Long Caye - Lighthouse Reef
Long Caye, out in the southern reaches of Lighthouse Reef, offers a relaxed kind of wall diving we really enjoy. Along the west coast, you’ll find expansive coral gardens topping a wall that just keeps going down. It’s a comfortable depth, around 10 meters, so you can take your time scanning for nurse sharks tucked under ledges or graceful eagle rays gliding past in the blue. This is a site that suits divers who appreciate a slow drift along a healthy reef, where the macro life often reveals itself after a few minutes of quiet observation.
- Location
- Lighthouse Reef, Belize, Central America
- Coordinates
- 17.183332, -87.583336
Marine Protected Area: Zone 2
Best Time to Dive in Lighthouse Reef
The warmest water temperatures in Lighthouse Reef occur in September, averaging 30.0°C. The coolest conditions are in February at 27.1°C.
Monthly Water Temperatures
- January: 27.2°C
- February: 27.1°C
- March: 27.2°C
- April: 27.8°C
- May: 28.6°C
- June: 29.2°C
- July: 29.3°C
- August: 29.7°C
- September: 30.0°C
- October: 29.9°C
- November: 28.9°C
- December: 28.0°C
Nearby Dive Sites in Lighthouse Reef
- 3 Amigos
- Baker's Drop - 50 feet
- Calabush Cut - 5-20m (channel)
- Chain Wall - 15-40m (wall)
- Chris s Chimney - 15-35m (pinnacle)
- Coco Point
- Colusium
- Cut Throat - 5-20m (channel)
- Eagle Ray Wall - 15-145 feet (wall)
- Fabian s Roost
- Grand Bogue
- Great Blue Hole (cave)
- Great Blue Hole (reef)
- Half Moon Caye
- Half Moon Caye Wall - 21m (wall)
Nearest Dive Centres to Long Caye
- Itza Resort - PADI
Marine Life in Lighthouse Reef
Home to 216 recorded species including 175 reef fish, 20 hard corals, 9 other, 6 sharks & rays, 2 jellyfish, 2 sea urchins.
Notable Species
- Redear Herring (Harengula humeralis) - Reef Fish
- Mustard hill coral (Porites astreoides) - Hard Corals
- Blue Doctor (Acanthurus coeruleus) - Reef Fish
- Thin leaf lettuce coral (Agaricia tenuifolia) - Hard Corals
- Gutong (Sparisoma aurofrenatum) - Reef Fish
- Massive Starlet Coral (Siderastrea siderea) - Hard Corals
- Cowfish (Tursiops truncatus) - Whales & Dolphins
- French grunt (Haemulon flavolineatum) - Reef Fish
- Dark Green Parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) - Reef Fish
- Grunt (Haemulon plumierii) - Reef Fish
- Gutong (Scarus iseri) - Reef Fish
- Yellowtail Parrotfish (Sparisoma rubripinne) - Reef Fish
- Fray (Jenkinsia lamprotaenia) - Reef Fish
- Parrotfish (Thalassoma bifasciatum) - Reef Fish
- Kwab (Sparisoma radians) - Reef Fish
- Barber (Acanthurus bahianus) - Reef Fish
- Sheephead (Microspathodon chrysurus) - Reef Fish
- Schoolmaster (Lutjanus apodus) - Reef Fish
- Cola (Ocyurus chrysurus) - Reef Fish
- Butterfly (Chaetodon capistratus) - Reef Fish
Recommended Packing List for Long Caye
Based on average water temperature of 28.6°C, currents 22 cm/s.
- Shorty or Rashguard - warm 29°C water needs minimal exposure protection
- Mask - essential for every dive
- Fins
- BCD - buoyancy compensator
- Regulator - your most safety-critical piece of gear
- Dive Computer - tracks depth, time, and NDL
- Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) - essential for boat pickups
- Dive Torch - useful for crevices and colour at depth
- Underwater Camera - capture your diving memories