Exit 7

Exit 7 is a numbered reef mooring on the outer reef circuit in the central-southern Maldives, positioned adjacent to Exits 5+6 on the northern arc of the reef and used as a drift termination point under specific tidal conditions.

Overview

Exit 7 shares its reef section with the nearby Exit 5+6 mooring, offering a slightly different angle of approach to the same outer slope topography. The reef here features a clear layered structure: a shallow hard coral garden at 5-8 meters, a steeper slope with sea fans and encrusting growth from 10-20 meters, and a flatter sandy bottom with scattered coral heads at 25 meters. Schools of blue-striped snapper and oriental sweetlips are a characteristic feature of this section of reef, clustering in the coral valleys at mid-depth. The site is often used for the second dive of a two-tank morning programme, when calmer slack-tide conditions allow a leisurely reef exploration rather than a full drift. The proximity to Exits 5+6 and Exits 8-10 means that route flexibility is high, with divemasters routing divers between the exits based on real-time current readings.

Site Information

• Location: Maldives (South/Central Atolls)
• Entry Type: Boat dive
• Site Type: Reef
• Difficulty Level: Intermediate
• Maximum Depth: 25 meters
• Typical Visibility: 15-30 meters
• Current: Moderate; frequently calm on slack tide

Marine Life

Blue-striped snapper, oriental sweetlips, grey reef sharks, sea fans, moray eels, surgeonfish, parrotfish, turtles, and mixed hard and soft coral on the mid-slope.

Tips for Divers

Exit 7 is a good site for a relaxed second dive when the morning drift is complete. The snapper schools at mid-depth are a reliable photographic subject. Use the sandy bottom at 25 meters as a turning depth and work back up through the fish-rich coral valley on the ascent.