Lundy, a granite island 19 km off the North Devon coast, is Britain's marine-protection pioneer — England's first statutory Marine Nature Reserve (1986), the UK's first statutory No Take Zone (2003) and a Marine Conservation Zone since 2010 — famous for playful in-water grey seal encounters, jewel-anemone pinnacles and wrecks ranging from an 1864 Confederate blockade-runner to a 1906 battleship.
Destination info
Conditions, highlights, and the resident marine life.
Conditions
Water and air temperature across the year.
WaterAirDryShoulderWet
Description
Lundy sits at the mouth of the Bristol Channel, where relatively warm Gulf Stream water at the northern extreme of the Lusitanian Province lets southern species — pink sea fans and five species of cup coral, including the sunset cup coral first recorded in Britain here in 1969 — grow alongside cold-water kelp communities on granite walls and pinnacles. The island has been protected in stages: a voluntary marine reserve from the early 1970s, England's first statutory Marine Nature Reserve (declared 21 November 1986), the UK's first statutory No Take Zone (3.3 km² off the east coast, January 2003) and a 31 km² Marine Conservation Zone since January 2010 with the spiny lobster as its named protected feature. The sheltered east coast holds the signature sites — the jewel-anemone-covered Knoll Pins, the intact 1975 coaster MV Robert and the licence-only 1864 paddle steamer Iona II — while a breeding colony of around 60 grey seals (up to double that in summer) provides the in-water encounters the island is best known for. Diving is by day boat from Ilfracombe or Clovelly, roughly May to early October; sea temperatures run from about 8°C in March to 18–19°C in late August, and the east-coast wrecks are dived on low-water slack.
Highlights
What makes this dive worth the trip.
The UK's first statutory No Take Zone was designated here on 10 January 2003: 3.3 km² off Lundy's east coast where extraction of anything is prohibited. A four-year monitoring programme (2004–2007) led by Prof. Callum Roberts found lobster numbers and sizes increased rapidly inside the zone, and a 2008–09 tagging study of 905 lobsters showed spillover movement averaging 2.5 km.
Monitoring by the Lundy Marine Protected Area showed common lobster populations four- to six-fold higher inside the No Take Zone than in comparable fished areas outside — one of the clearest demonstrations of no-take recovery in UK waters. Spearfishing is banned throughout the MPA and anchoring is restricted within 100 m of the Knoll Pins.
Lundy was declared England's first statutory Marine Nature Reserve on 21 November 1986 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the culmination of a selection process begun when the Nature Conservancy Council appointed a marine liaison officer for the island in 1983; the designation was superseded by Marine Conservation Zone status in January 2010.
Marine life
14 species you’re likely to encounter on a dive here.
Dive sites
6 signature sites at this destination.
MV Robert
The only intact wreck at Lundy: a roughly 50 m single-screw coaster that capsized and sank in 1975, lying on her starboard side on a muddy seabed just east of Gull Rock (position 51°11.12'N 04°38.80'W, usually marked by a buoy). Large sections are covered in plumose anemones and a small shoal of bib typically hangs over the hull. Only about 30 m from the protected Iona II, so the two can be combined on one slack window by licence holders.
15–25 mintermediateDay boatModerateVisibility 4–10 m
Iona II
A protected 1863 Clyde-built paddle steamer, purchased as a Confederate blockade-runner, that sank east of Lundy in February 1864 — the only protected paddle steamer in British waters. The wreck sits upright in 22–28 m about 30 m from the MV Robert; divers can trace her engines, boilers and paddle-wheel components standing proud of the seabed. Designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 (in 1990), she requires a visitor licence, which is free and routinely arranged through charter skippers, Historic England or the island warden.
22–28 mintermediateDay boatModerateVisibility 4–10 m
HMS Montagu (Shutter Rock)
A 14,000-ton pre-dreadnought battleship that ran onto Shutter Rock at Lundy's south-west corner in fog in May 1906 and was heavily salvaged in situ. The wreckage lies scattered in 5–15 m as tall piles of armour plating in kelp beds, with live 12-inch shells still present. The site and the associated 'Montagu Steps' cut into the cliff for the 1907 salvage were granted scheduled protection in September 2019; divers remain free to visit on a look-don't-touch basis. Popular as a shallow training and early-season dive when the exposed corner is calm.
5–15 mbeginnerDay boatLightVisibility 5–15 m
The Knoll Pins
Lundy's signature reef dive and its most colourful site: vertical pinnacles of exposed granite wall on the sheltered east coast, between Tibbett's Point and Brazen Ward, rising inside the No Take Zone. The walls are carpeted in jewel anemones, cup corals (including the declining sunset cup coral), pink sea fans, dead man's fingers and red sea fingers, with pollack and wrasse cruising the pinnacle and sand eels over the adjacent slope. Anchoring is restricted within 100 m of the pins under the MPA zoning scheme.
10–25 mintermediateDay boatModerateVisibility 5–15 m
Gannets' Bay
The classic Lundy seal dive: the largest bay on the island's north-east side, well protected from the prevailing westerlies, where granite boulder slopes at the base of Gannets' Rock shelve from a few metres to around 12 m. Atlantic grey seals haul out nearby and inquisitive individuals — especially juveniles — routinely buzz divers, nibble fins and mimic bubbles. Shallow, calm and suitable for all certification levels; interactions are on the seals' terms under the local code of conduct.
3–12 mbeginnerDay boatLightVisibility 5–12 m
Devil's Slide
A gully system off the great granite slab at the north-west of the island, dropping from about 12 m to 35 m on the exposed, clearer Atlantic side. Often the best place at Lundy to find both European lobsters and crawfish (spiny lobsters) — the recovering protected feature of the MCZ — with sand eels schooling over the gullies. Deeper, more exposed and more weather-dependent than the east-coast sites.
12–35 madvancedDay boatModerateVisibility 6–15 m
Where to dive & stay
Local dive centers, resorts, and hotels.
Featured operators coming soon
Verified dive centers, resorts, and hotels around Lundy Island will list here — pricing, photos, and direct contact.
