Diving Kimud Shoal in Malapascua, Philippines

In September of 2026, I dove Kimud Shoal with Devocean Divers, by boat out of Malapascua Island, Philippines.

This is where the thresher sharks went.

They used to be at Monad Shoal, which I also dove on this trip and where I saw none.

The guides told us that a tiger shark started passing through the area, and that ever since then Kimud is where they run the dive.

I dove it twice, and the specs below are from the first one.

The Dive

There's a downline you can follow, because there can be current here.

Once you're down it you're on the shoal, a sunken island with a flat top, and that's where the threshers make their laps.

The reef up there is actually pretty nice.

Almost nobody looks at it, because most of the dive is spent at the edge of the drop-off watching for threshers coming in to the cleaning stations.

I logged 66 ft (20.1 m) at the deepest, with an average of 38 ft (11.6 m) across 44 minutes.

They came in circles around us with those long tails flailing through the water behind them.

Their awkward eyes were really cool to look at.

This was one of the most unique dives I've done in my life.

What to Know Before You Go

We were up at 5:30 in the morning for this one.

No lights and no strobes are allowed at this site.

Between that, the early start, and limited sun, the lighting for photography is tricky, which is why the shots below look the way they do.

It's also only one dive site, and it's a very popular one, so expect a lot of divers.

I went in low season and there were still several groups in the water at the same time.

I can't imagine what high season looks like.

What Marine Life I Saw

The threshers are the reason anyone comes here, and they're what most of my frames are of.

The reef on top of the shoal has its own thing going on if you look away from the drop-off for a minute.

The Dive & Conditions

Visibility was 60 ft (18 m) on my dive, and the water was 84.2°F (29°C).

There can be current here, which is what the downline is for.

Devocean Divers run this as an early boat trip out of Malapascua.

The site is worth diving from September through May.