The crystal clear, freshwater Lake Malawi is home to millions of spectacularly colorful cichlid fish. Diving here is ideal for beginners, and many people describe their experience diving in Lake Malawi as being like exploring a giant aquarium.
So, with its spectacular sunrises, unspoiled scenery and crystal clear waters; Lake Malawi truly is one of the most popular freshwater scuba diving locations in the world. Lake Malawi is ideal for the diving enthusiast; clear, fresh, warm water, and nearly a thousand different species of brightly colored tropical fish known as Cichlids reside in the waters, as well as lake otters and locally named “dolphinfish.” There is freshwater diving, swim-throughs, shore diving, night diving, and more. All levels of divers are encouraged to dive in Malawi, and the low currents of the lake make it ideal for beginners.
Water temperatures are surprisingly warm. The best time of year to travel is during the dry months, as visibility is reduced during the rains. Most dives begin around 10 m (30 feet) and maximum dive depths in Lake Malawi reach 50 m (165 feet). Average dive depths, particularly in the Southern region, range from 10-30 meters (30-100 feet). In Nkhata Bay in the North, dive depths range from 10-17 meters (30-80 feet).
Compared to salt water or ocean diving, freshwater diving is a comfortable alternative. Currents are calmer without the ocean’s tides and waves, and accidentally losing your regulator doesn’t yield you a mouthful of salt. For example at the Lizard Island dive site, located about 1 kilometer off the coast of Senga Bay, there is a good variety of fish to explore in an area where currents are nonexistent, and average dive depths are right around 25 meters.
In Malawi’s freshwater lake with sandy bottom, you’re less likely to need buoyancy control as well as you try to avoid damaging a reef. Plus, there are still many pristine areas within the lake such as Domwe Island, which has never been populated. And, without having to fuss with weights as often makes swimming with the otters at places like Otter Point much more enjoyable, or swimming around the rocky formations at Nakatenga Island much easier.
Many people assume that freshwater diving is shallow, but Malawi offers deep dives at a number of sites. Deep dives are available at Domwe Island, where excellent quantities of fish and cichlids are accessed by boat. There, advanced divers can plunge to average depths of 50 meters. Deep dives are also available at Maleri and Mumbo islands, where visibility is excellent and there are even a few catfish and mouthbreeding females to observe as well.
The advantages of diving freshwater in Malawi are clear. While there may be a couple of downsides, such as a rare possibility of a bacteria or the very occasional hippo or crocodile encounter, these dangers, aren’t commonplace in Lake Malawi and the small risk only enhances the exotic feel and thrill of adventure for most divers who travel to Africa. Ultimately, Lake Malawi is a fresh diving experience, especially for ‘fresh’ new faces to the sport.
Ultimately, Lake Malawi offers what few freshwater sites can–amazing and colorful endemic species, spectacular night diving, shipwrecks, pinnacles, deep diving and ‘big fish.” You could say the lake includes most of the perks of its marine counterparts with some of the inconveniences removed. Or, you might say it’s like comparing apples and oranges. Truthfully, diving in Lake Malawi is in a league of its own.