Diving location

Fraškerić is an islet in the northern archipelago of the Medulin islands, located in the Banjole area, south of Pula. This archipelago consists of only two islets, Frašker and Fraškerić, interconnected by a small undersea passage. The diving site, located on the western part of the Fraškerić island, is one of the most beautiful diving positions along the western coast of Istria.

The nearest mainland to Fraškerić is the Indije Campsite in Banjole. Apart from Banjole, the islet can also be reached by boat from the Pula side, setting off from the Verudela peninsula.

It features four tunnels, which are actually very interesting underwater, passable caves illuminated by sunlight from the roof openings. The position is marked by a fixed diving buoy used for diving boats mooring. Divers affectionately call this position "4 tunnels" as it is a real rarity to have such an interesting geomorphological composition in one place.

Curiosities of the sea
The first tunnel hides a small pool with a roof opening from which one can go out onto the island. The remaining three caves are deeper and much longer, and can only be visited by scuba divers.

The second cave has a wide tunnel that is particularly attractive because of the large roof opening through which the sun rays illuminate almost the entire passage. One can go ashore by passing through this opening.
Both caves have wide entrances and rocky bottoms.

During high visibility, the southwestern rocky slope of the island reveals an exceptional view of the sandy bottom at a depth of 26 meters from which this islet emerges. On the western tip of the island, at a depth of 24 meters, there are two large boulders separated by a narrow passage, inhabited by lobsters, while groupers and European congers can hide in the caves under the stones. The passageways and shady parts of the stones are overgrown with colourful sponges, while the orange candlestick sponge resembling long fingers is especially decorative.

Following the northern slopes of the islet, we reach the remaining two caves that have roof exits and back doors, sometimes too narrow for divers with additional equipment. The bottom of both caves features small gravel mixed with sand, so it is important that divers maintain neutral buoyancy not to blur visibility by strong finning.

The passages are wide enough in all the caves, but it is recommended that divers go one at a time so as not to damage the delicate spongy organisms and bryophytes that give colour to these hidden passages. Both caves are on the same stone plateau, laterally decorated by walls, one deeper and the upper more shallow teeming with life and colours. Here one can meet an electric eay, red scorpionfish, soles, turbot and various types of crabs.

The wreckage of an unfortunate fishing boat found scattered along the northern plateau makes this location even more charming. However, that is not the only secret of this islet. We rarely think about these cave-tunnels as possible habitats of the primitive man who lived there and found them to be a safe shelter in ancient prehistory.
Today, the caves and walls of Fraškerić are home to many living communities, as well as a mandatory hiding place to shoals of annular sea breams, damselfish, gilthead seabreams, two-banded seabreams and wandering shoals of small bluefish.

Safety first
All caves can be a training ground for professional freedivers, but in a company for safety purposes due to a demanding dive. The second cave with the widest tunnel hides a lateral, dead-end cave with a muddy bottom. Do not enter it, no matter how curious you are, because it is too narrow, winding and dark. In such conditions, one wrong kick of the fin is enough to raise the fine mud from the bottom and obscure the light of the underwater lamp.
This sea cave belongs to the flooded or partially flooded sea cave habitat type and is part of the Natura 2000 ecological network for preservation purposes.
The use of an underwater lamp is mandatory, and the best dive is along a diving guide.

Care for the sea
Snorkelers should bear in mind that on the shallow plateaus one can find seahorses along the northern edge of the islet and around the diving buoy. However, be careful because there is a waterway nearby and boats can speed past the islets despite the rules and regulations of good behaviour at sea.