The Aliwal Shoal is a rocky reef which is the remains of an ancient sand dune approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The reef is inhabited by many kinds of hard and soft corals and a variety of tropical and subtropical fish species. Aliwal Shoal was named after the near-sinking in 1849 of the three-masted vessel "Aliwal", captained by James Anderson. There are two wrecks near the reef that are popular recreational dive sites. Aliwal Shoal has diverse marine life, including large predators, and is popular as a recreational scuba diving destination. The Shoal is known especially for its abundance of Grey nurse sharks (known locally as ragged tooth sharks or "raggies") between July and November when the sharks congregate there to mate. The reef is around 2,5km's long by 1km wide, thus making for various dive sites ranging from 12m deep to around 27m deep. The wrecks are 32m & 27m deep. Popular Dive Sites are Cathedral 27m Raggies Cave 16m Chunnel Cave 14m North Sands 16m Inside Edge 24m Outside Edge 27m MV Produce Wreck 32m SS Nebo 27m We also have some tek diving to be done on MS Griqualand at 60m and the Mary Kate at 60m