Cruel Nice World

Zakynthos scuba diving activities

2008-08-18T08:35:00.000-07:00

Zakynthos scuba diving activities

Zante is one of the biggest and greenest islands in the southern Ionian Sea. The Gods Diana and Apollo have chosen it for its idyllic landscapes, the deep blue waters, the wonderful sandy beaches, the breathtaking caves, the enchanting sunsets and its benign climate for their holidays.
Today, travelers enjoy Zante for the same reasons as well for its hospitable environment and civilization.

The scuba diving teams and the fullest professional facilities in there can offer you the chance to take diving courses or participate in daily diving journeys.

There're various scuba diving positions for divers of any kind of experience.
The most beaytiful place in there is the Lake of Keri, a resort located in the southernmost part of the island only at 17 km from the city of Zante, away from the busiest regions. No doubt it constitutes the ideal place for family holidays.

PEMBA ISLAND [AFRIKA] SCUBA DIVING

2007-07-04T05:21:00.000-07:00

The yearly scuba divers from all over the world come down to Mombasa or Zanzibar Island and are then transferred all the way to Pemba Island to explore the reefs and ocean marine life. Many of our scuba diving customers have elevated their African diving experience by exploring the frigid waters of Pemba Island. Africa diving grounds are set on the Peninsula with sunsets and sunrises over the Indian Ocean. Manta Reef Lodge is strategically positioned to have access to the eastern coastline and western shoreline for the maximum access to diving spots in Pemba Island and fishing grounds. Kenya Beach Travel provides all latest diving equipment so that divers do not have to bring them along during their vacation in order to avoid all the luggage hassleCommonly found marine lives are: - Napolean wrasse, pelagic fish, famous Manta rays, turtles and sharks.There are over 15 wooden raised cabins at Pemba Island's Manta Reef Lodge. Each gives maximum views of the beautiful Indian Ocean directly over the beach. The indigenous old trees, and brush vegetation fronting the Indian Ocean have been preserved. This allows the continuous lifestyle of the birds and bush baby's to go on amongst the lodge life.

Diving around Sharm-el-Sheikh

2007-06-18T05:15:00.000-07:00

The morphology of Sharm El Sheikh's coastline is unique. Although some beaches can be found, the area mainly consists of sheer, flat-topped cliffs extending vertically out of the sea. Running parallel to these cliffs along their entire length is flat narrow stretch of reef, referred to as the reef table. The reef table extends downwards as a fully-fledged wall. This 65km stretch is considered to be one of the richest and most famous reefs in the world. For mile after mile, hard and soft coral species, reef and pelagic fish abound in a dazzling display. Most dives are day trip, double tank, boat dives, and will include world famous sites like Jackson Reef, Ras Um Sid, Ras Nasrani, Ras Mohammed and the wreck of the Thistlegorm.

DIVING IN KADAVU [Part 2]

2007-06-07T05:36:00.000-07:00

Dive Site:Yellow Wall

Type: Stationary Dive

Location: Namalata Reef

Depth: 25mtrs Max

Fish Life: Sweet lips/Sergeant major/Pipefish/Garden eels/Walu/Wahoo

Reef Life: Thick Yellow soft coral in amongst a series of arches and swim throughs

Description: This is one of the premier dive sites in Kadavu, dive through series of swimthroughs and archways covered with yellow soft corals and nudibranchs, slight -med currents will bring the soft coral out to feed. Visit the friendly sergeant major fish and see the dive guides give them breakfast.

Dive Site: Canyon

Location: Namalata Reef

Depth: 23mtrs Max

Fish life: Schools of Clownfish varieties/Eagle rays/garden eels/Napoleon Wrasse

Reef Life: Swim through of hard coral /Canyon like valleys/series of coral heads

Description: This is like canyon diving, start by swimming through a big swim through and check the ambient light creep through the crevice like tunnel. Following that experience swimming through arches of different kinds to where you'll find on top of the coral head many different varieties of clown fish, also pop corn shrimp can be found on this divesite.

Dive Site: Crazy Maze

Location: Namalata Reef

Depth: Varies between 3-18 mtrs

Fish life: Giant Goliath grouper/turtles/pop corn shrimp/barracuda

Reef Life: Swim throughs galore

Description: Follow your dive guide through 11 swim throughs in spectacular formations, this is a very long but satisfying dive, the swim through weave throughs the sea wall at all kinds of angles and each one has its spectacular formation of colors and fish life.

Dive Site: Evil Trench

Location: Namalata Reef

Type: Advanced Deep Dive/Cavern Dive

Depth: 35mtrs +

Fish life: Schools of Jack/Grouper

Reef Life: Mainly Rock Formations

Description: Extreme deep dive but amazing.Descend to 30mtrs to the trench and slip into the abyss and exit onto the sea wall where wahoo,sharks and grouper will meet you for a friendly bula.

Dive Site: Featherstar

Location: Namalata Reef

Type: 12-16mtrs

Depth: Night Dive Only/Stationary

Fish life: Nudibranch (30-40cm long!!) /Octopus/Stone Fish/Lion Fish/Turtles

Reef Life: All night soft coral /Basket stars/Featherstars

Description: A very good site for beginners to learn how to night dive. Consists of two coral heads and a max depth of 16mtrs. As well advanced divers will enjoy this site also because of the marine life that can be found here.One big attraction is the giant size nudibranch that can be found wondering around looking for food,also the turtles.

DIVING IN KADAVU [Part 1]

2007-05-23T06:27:00.000-07:00

The DIVE KADAVU team of skilled professionals will guide you through some of the best dive sites in the world. The fleet of purpose built dive boats will get you there quickly and comfortably. You arrive at the dive sites refreshed and ready for the adventures that only the reefs of Kadavu can offer. This is the easiest and most enjoyable diving you can imagine. Diving in these clear waters with abundant marine life, brilliantly coloured soft and hard coral and endless swimthroughs is a dream come true.

Dive Site: Sea Fan Alley

Location: Nabukelevu-I-ra

Type: Wall and Sea Mountain Dive

Depth: 30+ mtrs

Fish Life: Schools of Barracuda, Manta Rays, Hammer heads

Reef Life: Sea fans with a mixture of hard and soft Corals

Description: Drift Dive this dive, as there is a lot to cover, in amongst soft and hard corals there are clown triggerfish and turtles. Cruising by expect to see schools of jacks.

Dive Site: Cabbage Patch

Location: Nabukelevu-I-ra

Type: Stationary Dive

Depth: 20mtrs max

Fish Life: Sea Snakes/Clown Fish/Manta rays/Eagle Rays/Walu

Reef Life: Cabbage coral in amongst soft and hard coral, swim through

Description: Expect to see a lot of pristine cabbage coral, looks like an underwater garden, spectacular swim through with ghost pipefish inside. Dive site can be drift dive depending on the current and a very easy and mellow second dive.

Dive Site: Bure's Jewel

Location: Namalata Reef

Type: Stationary Dive

Depth: 20mtrs Max

Fish Life: Lion Fish/Triggerfish/Clown Fish/Nudibranch

Reef Life: Hard coral dive with a lot of small things to see, many varieties of Nudibranch's in numbers at this location. A macro photographers dream.

Diving in the End of the World:Ushuaia!

2007-05-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

Ushuaia offers the possibility to dive in its crystalline waters in the middle of a quiet and colorful landscape. This fascinating sport is a new alternative if you dare dive in this cold place with a variety of submarine sceneries. Diving should be planned between March and December, when Ushuaia presents optimum conditions, since solar activity is not so intense and permits a visibility of more than 15 meters. Due to the water temperature between 0 °C and 4 °C it becomes necessary to wear a dry suit that you should learn to wear before immersion for a safer and more comfortable dive. There are daily diving outings from different points leaving from Ushuaia port in some of the ships of Ushuaia Divers. The selection of the diving spot depends on the direction of the wind, predominantly from the south west, and of the best anchoring conditions.Navigating to the islands is very pleasant, since bays never freeze and you will be accompanied by the birds and delighted by the green tones of the islands. The shape of the mountains determine their names and makes them easily recognized. The automatic pilot allows the captain of the ship to share his diving experiences with inexperienced divers.There are different diving places wether you navigate to the east or to the west. If you go west you can dive from the coast in Round Island in Ensenada bay 20 m. from the coast or from Cucharita port. The submarine landscape in this area looks like a submerged forest formed by big algae.These dives never surpass the 12 meters and you can see the dazzling rays of the sun playing with these immense plants. To the east it is only possible to go by boat. They usually dive around the islands near the port, which are rich in life and visibility.Bridges Islands, named after the first family on the island, are the most frequented ones with their beautiful cliffs. There you can dive in points such as Puerto Karelo, Canalcito and Iturrieta. In Karelo the operator built a small shelter on the coast where divers share an "asado" after the immersion. This is the most beautiful place in a channel between two isles, where life is more abundant because the water movement produces more activity of species.Among the algae there is always some spider crab, and if you watch closely in every corner you will surely discover a colorful sponge, a starfish or a globefish. White sponges glinging to the walls seem to recreate the snow outside.In this area it is ideal to dive at a depth of 20 meters. After this exciting experience you return to Ushuaia, with the satisfaction of having dived in the end of the world.

Scuba Diving in Belize [Part 2]:Wildlife Reserve Day Trip

2007-05-04T06:56:00.000-07:00

Over 60 square kilometers, and accessible only by sea, Bacalar Chico one of Belize's newest reserves is located on the northern tip of Ambergris Caye and overlooking the Bay of Chetumal, Mexico. Bacalar Chico is vastly inhabited by birds, crocodiles and marine life. Of special note is the nesting of Green and Loggerhead Turtles in the area. During a recent study in the area, within an hours count, 1400 birds of 10 different species were identified. Scuba-Belize.com is proud to be the only dive shop offering this unique dive/snorkel day trip to this fabulous destination. Your adventure starts at 9am and includes a scrumptious Belizean picnic lunch, plenty water and drinks, 2 snorkel stops and 2 extraordinary dives and superb site seeing! Bacalar Chico offers an incredible wall dive and an uncommon dive through 'braided' canyons, particular only in this area. As we wrap around the island you encounter crocodiles basking along the mangroves, manatees gently swimming by and scenery fit for day dreams!

Scuba Diving in Belize [part 1]

2007-04-23T03:29:00.000-07:00

Belize offers an underwater diving majesty, big islands, hundreds of smaller offshore isles, three huge and distinctive coral atolls, and the second largest barrier reef that seems endless. The underwater world is filled with shallow gardens of corals, steep drop-offs speckled with colorful fish, vibrant sponges and other marine life. With the world famous Blue Hole it's no wonder that Belize is one of the world's most suited diving vacation resorts.

About the Reef

The most popular offshore destination in Belize, is Ambergris Caye. The northernmost and the largest of the many cayes is home to the little town of San Pedro, singer and songwriter Madonna once sang about this beloved island in her song named, "Isla Bonita". Ambergris' sandy streets are filled with charming shops and great restaurants just off the shore of the Caribbean Sea. The dive environment includes over 20 miles of barrier reef that runs parallel to the island. This island offers divers more than 40 named dive sites can be reached from your resort each and every day of your visit! One of the most popular sites is Hol Chan Marine Park, the country's first and best-known marine sanctuary. This site alone has more than six dive sites in addition to the famous Shark-Ray Alley, with a swarm of friendly Nurse Sharks and stingrays. Not far away from the park is the Amigos Ship Wreck, recently sunk as a new diving attraction. Deep dive sites along the outside of the barrier reef include M and M Caverns and Punta Azul Canyons.From the island of Ambergris Caye you can schedule day and overnight trips. Packages are available to Turneffe Islands Atoll and Lighthouse Reef Atoll, which includes the Great Blue Hole, Belize's most famous dive site.

Kiwis claim record back from Aussies in style

2007-04-12T05:29:00.000-07:00

A group of New Zealand ironists have claimed a new world record for the most number of people ironing under water at the same time.Fifty scuba divers from Dive! Tutukaka, armed with ironing boards, irons, and something to iron, descended to 29 metres to rise to an Australian challenge to break the world record for most people underwater extreme ironing.
The previous record was held by Bay City Scuba Diving Club, who took 43 ironists into the depths to press a few items of laundry.
The Dive! Tutukaka team ironed beside the propeller of the purpose sunk Waikato wreck off Tutukaka’s coast in Northland, New Zealand, on a sandy bottom at a depth of 29 metres.
With the famous Poor Knights Islands on the not too distant horizon, four Dive! Tutukaka boats with the fifty extreme athletes aboard left Tutukaka Harbour to make ironing history.Kate Malcolm, New Zealand Underwater Extreme Ironing Co-ordinator, said, "A new equation was introduced to combat sneaky underarm bowling methods of ironing after the Australians. It records the number of divers multiplied by the depth at which they iron. 43 Australian ironers at 3 metres reached an extreme-o-meter reading of 129, whereas 50 Kiwi ironers at 29 metres achieved a remarkable extremity level of 1450!
“Our attempt was highly organised and the logistics were very finely tuned, our athletes are in their prime and the Waikato was a perfect site for this event.” She added, “We had three Australian scrutineers aboard to confirm the numbers and the depth, and we are certain that they picked up several pointers in their technique to take home to Australia. We look forward to the next challenge!”

Slovenia Museum of Diving History

2007-04-02T07:00:00.000-07:00

A new diving museum has opened in the small European country of Slovenia, the result of a lot of hard work by Zarko Sajic and his team of volunteers.
Situated in the beautiful small Venetian coastal town of Piran, the museum has a comprehensive display of diving equipment and submariner items from early times to the present day.
The displays, in three rooms, are done with lots of various diving equipment and dressed mannequins in various sets of diving equipment from different manufacturers from different periods.
Wall displays are in three languages (Slovene, English and Italian) and cover various aspects like the history of diving and it goes on to focus on the history of diving within the geographical area of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Subjects covered include diving companies, projects, salvages, individuals and even diving accidents. There is even a display about cave diving and a mention of the help given in the early days by the British Cave Diving Group.
The museum couldn’t be in a more beautiful and apt setting, being literally just over the road from the picturesque harbour. The town of Piran is an old Venetian port with a lot of the buildings making the place look like a mini Venice. The people are friendly and as a bonus there’s good food and wine. Slightly further away are some beautiful lakes and mountains, in fact there is enough to make the visit into a full blown holiday.

Diving in Bali

2007-03-27T05:34:00.000-07:00

Bali lies at the center of the world's richest marine biogeographical region! This Indo – Pacific region runs from the Red Sea to
the West Coast of South America. Smack in the center of this vast area is Biologists studying species distribution have placed the very epicenter of this marine richness in an area called the “magic triangle”. Forming the corners of this biological marvel are the tip of the Southern Biologists studying species distribution have placed the very epicenter of this marine richness in an area called the “magic triangle”. Forming the corners of this biological marvel are the tip of the Southern Philippines to the north, Bali to the east and Western New Guinea. This region alone encompasses the richest diversity of marine fauna on the planet. Over eighty genera of coral and perhaps twenty five hundred species of fish! ( and still Philippines to the north, Bali to the east and Western New Guinea. This region alone encompasses the richest diversity of marine fauna on the planet. Over eighty genera of coral and perhaps twenty five hundred species of fish!Indonesia where the Pacific meets the Indian Ocean . Indonesia , with over 18,000 islands and an estimated 85,000 square kilometers of living coral reef. That's more than 14 percent of the world's coral reefs and the richest 14 percent at that compare that to say the Caribbean with only twenty genera of coral and eight hundred types of fish!
So why come and dive in Bali ! Easy, you want to experience the richest and best marine environment on the planet.
Did I also mention its easily accessible! You don't have to spend days on boats trekking to some far flung dive site. A simple Day Trip or Dive Safari will place you at world class dive sites and still you can enjoy all the amenities and charm that has made Bali one of the best holiday destinations in the world.

Diving in SCILLA, ITALY!

2007-03-23T02:11:00.000-07:00

SCILLA, ITALY

There is a variety of dives at Scilla - some easy, some more difficult - WWII and older relics for wreck-divers, too. The surfacing rocks at Scoglio di Sangrioli is a very relaxing, 18m dive. There is plenty of time to wallow among coloured wrasses and parrot fish - a beautiful start for newly certified divers. The spines of Punta Paci' are on the south side of the bay of Scilla. The bottom slopes down quite decisively, and at a depth of 20m two parallel spines of rocks rise. The rocks, about 15m high, are covered in a multitude of life forms. At greater depth, we find our famous two-tone soft corals, surrounded by schools of Anthias. In the winter months, it is common to meet the San Pietro fish (Zeus Faber), while in the summer, Barracudas glide by a few feet away from you. Remember to check the sandy bottom once in a while, because it is a favourite spot for sting rays. La Montagna (the mountain) is considered by the many divers that have seen it in the past few years as the best spot in the Mediterranean. It is an explosion of colours. You will all of a sudden be facing a monolith 20m high, completely covered in two-tones Paramuricee, huge Ceriantus, anthias, black coral, soft corals, Madreporas, grapes of sea squirts, nudibranches... You have to see it for yourself. Even at 35m, this dive is not particularly difficult. As you approach the rocks of La Grotticella, the first two-tone soft corals appear, to become denser towards the sea. There we find a small pass-through cave, inside of which lives a large family of Parapandalus shrimp. Sometimes we will find large fish (grooper or greater forkbeard) taking advantage of the situation. This site offers very nice light effects, due to the sun shining through the two large openings through which we easily enter and exit the cave. We swim back across the rocks and there see large groopers out hunting. Photographers should use wide angle lenses to capture the atmosphere of this beautiful and easy dive site. And then there is the big Mpaddata!!! Undoubtedly the biggest and most varied shoal of Scilla. The side towards the shore forms a wall that sinks down to 40m , whereas, on the other side, it disappears into the big blue... This site offers several routes, all of which will show the diversity of corals of Scilla. Especially, the sheer size and number of two-tone Paramuricee. This is a demanding dive, but with a minimum of precautions you will see a Mediterranean that will not suffer the comparison with your previous tropical destinations! For those captivated by deep water, Il Muro is located directly in front of the Diving Center. The Wall sinks down vertically from 30m to a depth of 70m! Watch your buoyancy! It is densely populated by two-tone Paramuricee and schools of Anthias. At 39m, you will be able to admire a beautiful basket star (Astrospartus), and towards the South, a nice black coral. The route is very straightforward and the water crystal-clear, but keep a close eye on your depth gauge, otherwise, you might feel a bit dizzy!Cipolle' means Scorpion fish in the local dialect. And that is mainly what you will see at Cento Cipolle: large red scorpion fish. This is a beautiful shoal. On top you will see a lot of tunicates, and often large predators. A bit deeper is a spectacular garden of Paramuricee and on the west side a nice cave, usually populated by greater forkbeards. The shoal is not very large, and is therefore easy to circle completely. There, in the various splits and cracks, you will find the largest moray eels of the area. The external side reaches great depths, which means, once again, you must take particular care of your buoyancy.!!!After the thrills of Scilla's shoals, this is just what you need - a relaxing dive at the Pietra Aloia. A few meters from the Diving Center's terrace, twin pinnacles rise from a depth of 15 meters. You will be able to enjoy this site for as long as your air lasts. There are a lot of colorful wrasses, and you will be surprised at the amount of life to be seen. Don't neglect the white, sandy bottom, where you will find soles and anemones with transparent shrimps caught in their tentacles. This is also a good night dive for photographers. A night dive of Marina di Reggio is absolutely unique in the Mediterranean. Located in the middle of the Messina Straits, it is possible to see and take pictures in shallow water, very rare species more typical of greater depths. The dive starts from the shore and quickly goes very deep. But even when staying at shallower depths, we discover an amazing variety of species: crustacea, trumpet fish, echinoderms, molluscs, annelids, coelenterates and a lot more. A unique playground for photographers, underwater videographers, and anybody interested in marine biology. One of the crowning glories of Scilla is a unique, shallow dive called Archi Bosco di Spirografi. Thousands of spirograph worms in a square meter, a forest of corollas. And you will meet other animals in the middle of this underwater forest. Many different species live among the stems of these colorful annelids : fish, echinoderms, crustacea, but best of all: Sea Horses. These delicate creatures are fascinating. Seeing the sea horses alone was worth the trip!

Diving in France!

2007-03-20T07:37:00.000-07:00

DIVE TRIPS:

Diving and training is arranged for all levels of diving. Some dive centers insists on several “check” dives before qualifying for certain types of dives. Some dive sites requires advanced level diver certification. It is a good idea to contact the dive centers well in advance for booking and arrangement of schedules.

CONDITIONS:
In reality diving is done year around in France on the northwest coast as well as on the southeast coast. However, in the Mediterranean the Mistral can blow fiercely in the summer time making Mediterranean seas too rough for diving and the autumn storms can make the westcoast far too choppy. Best time for diving in the Mediterranean is from April to October and diving on the westcoast is best from May to September. Flights to Corsica are available both from France and other European Airports. Ferry routes are frequently cut by strikes, which can cause up to days of waiting. Recommended insulation in the water is a full 5mm or 7mm wetsuit for warm Mediterranean conditions and semi-dry or drysuit for the cold season. A drysuit is recommended year-round in the northwest.

Diving in Utila (Honduras).

2007-03-15T05:19:00.000-07:00

Utila is the smallest and flattest of the three major Bay Islands, and is the closest to the mainland. The island is 9.5 miles long and 3 miles wide. Land transportation on Utila is limited to a few pickup trucks, a couple of unreliable taxis and a ton of old mountain bikes. Utila is not only renown as one of the best diving locations in the Caribbean, it is also known as the cheapest. From mid-February through March one can almost be guaranteed a whale shark experience. Consequently, the streets are lined with dive shops. Because certifications are so cheap, many shops have reputations as dive master factories. For as little as $500 one can spend a month on the island completing a dive master course.
The dive with Altons because that is the shop the school uses. They were fine. The dive masters were young, mostly inexperienced but competent and all were friendly. Dee did her certification course through Altons, they were able to work around her school schedule and she felt her instruction was proficient.You can to have also heard very good reports about Deep Blue Divers. This dive resort and shop is owned by an English couple who claim that Honduras is the cheapest place in the world to dive with the the world's second largest barrier reef.
The best diving in Utila is in the morning. This is when most dive boats go to the "north" side. Also morning offers the best conditions. There are no bad dive sites on Utila.
During your dive you have seen in the ocean (20-25 pounds) several barracuda, jaw fish, octopus, spotted drums, sea turtles, moray, scorpion fish, crabs, hog fish, lizard fish, large sting ray, eagle rays, corals, sea fans, sponges and much much more. The dive sites included a spectacular seamount at Black Hills; Rons Wreck - unimpressive as a wreck dive but lots of sea life, saw the green moray here; Airport reef (a good night dive); Blue Bayou-2 turtles, barracuda and the "giant" lobsters; Black coral wall (2 deep dives here-good), Jack Neil; Big Rock and Cabanas. The visibility ranged from 20-30 m.

Diving in Brazil

2007-03-13T05:07:00.000-07:00

The best dive site is the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha. It's the most untouched spot, and it's simply gorgeous on the surface, appealing to everyone. The difficulty ranges from beginner to advance. Best time of the year is from July to December for beginners, all year round for advanced divers. It's one of the most expensive dive sites to go.
The second best is Abrolhos. It's an archipelago some four to six hours from land, where you can't go on shore, so either you make one-day trips or take a live-aboard on one of several boats. The dives are very, very calm, shallow and relaxed, and though the visibility is not as good as Noronha, but the richness of the corals and marine life is incredible. It's good for all levels of experience. Best time of the year is November to March, when it is also possible to watch whales.
The region between Recife/Olinda in the north and Maceio in the south is named the Golden Coast, and here are several excellent spots of scuba diving and the access is much easier than mentioned archipelagos. Around Recife & Olinda is considered excellent for advanced divers, rich of marine life like turtles and sharks, and many sunk ships, but the sea is usually very, very rough. To the south there are many dive friendly spots for snorkeling, scuba dive beginners and also advanced diving. In Porto de Galinhas for instance, is a very pleasant village with many nice sites for good diving and an excellent area for diving courses. In this region the diving is good during the whole year.
The best spots for scuba diving in the south of Brazil are between São Paulo & Rio de Janeiro. Of course they are not as good as mentioned sites in the northeast, but comparing world wide, this region is very good as well. To indicate some spots in the area should be Barra do Una, Ubatuba, Paraty, Ilha Grande and Arraial do Cabo.
Last but not least, there are two islands near Santos / São Vicente where you can take a day trip for two dives - Laje de Santos and Queimada Grande. But it might be very tricky to reach the area: the boat trip usually takes 2 hours or maybe more, and is often rough. Many times the trips are cancelled due to bad weather, so it's always a lottery. From May to July, manta rays are common in Laje de Santos; possible to see ones with a "wingspan" of about 2 meters, and even some big ones, as they can grow up to 6m!

What is the diving?

2007-03-07T05:08:00.000-08:00

Diving is a dynamic and thrilling sport! It's attraction lies in the combination of the visual appeal of the divers and the challenge to break new boundaries of courage, skill and athleticism. Diving combines the athleticism of gymnastics, the grace of ballet and the concentration of a chess player.
Diving is a sport that belongs to all - no matter what age, class, sex or skill level - all can participate and progress at their own pace.
Diving is an Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games and University Games sport.

Diving Australia

2007-03-05T06:10:00.000-08:00

Diving Australia

The best time to dive the Great Barrier Reef is between August and December: but you can dive there all year round. The water temperature ranges from 22 oC in June rising to 28 oC in March. Although January, February and March are the warmest months they are also the wettest. For Western Australia, the coral spawning in March and April is a good time to go as this is when the big pelagics like whale sharks arrive.

DIVING IN CUBA

2007-02-28T05:59:00.000-08:00

Cuba is often compared to the Cayman Islands as they used to be 20 years ago. It has recently become a favorite diving region for many tourists from all over the world.
With water temperatures between 26 to 29°C, it has an intense coral growth, hundreds of small bays and islands and numerous world-class diving sites. Cuba has become a synonym for exciting, colorful and challenging diving. The underwater world offers spectacular views of sunken Spanish galleons and modern submarines. Tortoises, sharks, rays, barracudas, perch, jack fish, parrot fish, snails, starfish, trigger fish and many other species can be found in Cuban marine life. The visibility usually lies between 15 to 35 meters, so you can see everything very clearly. Because Cuba is such an attractive place for diving, the number of tourists is increasing and more diving organizers offer their services. Almost all resorts offer diving programs, which include courses for beginners and the possibility to obtain a course certificate. The equipment is usually of a high standard, but you can also bring your own equipment. Dive into Cuba's dazzling underwater world.

Scuba Diving in Sydney, Australia

2007-02-23T06:12:00.000-08:00

Location: Just off Maroubra, 15 mins south of Bondi
Description: Cave and shark dive
Visibility: 15 - 25 metres
A crescent shaped cave in approx 15m in length 5m in height at a depth of 18m. During winter (May - Aug) visibility will seldom fall below 15m and is often 25m plus - water temp will range from around 20 in May and dropping back to 15 by August. Ambient air temperature is anything from 28 to 20 degrees - there is very little rain during these months so skies are normally crystal clear blue.
Dive Centre Manly is situated closest to Sydney's best dive sites. Being a PADI 5 Star Instructor training facility, we offer a complete range of dive courses from Discover Scuba to Instructor level and beyond - including Sydney's most talked about Learn to Dive course. Our fun and unique skilled based training programs, have continually produced better divers - when you finish a program with us, you will have gained the confidence and skills necessary to enjoy a lifetime of diving - we guarantee that you won't be able to wait to jump back in the water again.

SCUBA DIVING IN ARGENTINA

2007-02-21T05:50:00.000-08:00

Submerged Forest and The Virgin's Grotto (Villa Traful)
This excursion starts at the village's pier sailing towards the base of the Mirador de Traful, where you can appreciate the magnitude of the action of the wind and the imposing place.

Scuba Diving at the Isla de las Gallons Island (San Carlos de Bariloche)
Under the transparent waters of the Nahuel Napa Lake you can dive among submerged forests and big walls of calcareous rocks.

Diving at Puerto Madryn (Puerto Madryn)
Puerto Madryn is Argentinean's Sub Aquatic Capital for excellence. Its calm and transparent waters, its diverse fauna and its ample areas, make it the best place for scuba diving.

Scuba Diving at Viedma (Viedma)
At the City of Viedma you will have the opportunity of exercising an interesting dive in a little frequented area for the practice of this sport.

Diving at the End of the World (Ushuaia)
Ushuaia, with its silent and colourful landscapes, will offer you the chance of practising an excellent dive under its crystalline and austral waters.

In the Depths of the Ocean (Mar del Plata)
A tourist destination by nature, Mar del Plata offers besides the typical tourist packages, thrilling scuba diving excursions that will allow you to know a submarine world showing off its colourful flora and fauna.

The Monte Cervantes Shipwreck (Ushuaia)
Discovered a few years ago, the shipwreck of the Monte Cervantes vessel is the main attraction of the Beagle Canal, and another interesting spot for scuba diving.

Scuba diving at Mabul

2007-02-19T03:18:00.000-08:00

This small island surrounded by sandy beaches and perched on the northwest corner of a larger 200-hecter reef is notably known as one of the worlds best "muck-
diving" sites. The reef is on the edge of a continental shelf and the seabed surrounding the reef slopes out to 75 to 100 feet deep. Mabul is arguably one of the riches single destinations for exotic small marine life anywhere in the world.

Flamboyant cuttlefish, blue-ringed octopus, mimic octopus and bobtail squids are just a few of the numerous types of cephalapods found. The sight of harlequin shrimp feeding on sea stars and boxer crabs waving their tiny anemone pom-poms are just a small example of the endless species of April through October is the best time to visit. The rainy season is November to March. The water temperature ranges from 26C to 30C year round.
Mabul - crazy critters are in abundance at this magical macro site!

Diving in Viedma

2007-02-15T04:46:00.000-08:00

Viedma es una ciudad Argentina, capital de la provincia de Río Negro y cabecera del departamento Adolfo Alsina. From the city of Viedma you can go on a diving outing, in an unusual place to practise this sport. You take National Route 3 to San Antonio Oeste, drive 75 km. and take a debris road on the left to Punta Mejillón, where there are good diving places opposite the cliffs of Golfo San Matías.
In this sector there are beaches and slopes which allow the access to the sea with rafts and equipment. It is very useful to take a GPS, a satellite positional system, the technical equipment and an appropiate boat to be able to locate the wonders lying at the bottom of this almost unexplored sea.
Once everything is ready, you must take your boat between Bahía Creek and Caleta de los Loros and then dive 20 m. deep. In this sector you can see several lineal shoals with big cavities where sea basses, cabrillas and sargos abund.
Visibility is excellent on clear days, and you will be able to observe the rocks covered in mussels and an endless number of colorful fish shoals while you dive in this exclusive sector not altered by man.
After this astonishing diving journey, you can enjoy the immensity of the landscape skirting the cliffs next to the sea on the way back to Viedma along a debris road to La Lobería.

Diving Bocas Del Toro

2007-02-14T07:20:00.000-08:00

Scuba Diving in Bocas del Toro is one of the most popular area activities.
The dive boats are custom made 25 ft. center console fiberglass v-hulls, equipped with new 100 hp Yamaha four cycle outboard engines. Complete with an overhead canvas cover to protect you from the strong tropical sun, your dive excursions are safe, comfortable, and reliable
Tiger Rock - The farthest dive spot from Bocas down, with the boat ride lasting approx. one hour. It lies just off the mainland, to the right of Zapatilla Cays. There is a large rock formation that stands above the surface, and descends well below 100 feet. Your dive will begin with a descent to approx. 35 feet, where there is a sandy shelf, littered with stones and coral. From here you'll head north and to the right, around the rock, descending as you do to between 80-100 feet. The rock wall itself has a steep slope, and you can cruise alongside the rock at whatever level you feel most comfortable. The rock is covered with plentiful amounts of soft and hard coral, and has numerous small crevices or caverns.
One can expect to see morey eels, bristletree worms, anemones, sponges, and small schools of groupers. Once circling the rock and reaching the far side, you'll return back around the rock at a shallower depth, perhaps 50-60 feet en route to the
anchor. Depending on your air consumption, extra time can be spend near the anchor, looking through the crevices and coral formations that litter the floor and make up the rock wall. The dive lasts approximately 45 minutes for most.
Crawl Cay - This dive site is situated just off the southeast portion of Isla Bastimentos, near the famous Crawl Cay restaurant 30 minutes from Bocas Town. It's a shallow water dive, perhaps 20-35 feet, over an enormous garden of soft and hard coral, separated by sandy bottom. It's much like a drift dive, in that the pick up point is far from where you enter the water. Your dive will last upwards of one hour and will be spend gliding along the coral formations. This dive is wonderful for those interested in macro photograph, as there is plenty of bristletree worms, crabs, anemones, and christmas tree worms. There is not much here in the way of large pelagic fish.
Hospital Point - This dive spot is located just at the tip of Isla Solarte, only 5 minutes by boat from Bocas Town. Frequented by snorkelers for its shallow reefs, the rocky point descends along a subtle slope to approximately 40 feet where it reaches the maritime channel. Along the slope you can find lobsters, morey eels, squid, and various species of soft and hard coral. Nurse sharks have been seen here, as have puffer fish, groupers and other colorful fish species.
Caves - there are a series of caves at Zapatilla Cays, situated at about 40 feet. These caves go back a few hundred feet and requires underwater lights. This dive site is the furthest from Bocas town, and is often combined with a trip to Zapatilla Cays for snorkeling or relaxation.
Ola Chica - a shallow cruise dive through a myriad of natural volcanic rock formations, slides and overhangs, non threatening for even the novice diver due to the natural light available and shallow depths.

Scuba Diving in Oahu

2007-02-12T02:30:00.000-08:00

Water temperature:
22°C in January and February to 27°C in August and September

Suit:
5mm wetsuit

Visibility:
20 - 40 metres

Type of diving:
Reefs, walls, lava tubes

Marine life:
White tip sharks, eagle rays, turtle, snapper, trumpetfish, butterflyfish, puffer fish, octopus, eels, crabs, coral

When to go:
Any time of year, although summer months have the best conditions

How to get there:
From the UK - United Airlines fly from London Heathrow on Saturdays and Sundays via Los Angeles to Kona. The return journey flies via San Francisco, also on Saturdays and Sundays

Oahu is a varied island, renowned for its surfing, particularly during the winter months (October to March). It is also famous for Pearl Harbour which is located in the southern part of the island. The sandy white beaches are crowded during the day, except in the south where they are less picturesque so tend to be occupied by the locals. The biggest resort area is four mile-long Waikiki beach, covered in hundreds of high rise hotels. Beyond Waikiki accommodation is sparser. The southwest coast is the driest region of Oahu and Makaha is characterised by mountain views and rough surf. The north shore at Waimea Valley is covered by tropical forest, where hiking and cycling is possible.
Diving in Oahu offers wrecks and reefs for all experiences. The good visibility and shallower reefs are ideal for those learning to dive and the caverns and wrecks are something a little more challenging for advanced divers. The Waianae Coast is an outstanding place to dive during the summer months, as are locations around Diamond Head, the North Shore and Makapuu's offshore Rabbit Island. Conditions can be poor at times, but generally if one dive site is blown out another one will be fine on the other side of the island.

Scuba Diving in Hawaii

2007-02-09T06:02:00.000-08:00

Water temperature: 22°C in January and February to 27°C in August and September

Suit: 5mm wetsuit

Visibility: 20 - 40 metres

Type of diving: Reefs, walls, lava tubes

Marine life: White tip sharks, eagle rays, turtle, snapper, trumpetfish, butterflyfish, puffer fish, octopus, eels, crabs, coral

When to go: Any time of year, although summer months have the best conditions

How to get there: From the UK - United Airlines fly from London Heathrow on Saturdays and Sundays via Los Angeles to Kona. The return journey flies via San Francisco, also on Saturdays and Sundays

The Hawaiian Islands were the last Pacific islands to be discovered by Captain Cook who died there in 1779. In 1989 they became the fiftieth and the southernmost state of the USA. There are eight large islands in the chain and 124 smaller ones, all of which are volcanic. Volcanic activity only occurs today on Hawaii, which is home to Mount Kilauea - the most active volcano in the world. As well as the most active volcano, the world's largest mountain is also found here: Mauna Kea is higher than Everest is the depth from the sea floor is taken into account.
The main island of Hawaii is Oahu and the other seven islands are Kauai, Nihau, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Hawaii. The climate is tropical with abundant rainfall and a fairly consistent temperature. Inland you will find tropical rainforest and lowland deserts. The beaches are wonderfully colourful as a result of the volcanic rock, forming green, pink and black sand. The reef walls drop away to phenomenal depths of over two thousand metres. Hawaii is an expensive place to visit, and very touristy but also well worth seeing. It is a good family destination or for parties with non-divers because of the number of things to see and do on land. It is also hugely popular with surfers.
Diving in Hawaii is a unique experience. The volcanic terrain is as beautiful underwater as it is above, forming caves, caverns, lava flows, basalt boulders and lava tubes. Lava tubes are perhaps the most interesting of these features. These long, hollow tubes are left behind after lava rivers drain away and solidify. Marine life is abundant and the walls are covered by hard corals. The diving between the islands varies greatly. Boat and shore diving are popular and the remoteness of the islands makes marine life spectacular. However, this also means the islands take the brunt of the weather, with the sea becoming very rough in winter. The west and southern coasts are generally the warmest and driest.

Wreck diving

2007-02-08T07:07:00.000-08:00

Wreck diving can be one of the most interesting types of dives you can encounter. They can be simple enough for the beginner or challenging and hazardous enough to require special training to dive the wreck safely. In either case, the one thing all wreck dives have in common is a story and a myriad of questions to answer.For the curious, once the dive has been chosen, the story behind the wreck always wants to come alive. Wrecks of many kinds can be found almost anywhere in the world. A myriad of airplanes, fishing boats, freighters, military scuttles and more are waiting to be explored. If this is a type of dive that intrigues you, take the time to learn about particular safety measures needed on the dive, the history of the particular wreck where you will be diving, what makes the dive easy or difficult. The more preparation done in advance of the dive will help you to notice things that may otherwise go overlooked and make the story really come alive. If you have a dive you want to find out about or want to tell about your experience, visit the Discussion Board.

Scuba diving lessons

2007-02-06T06:07:00.000-08:00

Scuba diving lessons or dive certification is necessary if you want to scuba dive. 99% of resorts or diving operations won't allow people to scuba dive unless they have proof of certification and for good reason. Taking scuba diving lessons insures that you are well versed in all the theory and knowledge of the physical and biological effects on the body when diving as well as the dangers. It
also familiarizes you with the scuba equipment and what to do if that gear fails. Taking lessons provides a safe environment with a qualified instructor who guides you to a point of confidence that will allow for a positive and joyful scuba diving experience.
Once you have the basics, it is possible to experience many types of dives. Some of these dives require skills that the diver with basic certification lacks. Search and Rescue, Fast Current, Cave Diving , Nitrox and Wreck diving, if the dive ventures into the wreck for any distance, are just a few of the Advanced dives that are possible. It is very important to have certification that prepares you for these types of dives. Not only will you learn how to prepare in advance for a difficult or dangerous dive, but also be better prepared for unexpected problems that may not be easily or quickly corrected at depth.
Scuba diving lessons are available in most cities and diving destinations around the world. Check out our featured listing below as well as the ScubaDuba Directory for some great diving lesson options.

Scuba Diving at Catalina Island

2007-01-31T06:38:00.000-08:00

Suit: Either a drysuit or 7mm semidry. A 5mm wetsuit would be adequate, but at depth you may feel the cold Visibility: 10 - 15 metres in the kelp forests, 20 metres on Farnsworth Bank, 30 metres in the open ocean Type of diving: Kelp forests, reefs, shark diving Marine life: Giant kelp, purple Hydrocorals, Southern California sealions, blue, shortfin mako, leopard, horn and soupfin sharks, sunfish, garibaldi, kelp fish, common octopus, California lobsters, black seabass, yellow tail barracuda, bat rays, electric torpedo rays When to go: August and September see the warmest water temperatures, so it may be preferable to visit at this time of year How to get there: You can take the Catalina Express ferry from Long Beach, LA to Avalon which takes around 1½ hours. Watch out for dolphins on your way! If only we were all back on Catalina Island, chilling out with a cold bottle of Pacifico and lime whilst excitedly discussing the fabulous days diving we'd just had and wondering what would be on the agenda the following day.
Santa Catalina is one of eight of Southern California's rocky channel islands, located in the North Pacific about 22 miles (35 km) southwest of San Pedro on the mainland. It is only 21 miles long and 8 miles wide and has a permanent population of about 3,000 and is the only island of the chain to have any permanent settlements. The Catalina folk that live here are best described as similar to an audience you would expect to see on the Oprah Winfrey show. Bizarrely, they pierce their pet dogs' ears with diamond-studded earrings. However they were very welcoming and friendly; I was offered some deer jerky in a bar and even had my portrait drawn for free. If only the poor old man had known I was a Fine Art Graduate. it was terrible! The town of Avalon is a parallel universe with a small population. Its setting is almost reminiscent of a display at Disney World with its bright aqua-green painted pier that is set against the backdrop of rocky highlands. The seafront promenade has an extraordinary selection of shop
s that are all very dated selling clothes and tack you wouldn't even want to buy your parents. In one shop I found a carved stone mermaid table with a glass top that was so tasteless it was unique - if only I could have taken it home with me!
Monday night in America is football night so get your raffle tickets and win lots of prizes and beer. All the bars have table football, pool and darts that make for fun competitions after diving. There is limited car use on the island so you can hire golf buggies to go in search of bison in the highlands if that takes your fancy. There is also crazy golf is you fancy a game but last entry is at 5pm. Along the seafront in Avalon is an impressive selection of reasonably priced restaurants. There are many selling fish as well as Italian, Mexican and Chinese. The best thing to do (as Avalon is so small) is just to wander along until you find what takes your fancy each night, but be warned: this is America so the portions are large!
The diving around Catalina is absolutely fantastic. It is an odyssey of extremely colourful and varied marine life. During my week here I had dived in a new ocean, met up with a few more species of shark, played with some pinnipeds underwater and experienced the open ocean and kelp forest for the first time. On every dive Garibaldi fish flashed orange amongst the green kelp, reflecting the suns rays as they penetrated through the water. Kelp fish meandered and camouflaged themselves in the kelps leaves and numerous 'cheeky' senorita wrasse actually turned out to be more lethal than the makos! One senorita bit someone's forehead and caused it to bleed! However, I seemed to get on well with them and enjoyed stroking a few. They are very amusing fish to dive with and although you would probably just flick past them in a guide book, they really add to the Californian diving experience.
There is the opportunity to go shark diving in the mid-channel, but success is not always guaranteed. Despite overconfident assurances that we would find sharks, on the first day we found ourselves looking into the big blue with only a few miniscule sardines swimming by. However, the next trip was a success with a feisty female shortfin mako shark smelling the fish bait and spending a few hours in our focus, eyeing us up and moving through the water towards us like a torpedo. She even had a nibble at a camera dome and some tasty fins. A shimmering baby blue shark popped in briefly too.
At Italian Gardens I played hide and seek amongst the kelp with five big black seabass that were over 1.5 metres long! The black seabass is an immensely sized fish and worthy of admiration. There was also an inquisitive horn shark that swam right up to me and almost into my mask! At Ship Rock there were docile angel sharks buried under the sand until we lifted them off the ground by each pectoral fin. They slightly resist at first, but then stay motionless as you hold them up out of their sand bed. It felt a bit wrong as I have never really been keen on handling marine life in such a way, but the sharks didn't seem upset and just settled back in the sand after. We also found very graceful leopard sharks in the shallows, but they glide off into the kelp very quickly. Soupfin sharks can also be found on Catalina's reefs, lurking a bit deeper at the edge of the kelp forests.
Farnsworth Banks is a deep pinnacle covered in strikingly bright purple hydrocorals and sea fans where bat rays sleep and electric torpedo rays hover. Yellowtail barracuda feed on silver baitfish and teeny-striped nudibranchs live on the rocks. Explore the rocky reef crevices for lobsters, black eyed and blue striped gobies, octopuses, keyhole limpets and urchins.
As a piece of advice, don't panic when you get stuck in the kelp. It will easily get twisted around your tank valve, fins or on you at some point particularly if you go off exploring in a dense patch. Just stay still and snap it off to free yourself. I was momentarily tangled in a thick bit of kelp forest at Torques Point, and as I freed myself I was joined by a sealion, passing fleetingly. Another sealion named Kelly mischievously jumped up and sat on the dive boat platform while we are de-kitting at Farnsworth Banks. She had had been swimming around the dive boat for most of the day and was great to watch in between dives and view whilst surfacing. Later in the week she joined us at Garibaldi Reef with a friend in tow.
All in all I had a remarkable time on Catalina and I hope I will have the opportunity to come back one day and dive here again!

TACKLE BOX CANYONS

2007-01-31T02:53:00.000-08:00

Average Depth Range: 20-30 meters

Average Current Conditions: No
Average Visibility: 30 meters
Expertise Required: Intermediate

Tackle Box Canyons is the best dive site if you like to photograph divers in tunnel mouths or descending through gaps in cavern roofs.

Sea life is generally sparse and unpredictable in the tunnels and caves. Lobsters regularly take advantage of the protective recesses and horse-eye jacks may gather in the upper reaches of partially roofed-over caverns. Another resident seen here is the nocturnal glassy sweeper. This small fish with oversize eyes typically congregates in the darkness found just inside small cave mouths.

Little diving review: I think to my self. 100 foot visibility is pretty common here. And the 80 degree water doesn’t suck either. No wetsuit. Swim suit and t-shirt is all that is needed.

All of the dives are multi-level dives. The first dive for the day being the deepest of about 110 to 120 feet. The barrier reef is a finger reef. This is not the wall dives you will get when you go a little further out to someplace like the blue hole, but it is really easy diving just the same.

The bottom is covered with soft corals, hard corals, sponges, fish, eels, sting rays, nurse sharks, etc. It’s like swimming in a tropical aquarium. I won’t bore you with the details of each dive, but I will say they were great. Each dive was a different location along the reef. Here are some of the places you have to dive:
- Buena Vista Canyons
- Tackle Box Canyons
- Toffee Canyons
- Victoria Canyons
- Victoria Caves
- Cypress Canyons
- Cypress Tunnels
- Boca Chica Canyon (my favorite spot)
- Hol Chan cut (night dives)

After two dives, you come back to shore around noonish for lunch and are back diving around 2 (Belize time). You can lunch at a variety of different places:

Lily’s: Stewed chicken special - $12 US
Elvi’s: Fried chicken special - $14 US
Papi’s: Tropical chicken - $8.50 US
(lots of chicken and fish dishes)
You get the idea. If you go, plan on spending $10 to $20 for a nice lunch or $5 to $10 for a reasonable lunch.
“Ah it’s a rough life, but someone has to do it.”

TRES COCOS

2007-01-25T08:50:00.000-08:00

Average Depth Range: 15-30 meters
Average Current Conditions: No
Average Visibility: 30 meters
Expertise Required: Novice

If you want to keep your boat ride to a minimum and still dive a spectacular reef, Tres Cocos is for you. It only takes five minutes to get there out of San Pedro. The mooring buoy is a short distance beyond the protection of the reef, which can be helpful on rough days.

Tres Cocos is a spur-and-groove reef with deep and locally narrow canyons running perpendicular to the reef line. It is similar to Cypress in depth and relief. The coral spurs crest at 50-80 ft whereas the sand-floored canyons fall off rapidly to depths of 110 ft. Like a giant plowed furrow, the canyon and coral formations run straight and true. If you follow the mooring line down it will lead you to a spur covered with a forest of soft corals swaying to the rhythm of the ever-present wave surge. Tres Cocos offers a menagerie of marine life. Even without leaving the vicinity of the anchor line you can see more than 50 different kinds of fish, coral and other invertebrates. Here harlequin bass, trumpetfish, French grunts, dusky damselfish, porkfish, blue chromis, schoolmasters, stoplight parrotfish and squirrelfish commonly dart among the coral cover. Gray angelfish, yellowtail snapper, black durgeon, bar jacks and Atlantic spadefish patrol the waters just above the reefs or in the canyons. Lettuce, boulder, brain, pencil, blushing star, club finger, mustard hill and staghorn coral are only a partial list of the reef builders found here. Colorful sponges, delicate orange crinoids and branching anemones add to the list of sea life.

Photographers must decide between macro or wide-angle here. Both offer great opportunities. South of the mooring pin (right if facing seaward) a vase sponge and large flower coral combination make a great wide angle shot along the spur's rim. Elsewhere along the rim are colorful rope sponges perfect for accenting diver portraits or a colorful backdrop for macro photographers. Encrusting sponges and red algae completely paint the vertical spur walls red and purple. A host of small invertebrates, which shelter among the many holes in this part of the reef, stand out in stark contrast to the colorful background.

Spanish for "three coconuts". Excellent visibility. You can almost always see all species of fish including jacks groupers, snappers, parrot fish, angel fish, barracuda, eels, spider crabs, and an occasional nurse shark. This is the spot where the sea turtles can be seen during mating season. Canyon formations start at 50 feet and down to 100 feet.

Lumbalumba Diving, Scuba diving in Bunaken, Manado - North Sulawesi

2007-01-23T08:52:00.000-08:00

Bunaken National Marine Park is an official recognized and protected Marine Park of more than 75,000 hectares. There is a northern section which includes the islands, Bunaken, Siladen, Montehage, Manado Tua, Nain and part of the opposite lying coastline. This northern section is by far the biggest and most popular part of the park. The southern section is smaller and consists entirely of coastal area. It is also an area where in the past a lot of bomb fishing took place and the unfortunate results are still clearly seen. However, with the introduction of the new entrance fee system, an effective patrol schedule has been installed and is preventing further damage. Many parts of the reefs already show signs of recovering. Although less explored because it is further away for most operators, there are certainly many more interesting dive sites.

Most parts of the park are surrounded by plateau reefs, of which most end with the steep, spectacular dropoffs that this park is so famous for.There are a few sites with gentle slopes, but they definitely form a minority and are not really part of the parks' underwater geography.
Being located in southeast Asia, Bunaken National Marine Park reefs have the highest levels of marine biodiversity anywhere found on this planet.
Because of the National Park status, the reefs around the islands are divided in zones. This system of zonation allows better control and more effective management in order to preserve it for the future.

In short, there are 3 different kind of zones in the park.

-Tourism zones (open for diving/snorkling and no fishing allowed)
-Zones for general use (open for diving/snorkling and also fishing)
-Conservation zones (closed for diving/snorkling/fishing. Only open for conservation projects)

Maps of where the zones exactly are to be found and more background information is available and we are happy to tell you more at the LUMBALUMBA DIVING center.

We think that we borrowed this world from our children. What you borrow you have to return in the same, or even better shape. That includes our reefs and all that lives here. Reefs are very fragile and can easily be damaged by careless divers and snorkellers.
We ask you kindly to respect all that lives here and stick to our ethical behaviour code:
WATCH and DON'T TOUCH!
So, don't touch anything. Don't take anything. Carefully compose your photos and have control over your buoyancy.

Before you start diving or snorkelling with us, you are required to read and sign an "environmental awareness statement".
We also appreciate it if you report violations related to conservation and preservation immediately to the guides or management. We will not make you follow a compulsary buoyancy course, but gloves are not allowed. We are quite strict with this policy and will not hesitate to exclude you from further diving or snorkelling if no respect is shown. Don't expect a refund on your payment in that case. That will be directly deposited on the account of the park management and used for conservation projects.

Many of the reefs in the world are in a miserable state because of lack of control and "bad diver behaviour". We will not allow that to happen here.

Pillar Coral

2007-01-23T08:24:00.000-08:00

Typical Depth Range: 12-21 meters
Typical Current Conditions: No
Typical Visibility: 30 meters
Expertise Required: Novice

Pillar Coral is a spur-and-groove reef similar to Sandbar. Around the anchor site a coral rubble apron is forested with soft coral. Channel sand, bearing symmetrical ripple marks, attests to the persistent wave surge felt even on relatively calm days. Although coral development on the ridges is similar to that at Sandbar, the shapes of corals are more dramatic at Pillars. About 7 00 ft southeast of the mooring line in 55 ft of water, there is a cluster of the namesake pillar coral, which spikes upward above the spurs.

Last years, Pillar Coral came under the protection of Hol Chan Marine Reserve. Inclusion of this site in the marine park brought about several changes, such as the 5 BZ dollars fee to dive here. A local divemaster must dive with you and, like Hol Chan, the number of fish has increased dramatically. Big schools of yellow chub, bar jacks and yellowtail snapper patrol the water above the reef. On some days, schools of more than a dozen spotted eagle rays pass through.

The pillar coral pinnacles near the mooring pin attract small numbers of schoolmasters and squirrelfish. At the pillars closest to the mooring line, gobies have established a fish cleaning station. Big groupers getting cleaned against a backdrop of pillar coral make especially interesting subjects for wide-angle photography. Divers dreaming to include the sun in their photographs of the pillar coral stands should plan to dive here early in the morning.

Grouper Interaction A dozen or so large black and Nassau grouper call the Pillars home of dive site. They'll greet you shortly after entry and follow you down to the reef. Some will even settle to the bottom with you for a face-to-face interaction. They prefer not to be touched, but do not mind being photographed or looked over, a foot away from your mask. While occasional close encounters with large grouper took place here for years, fish feeding by local guides now make them a regular occurrence. You can expect to see grouper, snapper and jacks swim up to you because they've learned to identify all divers as a source of food. It is a good idea to keep hands close to your body when surrounded by hungry fish since waving fingers may be mistaken as a meal. The marine reserve does not advocate fish feeding by guides or visitors.

This dive site is a beautiful dive with lots of grouper that literally follow you throughout the dive. The name of the dive comes from the huge pillar corals found at this site and the abundant fish life that live around these coral formations.

This one is a rather shallow dive. The diver plunges around large pillar coral formations that stick out of the sand and resemble ancient castles. Many colorful species of reef fish hide in them from the barracudas that roam this area. Lots of Barracuda.

Caribbean Cownose-Ray

2007-01-19T05:03:00.000-08:00

Often, when the cry "shark!" is heard on the Chesapeake Bay, the instigator of the panic is the cownose ray (Rhinoptera bonasus). As the ray swims (flies) through the water, its wing tips break the surface with a remarkable resemblance to the dorsal fins of the shark. The excited observer may be a bit shamefaced when the "shark" is discovered to be the passive cownose ray.

At birth, the cownose ray is about 11 to 18 inches in width. When mature, it attains a 45 inch width, may weigh 50 pounds or more, and is brown-backed with a whitish belly. This species does not have particularly distinctive coloration but its shape is readily recognizable. Aside from the broad wings and long tail characteristic of rays, the cownose has a notch in its head which creates a double-headed appearance; from the top it looks somewhat like a cow muzzle. Eyes peer out eerily from the side of the broad head. Hidden within this strange head is a set of equally remarkable teeth plates designed for crushing clam and oyster shells.