rico Dive Sites, the sourced field guide
Coral Gardens
| Region | Guánica & La Parguera |
|---|---|
| Municipality | Lajas |
| Access | Boat dive |
| Site type | Wall |
| Depth (reported range) | 50–80 ft (15–24 m)Historical source only (1998) |
| Protected area | La Parguera Natural Reserve |
| Location | Pinned on location: a DRNA mooring buoy at the site.Location evidence: Official GIS[2] |
| Confidence | Verified |
| Last researched | 2026-10-17 |
Overview
Coral Gardens is a boat-dive site on the wall off La Parguera in Lajas, listed by an operator among its wall dives; DRNA lists a named mooring buoy here on the shelf edge (La Pared). NOAA habitat mapping shows spur-and-groove coral reef and hard bottom on the shelf escarpment, with 10–50% coral cover. Current depth information is limited; a 1998 guide gave 50–80 ft. It lies inside La Parguera Natural Reserve, where NOAA lists anchoring as restricted; check current DRNA rules.[1][2][3][4][5]
Site characteristics
- Wall[1]
Habitat & marine life
- spur-and-groove coral reef and hardbottom on the bank/shelf escarpment (10-50% coral; patchy algae)[3]
Marine life is what sources report having seen or commonly seeing — not a guarantee.
Recent diver reports
Dived here recently? Share a quick report
First-hand reports from divers, reviewed before they appear. Conditions change daily; a report describes one day.
Safety considerations
No site-specific hazards are recorded in our sources. That does not mean there are none.
Ocean conditions change daily. Dive within your training, plan with current local information and consider a local professional guide. Water safety guide.
Protected area
La Parguera Natural Reserve (Reserva Natural La Parguera)
Natural Reserve · Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources · Site position falls inside the official boundary[5]
NOAA's MPA Inventory classifies this area's protection level as "Uniform Multiple Use"; fishing: no site restrictions. Anchoring: restricted.[5]
Regulations change. Check with DRNA (Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambientales) before diving.
Depth reports by source
| Reported | Source | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 50–80 ft (15–24 m) | Colleen Ryan & Brian Savage / Complete Dive Guide Publications[4] | Historical (1998) |
Historical record
What a historical source reported at the time. Not verified as current — access, moorings, reef condition and names may have changed.
Listed as “Coral Gardens” · 50–80 ft (15–24 m) · 1998[4]
- boat
- dominated by green star coral and brain corals; mat tunicates
- crevices dissect the reef
See also
Straight-line distance only — not travel time, and not necessarily reached from the same departure point.
- Star — 0.1 mi
- Forest — 0.8 mi
- Black Wall — 0.8 mi
- Old Buoy — 1.2 mi
- Hole in the Wall — 1.2 mi
- Cañones — 2.0 mi
Sources & verification
Last researched: 2026-10-17 · Last independently verified: not yet field-verified · Confidence: Verified
- 1.Dive Sites | Parguera Boat Trips — Parguera Boat Trips (Lajas) · Dive operator · Tier 2: Specialist · accessed 2026-09-25
- 2.Noreste Mooring Buoys3_WFL1 (layer pr_mooringbuoys2) - Boyas de Amarre — Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambientales (DRNA); published on ArcGIS Online by a DRNA Northeast Ecological Corridor reserve management officer (2021-06-10) · Government dataset · Tier 1: Primary / authoritative · accessed 2026-10-17
- 3.Shallow-Water Benthic Habitats of Southwest Puerto Rico (Guanica/La Parguera) — NOAA NOS NCCOS (CCMA Biogeography) (2012) · Government dataset · Tier 1: Primary / authoritative · accessed 2026-09-25
- 4.The Complete Diving Guide: The Caribbean, Volume 3 (Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands) — Colleen Ryan & Brian Savage / Complete Dive Guide Publications (1998) · Historical guide · Tier 3: Corroborating · historical
- 5.NOAA Marine Protected Areas Inventory 2024 (feature service NOAA_MPA_Inventory_2023), State = PR — NOAA NOS Office of National Marine Sanctuaries - MPA Center (2024) · Government dataset · Tier 1: Primary / authoritative · accessed 2026-09-25
Facts are summarised in our own words from the sources above; we do not reproduce operators’ or publishers’ descriptions. How confidence is assigned.