Diving on Pulau Tioman is fun and cheap. I paid 180 Malaysian Ringgit for 2 boat dives. That have been 45 Euro in September 2010.
I was lucky not to be in that place during season because evrything was relaxed and empty. Ok it was near to boring, but I really would go to this place if I am on a couples holiday. I stayed in the northernmost village of Pulau Tioman. And besides diving there is not much to do except you can make a little walk through the jungle.
You can reach the island quite easy with a speed boat for 35Ringgit each fare, takes around 50minutes. But be aware that the boats cannot go during low tide, so be prepared to stay over night in Mersing, but do not stay in Omar's backpackers. That is a heavy bedbug gulag. At night I tried to sleep on the kitchen table but the bugs got me even there. It ws terrible!
Diving on Tioman was not difficult but the visibility in September is quite bad around 5m. The reefs are not to deep and full of tropical marine wildlife. I dived at Soyak and Renggis. That was the first time I saw three turtles in one dive. I was not to satisfied with the dive shop. Because the dive master was not really interested in us. Ok it is a hard job and doing that during one whole season must be exhausting.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Manta Point, Nusa Penida
If you ever go diving in Bali you have to go to Manta Point at Nusa Penida, an awesome dive spot. Many divers are brought with Minibusses to Padang Bai from where it is a one hour speed boat ride to that place next to Nusa Penida. For me that dive was a little challenge because there is a surf which lets you steadily go 2m back and forth. I got confused when I felt that half of my fin strokes where against some current and some not.
So that dive site called Manta Point is quite idyllic. There is a small hill under water where the Manta Rays love to swim over. Unfortunately visibility is very low due to nutritious small life-forms in the water that I believe are eaten by the Manta Ray.
When we arrived we could already see many Mantas playing around next to the boat. It was quite fascinating to see their wing tips going around in pairs on the water surface. With a backroll we entered the water and decended to around 14m. From that depth all the divers try to observe the hill above and everything whats going on around. In that 45min we had countless sight contacts with Manta Rays. They were playing with each other making loopings and other under-water-acrobatics right next to us. It were real peaceful moments when they swam around you ad they seemed not to be bothered by scuba divers. Unfortunately this dive spot is really crowded. We were the first on the site because the dive shop I booked the dive had the fastest boat. That also meant that we ascended as the first and we could see countless dive boats waiting to collect their divers, but no Mantas anymore in that small bay.
I can still highly recommend that dive spot, especially when you dive with OK Divers in Padang Bai, because of the fast boat.
So that dive site called Manta Point is quite idyllic. There is a small hill under water where the Manta Rays love to swim over. Unfortunately visibility is very low due to nutritious small life-forms in the water that I believe are eaten by the Manta Ray.
When we arrived we could already see many Mantas playing around next to the boat. It was quite fascinating to see their wing tips going around in pairs on the water surface. With a backroll we entered the water and decended to around 14m. From that depth all the divers try to observe the hill above and everything whats going on around. In that 45min we had countless sight contacts with Manta Rays. They were playing with each other making loopings and other under-water-acrobatics right next to us. It were real peaceful moments when they swam around you ad they seemed not to be bothered by scuba divers. Unfortunately this dive spot is really crowded. We were the first on the site because the dive shop I booked the dive had the fastest boat. That also meant that we ascended as the first and we could see countless dive boats waiting to collect their divers, but no Mantas anymore in that small bay.
I can still highly recommend that dive spot, especially when you dive with OK Divers in Padang Bai, because of the fast boat.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Ped, Nusa Penida
Ped is a very interesting dive spot at the coast of Nusa Penida, Indonesia. It is a very steep coast line that drops fast into the ocean. Strong unforseable currents make it a spot for advanced divers. But it is said that exactly these currents are responsible for the rich marine wildlife, because the water carries much nutrition from deeper layers excellent for reef inhabitants.
I did a drift dive with an experienced PADI dive master and a dive buddy. For me it was the first time to handle such strong currents while diving. As soon as I got under the surface I was suddenly pulled to a depth of 24m. I did not know what to to exactly although the dive master told me to stick near to the wall and to hold on to wall if necessary. But I had to learn from watching my dive buddy how to do it. My dive buddy had done some dives than me, she used gloves and her steel pointer to keep herself at the wall. I was afraid to hold on to the wall, because some corals are sharp like razors. The dive master got a little nervous because I was supposed to stay above her to in order to be in the dive computer pressure scheme. Despite of that learning experience it was an awesome dive with 43min. only a bit short.
I did a drift dive with an experienced PADI dive master and a dive buddy. For me it was the first time to handle such strong currents while diving. As soon as I got under the surface I was suddenly pulled to a depth of 24m. I did not know what to to exactly although the dive master told me to stick near to the wall and to hold on to wall if necessary. But I had to learn from watching my dive buddy how to do it. My dive buddy had done some dives than me, she used gloves and her steel pointer to keep herself at the wall. I was afraid to hold on to the wall, because some corals are sharp like razors. The dive master got a little nervous because I was supposed to stay above her to in order to be in the dive computer pressure scheme. Despite of that learning experience it was an awesome dive with 43min. only a bit short.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Tulamben, Bali
If you choose to go to Tulamben, Bali for a dive at the Liberty, you usually book a day trip including the transport to beach and two dives. There are small and cheap restaurants at the beach where you can have lunch for some Rupees.
Diving "the Liberty" at Tulamben is quite relaxed. The wreck lies not far (approx.25m) from the shore in black volcanic sands which is a nice contrast to all the colorful corals. Our first dive went down to 21m.
"The Liberty" like any other wreck attracts many mid-size fish in schools and the typical tropical marine wildlife. I saw huge amounts of Jack-Tunas, many kind of snappers and some barracudas around the wreck. Inside the wreck and on the ground I saw an octopus and leaf scorpion fish. It is a nice playground for all kind of marine life-forms including those lazy ones in fashionable black neoprene suits, equipped with scuba gears.
Diving "the Liberty" at Tulamben is quite relaxed. The wreck lies not far (approx.25m) from the shore in black volcanic sands which is a nice contrast to all the colorful corals. Our first dive went down to 21m.
"The Liberty" like any other wreck attracts many mid-size fish in schools and the typical tropical marine wildlife. I saw huge amounts of Jack-Tunas, many kind of snappers and some barracudas around the wreck. Inside the wreck and on the ground I saw an octopus and leaf scorpion fish. It is a nice playground for all kind of marine life-forms including those lazy ones in fashionable black neoprene suits, equipped with scuba gears.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Padangbai, Bali
The first open water dive spot I want to describe here is the small little village named Padang Bai on the wonderful island of Bali, Indonesia. This is an awesome place for advanced open water divers, where you can get outstanding underwater experiences seeing nice corals and a huge variety of oceanic wild life.
I did 6 dives there, 2 at the legendary wreck "The Liberty", which lies in the ocean at Tulamben, 1 at the Manta Point of Nusa Penida, 1 drift dive at Ped, and another two dives at the lovely beaches of Padang Bai.
The village is quite small but there are at least 5 or six dive shops along its Esplanade which are competing against each other. I visited them all and thought that they are all well-run and still safety oriented. The prices vary between 55$ for two dives at the beaches of Padang Bai, around 115$ for the Manta Point and Ped (incl. a long speed boat ride to Nusa Penida).
The beach dives at Padang Bai are quite easy. Usually you do boat dives at sites like "Blue Lagoon" and "Jepun". You can already see much marine wildlife at these spots. The water was clear there in August. I heard that it is also possible to dive in the ferry channel, but it is difficult to find a dive shop doing that.
For me it was a nice diving experience there and I also liked the village. you can get accommodation for around 80000 IDR per night. The restaurants are also good. Only little hassle is that you have to go to Klungkung for an ATM which works with all cards.
I did 6 dives there, 2 at the legendary wreck "The Liberty", which lies in the ocean at Tulamben, 1 at the Manta Point of Nusa Penida, 1 drift dive at Ped, and another two dives at the lovely beaches of Padang Bai.
The village is quite small but there are at least 5 or six dive shops along its Esplanade which are competing against each other. I visited them all and thought that they are all well-run and still safety oriented. The prices vary between 55$ for two dives at the beaches of Padang Bai, around 115$ for the Manta Point and Ped (incl. a long speed boat ride to Nusa Penida).
The beach dives at Padang Bai are quite easy. Usually you do boat dives at sites like "Blue Lagoon" and "Jepun". You can already see much marine wildlife at these spots. The water was clear there in August. I heard that it is also possible to dive in the ferry channel, but it is difficult to find a dive shop doing that.
For me it was a nice diving experience there and I also liked the village. you can get accommodation for around 80000 IDR per night. The restaurants are also good. Only little hassle is that you have to go to Klungkung for an ATM which works with all cards.
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