Piramidi

Chimney after chimney‚ swirling in new environments until finally you arrive in the enchanting Cirri cave.

 

On the west coast of the island of Ustica‚ near the tower of Punta Spalmatore‚ lies the seamount Piramidi. Most of its top surface is located at a depth of 10 m‚ while its highest pinnacle reaches a depth of 5 m. Like a pyramid‚ this seamount has several passages carved from its rocks‚ tunnels that finally lead to its main central chamber; the "Grotta dei Cirri" or Cirri cave.

The dive starts from the surface of the plateau‚ where swimming around a pinnacle‚ we arrive at a first passage; a vertical chimney decorated in bright colors by yellow cluster anemones and a variety of sponges. Swimming through this chimney we are brought down a few meters and arrive in an environment of boulders and pinnacles‚ upon which some resting dusky groupers can be found. Hidden between these rock formations lies the entry of a second chimney‚ which leads us to the outermost side of the seamount‚ facing the great blue vastness of the open sea. As we proceed our dive‚ following the contours of the Piramidi reef in a northerly direction‚ we swim along a splendid drop-off; a wall florally decorated by orange corals‚ yellow gorgonians‚ and tube worms‚ while a pair of antennae peeking from one of the crevices reveals the hiding place of a large lobster. The reef wall leads us directly to the entrance of the last chimney at a depth of about 28 m‚ where we descend into the enchanting cave of Cirri. The cave has a breathtaking panoramic opening on two of its sides‚ giving the diver the impression of swimming in an emerald-colored 3D 4K Full HD screen. The rocky inner walls of the cave are paved with unicorn shrimps and usually one can encounter a large brown hake hunting them. Coming out of the cave‚ we ascend towards the platform at the top of the seamount‚ where we have time to visit a group of elegant meagre.