Diving and Snorkeling in Yura
The Shirasaki Coast has diverse dive sites, including one in a sea cave where light filters into the inner chamber. There are both beach and boat entry sites, with some suitable for snorkeling as well as diving. Local operators offer dive packages, training, and snorkel excursions and can customize experiences for all levels, from complete beginners to veteran divers.
Shirasaki Sea Cave has an inner chamber with an air dome where divers can surface and an opening in the roof of the cave that lets in shafts of light. Depending on the conditions and time of day, the light may appear as a single column or a fine curtain. Entrance to the cave is via a narrow opening, partway along a 23-meter drop-off. Divers must enter the underwater tunnel one by one and navigate the narrow space for approximately 10 meters before reaching the inner chamber. Enough light filters into the cave to see without a dive light, but one may be useful for spotting moray eels, spiny lobsters, and other sea life hiding in the shadows. Shirasaki Sea Cave is a boat-entry site for advanced divers who have completed more than 50 dives.
Other dive sites include Habugata (boat entry) and Shakushi no Hama (beach entry), both of which have a maximum depth of around 10 meters, making them suitable for all experience levels. Habugata has colonies of anemones that provide cover for damselfish, clownfish, and tiny marine life such as clear cleaner shrimp, brilliantly patterned nudibranchs, and harlequin ghost pipefish. At Shakushi no Hama, divers can explore the underwater environment of the eastern periphery of Shirasaki Ocean Park and its limestone formations. Highlights include reminders of limestone mining operations and abundant sea life, from neon damselfish and brightly colored wrasse to yellownose prawn-goby and jawfish.
