La Cherna Wall

La Cherna Wall drops from a coral-encrusted lip at 8 metres to a rubble slope at 35 metres, one of the more dramatic vertical features in the Rosario archipelago. Black coral trees and orange elephant ear sponges anchor the upper wall, while deeper sections host sea fans and large loggerhead sponges. Nassau grouper cruise the mid-wall in the cooler months, and the site is named for the Warsaw grouper — cherna in Spanish — which was historically abundant here and still makes occasional appearances. Caribbean reef sharks are reliably encountered on the blue water edge during outgoing tides.