Piti Bomb Holes Preserve

This is probably the most accessible 'safe' dive site on Guam other than Gab Gab on the Naval base. Nice public park with outdoor showers and restrooms. The walk over the shallow reef is long and somewhat tedious (and hot)...the bomb holes are more accurately called bomb craters. There are hundreds of large bomb craters starting just a few feet beneath the surface, with the deepest ending at the base of the Aquarium around 30 feet deep or so and the shallowest only a few feet deep. Judging by the size of the craters (and my experience with WWII-era ordnance on Kaho`olawe, Hawaii), I'd say that the majority of craters were made by at least 1,000-pound bombs or more than one 500-pound bomb. It is my understanding that these craters were created during the U.S.-lead liberation of Guam from Japanese occupying forces during WWII. Many of the beaches along Guam still contain ordnance and ordnance-related remnants. [If you like your fingers and toes, refrain from picking up anything metal from the water.] The shallow craters are somewhat annoying (up, into, then up and over). The best crater is the largest, at the Aquarium. Anemones, jack, clownfish, and lots of others (including people in the aquarium) make this the most interesting part of the dive. I tried to make it past the barrier reef, but it's very far out, and I tired long before reaching deeper waters. Recommended for beginners through advanced divers who are in relatively good shape and need a good workout!

When driving down Route 1 (Marine Corp Drive), you will pass the War in the Pacific Memorial Park on the right. Piti (Fisheye) is just after that, again on the right. To avoid the large number of tourists diving, it is best to go in the early AM. Micronesia Diving Assoc. is just across the street and you can get your air or rental gear there. The rental crew is awesome and really helped us. There are often a bunch of needlefish which are mistaken for barracuda. Under the observatory is a sandy bottom, and there is an abundance of activity on the sills of the windows. Overall, this is a great easy-dive. I would recommend watching the tide chart, and going out about an hour before high-tide. That will help with the sometimes LONG walk in!

Aside from a long walk in shallow water, this is one of the easiest, safest dives you'll ever do. It's particularly worth recommending to divers traveling with non-divers, since the snorkeling's GREAT and even non-swimmers who hate boats can pay $10 and go into the oceanarium at the end of the dock, to watch YOU diving just outside the oceanarium's underwater windows!!! Ranged around the oceanarium is a thriving community of antler corals. Fish include crocodile fish, half-beak birdfish, schools of skipjack and unicorn fish, triggerfish, and clownfish. Viz is typically 50'. Stay close to the pier and oceanarium, since the rest of the area is a bit shallow and boring. Avoid the left-hand side of the pier, out near the end, because it's where "seawalker" tours send helmeted tourists down to walk around & stir up an already silty bottom. Excellent place for open water training dives and zero-stress first-time night-dives. DO NOT use the pier for your SCUBA activities, as the owners are quite adamant that you're not covered in their insurance, and they don't need the extra traffic on their pier. Lighting's strong & this dive doesn't get beyond 30' deep unless you bring a shovel, so consider bringing a one-use Fuji Quicksnap snorkeling camera (rated to only 15', but actually good to 30~35' deep). Warning: This is a popular stop for tourists' intro-dives, so expect it to get a bit crowded. GREAT BIG WARNING: There's a 5'-long Great Barracuda there. He's usually fed hotdogs by insane tourists, so DO NOT POINT AT HIM WITH YOUR FINGERS. This is a poignant reason why the hand signal for "danger" is a fist, not a finger pointing. This barracuda has already taken one unfortunate tourist's finger, thinking the extended finger was a sausage offering. Aside from the barracuda and occasional small lionfish, this site is utterly safe. The name "Piti Bombholes" is a misnomer: The "bombholes" are actually natural sinkholes in an otherwise shallow, flat, slab-like reef.