Calumbuyan Reef

Two reef areas in the operator's account

Sangat Island Dive Resort places Calumbuyan Reef in Gutob Bay, between the Okikawa and Akitsushima wreck areas. It distinguishes coral gardens on the island's eastern side from a deeper reef to the south. Confirm which part is included in the outing; the same reef name does not describe one uniform depth or route.

The southern channel

Sangat describes the southern reef in the channel between Calumbuyan and Lajo islands and reports a 4–34 m range there. Those figures belong to the southern section, not verified limits for every area covered by the Calumbuyan name. The operator also reports channel currents and promotes drift diving, but this is not a current forecast or a guarantee of suitable conditions on the day.

Location and naming limits

The source provides useful locality context, but the exact dive-site position remains unverified. This guide has no map marker or navigation point. Other listings use Calumbayan; that spelling relationship has not been independently checked, so the guide retains Sangat's Calumbuyan name.

Before arranging a visit

Ask which reef section is planned and how entry, pickup and conditions will be assessed. Sangat's broader regional animal list and reef-health statements are not specific surveys of Calumbuyan. Current visibility, access arrangements, species encounter rates and universal diver-suitability requirements remain unresolved. No local-diver verification has been recorded.

Pirates Diving Center's account

Pirates Diving Center's Coron and Busuanga reef page lists the site as Calumbayan Reef, describing a vibrant reef with an array of hard and soft corals whose shallow section it calls perfect for beginners. It gives a 5 to 34 m depth and an Open Water Diver certification level, and mentions colourful reef fish, sea anemones and the occasional turtle as possible sightings. The 34 m figure matches the lower limit Sangat gives for the southern channel; whether Pirates measured independently or follows the same account is not known, so the two listings are not treated as separate confirmations of that depth.

Further operator detail from Sangat

Sangat Island Dive Resort's reef page describes the eastern coral gardens as suited to snorkeling or a shallow dive and the southern channel as the drift section. Its summary table gives Calumbuyan Island as the location, a travel time of 25 minutes from the resort, a 34 m maximum depth, a 28 m visibility figure and an Open Water Diver requirement. These are the operator's own planning figures for its boats and for conditions on an unstated date, not measurements this guide has checked.

The island as a tour stop

Snorkeling Report's Lusong Coral Garden page, last updated 10 January 2021, names Calumbuyan Island among the stops on all-day Coron boat tours alongside the Lusong Gunboat and Pass Island. That confirms the island is a routine tour destination but says nothing about diving the reef or which section tours visit.

Spelling and what is still open

Pirates uses Calumbayan and Sangat uses Calumbuyan for what appear to be the same island reef; the guide keeps Sangat's spelling and records the other as an unverified variant. Neither operator gives entry points, mooring arrangements, seasonal conditions or a date for its figures, and no visitor report of a dive here has been captured. Current strength, visibility and suitability on a given day still need to be confirmed with the operator running the trip.