Wolf Island, officially known as Isla Wolf, sits in the remote northern part of the Galápagos Islands. It's a small, rugged and uninhabited island where underwater it delivers one of the most exciting hammerhead shark encounters on the planet.

Wolf island rises sharply from deep water, where below the surface advanced divers will discover steep volcanic walls, rocky ledges and drop-offs that disappear into the blue.

Divers typically descend along the wall, find shelter behind rocks, and wait. Within minutes of arriving at depth and settling in with the current, schools of scalloped hammerheads begin to materialise from the deep, where on a good dive you can see hundreds of sharks.

Large schools of scalloped hammerheads circle in formation, which are often joined by Galápagos sharks and silky sharks. You'll also see spotted eagle rays cruise past in formation, and if you're lucky, in the months of June to November see enormous whale sharks glide through the blue.

Bottlenose dolphins are see on occasion, plus turtles, including hawksill and green turtles, and then the playful sea lions are also seen too.

The currents are the key to everything, which bring nutrient-rich waters that flow through the northern islands, attracting pelagic life in huge numbers.

These nutrient-rich currents can be strong to very strong, which means most dives require negative entries, meaning you descend immediately to avoid drifting on the surface. Once you arrive at the dive site, you'll need to hold position with a reef hook or by gripping bare rock (where permitted by your guide), where you may prefer to use gloves to avoid cutting your hands on the sharp edges.

Visibility is typically excellent, often 15–30 metres and sometimes more. The water temperature varies significantly depending on season, with cooler thermoclines possible even in warmer months.

Wolf Island can visited by liveaboard only and is paired with Darwin Island on northern Galápagos itineraries. Because of its exposure and conditions, it is firmly aimed at experienced divers who are comfortable with current, depth and blue-water encounters.

For the right diver, Wolf is an unforgettable experience not to be missed.

If you are building an SDE-style rating mindset, Wolf Island scores extremely high on the SDE Diving score, where some Galapagos dive liveaboards have an SDE Dive score of 10/10, where this is raw, wild, big-animal diving for experienced divers.