Golden Passage
8.4800°S 119.6000°E · drift
A high-energy drift dive through the narrow channel between Gili Lawa Darat and Komodo Island. Tidal currents reaching several knots sweep divers past volcanic rock walls covered in hard and soft corals. Schools of trevally, whitetip and blacktip reef sharks, hawksbill turtles, and occasional manta rays gather in the nutrient-rich flow.
Site Information
- Entry Type: Boat dive
- Site Type: Drift dive
- Difficulty Level: Advanced
- Maximum Depth: 25 meters
Sources: La Galigo Liveaboard – Komodo Dive Sites, Stingy Nomads – Diving Komodo, Liveaboard.com – Komodo Diving. Last updated 2026-06-10.
Sea-surface temperature and wave height from Open-Meteo Marine (ERA5 reanalysis, monthly averages).
777 verified species observations (311 species) logged within ~11 km of this site between 1970 and 2023, from the Ocean Biodiversity Information System.
- Ecsenius bathi
- Helcogramma striata
- Ecsenius bicolor
- Pseudochromis flavopunctatus
- Mobula alfredi · Reef manta ray
- Discotrema crinophilum
- Pseudochromis
- Helcogramma kranos
- Priolepis nuchifasciata
- Enneapterygius tutuilae
- Synchiropus morrisoni
- Nannosalarias nativitatis
Scientific survey records skew toward sampled taxa (molluscs, corals) and do not reflect what you are guaranteed to see on a dive.
Source: OBIS (obis.org), aggregated Darwin Core occurrence records.
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