While Canada may not have the Great Barrier Reef, it is still home to some hidden, but very popular dive sites. From the west coast, to the prairies,to the Great Lakes, all the way out east. Discover wildlife, sunken ships, flooded cities, or even dive a meteor crater. Let’s check out some of the best dive sites in Canada.
Best time to dive?
The best dive sites in Canada are better when it’s cold. the visibility is much more clear
Sea Life
Whales, dolphins and porpoises
Whales, dolphins and porpoises are all within the same group of animals called cetaceans. These air-breathing mammals are found in all oceans of the world, including Canada’s three oceans. The easiest way to tell the difference between these animals is whether they have teeth or not.
Cetaceans are subdivide into mysticetes (baleen whales) and odontocetes (toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises),
like Baleen Whales, Toothed Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises.
Pinnipeds
Pinnipeds are a group of marine mammals, mostly seals but also sea lions and walruses, which spend their lives in the ocean and on land. These animals normally spend time on land, but are fin-footed allowing them to swim efficiently in water, like Seals, Sea Lions, Sea Otter, Atlantic Walrus, More Marine Animals.
Sea turtles
Reptiles can be found on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of Canada in the form of sea turtles! Sea turtles migrate to Canadian waters to feed,
mostly on jellyfish during the summer months.
Sharks
Many species of shark can be found in Canadian waters from large Basking Sharks to smaller species.
These large cartilaginous skeleton fish can be seen coastally in the water and sometimes wash up on beaches as well.
Dive Sites
Scuba diving in Canada is available coast to coast – after all, Canada has thousands of lakes and rivers and more coastline than any other country in the world – but the most popular spots that lure divers worldwide are in the Pacific waters of British Columbia, the Great Lakes of Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador’s Atlantic coast.
Whether it’s marine life or shipwrecks you seek, Canada has some of the best cold water scuba diving in the world.
British Columbia
British Columbia’s best dive sites run along the province’s west coast, especially on Vancouver Island. Victoria and Nanaimo are probably the most easily accessible but if time is less of a factor consider the extra travel to get to gorgeous sites in the central and northern regions of the island.
Some of the underwater sites you may see on a dive in British Columbia include giant Pacific octopus, huge wolf eels, six-gill sharks, soft corals, immense clusters of yellow and white cloud sponge and large red sea fans. Other marine life includes dolphins, orcas, and sea lions.
Ontario
Ontario scuba diving is distinguished by the fact that it is fresh water, darn cold and offers up an abundant number – possibly in the range of 4,000 – shipwrecks. Because of the cold, fresh water and lack of rampant marine life, wrecks dating back to the 1800s are preserved in excellent condition compared to their saltwater counterparts.
Most dive spots are in and around the Great Lakes, but there are lots of options across the province, such as sites near Toronto, Niagara Falls, Prince Edward County and Kingston.
Newfoundland
Canada’s most eastern province, Newfoundland, and Labrador have plenty of Atlantic Ocean coastline that hosts a rich marine environment and attracts thousands of whales and millions of seabirds. Drifting icebergs and shipwrecks up to 500 years old round out the scuba diving adventure scene in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The most famous shipwrecks in Newfoundland are four vessels sunk by German U-boats during World War II. The SS Lord Strathcona, located in Conception Bay near Bell Island is just 89 feet from the surface.
Book a Newfoundland and Labrador scuba diving package with Ocean Quest Adventures, one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s most well-known and respected adventure outfitters and friendly as heck to boot.
Info by JANE MCLEAN (tripsavvy)
St. Lawrence River
When diving here, the divers are likely to encounter very nice wrecks which can be explored near the cities of Brockville and Kingston, Ontario.
Barkley Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island
The area was considered by Jacques Cousteau the second best place on the planet to dive (after the Red Sea), probably due to the unique richness in both plants and animals. From salmons, rock-fish, herring, squid, giant octopus, sea otters, seals, sea lions, orcas, grey- and humpback whales, Puget Sound King crab, sea pens, and six gill sharks Canadian divers had nothing to envy of the rest of the world.
Bell Island in Newfoundland
Where divers can take pleasure from four World War II cargo ships, sunk by German U-boats.
Hudson Bay
Where divers enjoy the company of diving with beluga whales.
Info by scuba diving fan club
How to Arrive
There are a lot of flights going to and from Canada’s fundamental air terminals in Toronto, Vancouver, Montréal, Calgary and Edmonton.
Those originating from the US may likewise decide to drive over the border