Anchor Bay (Popeye Village)

About this dive site

Explore the water around Gozo

Interest Cave & Reef Popularity Medium Depth 6m (avg), 12m (max) Qualification Beginner Shore access Easy Location 35.9596°N 14.3405°E (Exact) Anchor Bay is a popular shore dive site located near Mellieha on the northwest coast of Malta. Anchor Bay is a small inlet hidden between two cliffs, best known for the film set village built for Popeye movie, and the whole bay is sometimes referred as Popeye Village after the theme park. Shore dive sites in Anchor Bay are of course a large anchor, a beautiful cave, a varied reef, and a shallow training area. A small wreck is located further ashore. The maximum depth in the bay is around 12 metres; this easy dive site is suitable for all levels of divers. Anchor Bay is good for try dives and training dives, for the second dive of the day, and for night diving. The bay is popular place for swimming, snorkelling and sunbathing too. Anchor Bay’s cave, also known as Scorpion Cave, is a large cavern with a wide entrance and an airpocket. Even the less experienced divers can visit the cave. The wreck of MV Scotscraig is located about 500 m northwest from Anchor Bay. This is a boat dive; the wreck is too far to dive from the shore. Scot Craig was used in filming Popeye movie and is therefore also known as Popeye’s Barge. Anchor Bay’s entry/exit point is the concrete jetty on the south side of the bay opposite Popeye Village, and can be reached following a dirt road. The jetty has ladders inside the bay side. Anchor Bay is usually dived when the north-easterly wind is strong and prevents diving in many areas. Visibility in the bay can be very poor when the weather is bad. Beware of tourist boats and currents when diving in Anchor Bay. Dive sites in Anchor Bay Cave Scorpion Cave is the best dive site in Anchor Bay. Shallow cave with large entrance is suitable also for less experienced divers.The cave is located on the south side of the bay, approximately 150 m from the entry/exit point at the concrete jetty. Following the south wall out of the bay, the entrance of the cave is a bit hidden behind a massive boulder at 6-10 m depth, where the seabed is covered with them. The cave is completely submerged only for the first few meters, once inside divers can easily surface into the large air pocket to admire the beautiful dome-shaped ceiling. Scorpion Cave is a large shallow cavern with a wide entrance making it suitable for all levels of divers. The entrance is at 10 metres and the depth inside is 8 metres, getting slowly shallower towards the end the cave. The cave goes further in for over 80 m, and serves as a training place for cave penetration and navigation. Due to the wide entrance there is a stunning blue light inside and the exit is clearly visible. Divers can spot a variety of marine life in the nooks and crannies of the cavern. Anchor Anchor Bay dive site features a large anchor and its anchor chain. The anchor is about 3m in length, and lies on sand around 8m deep.The anchor is located on the north side of the bay, near the far end of the concrete jetty, around 8 m deep. The chain runs from the anchor towards the innermost end of the bay for several metres. The anchor is about 3 m in length, big enough for a diver to swim under it, and covered with marine growth. The anchor chain is covered in sand and marine growth in places, but is still visible. Divers often visit Anchor Bay’s reef and the cave, sometimes called Scorpion Cave, on the same dive, ending the dive in the shallow waters of training area protected by the jetty. Reef Anchor Bay reef is varied dive site with large boulders, swim-throughs, rocky reefs, sea grass meadows and rich marine life. Training area Anchor Bay training area is shallow sheltered place ideal for try dives and first course dives.