Komodo National Park 9th- 19th September 2012
We have a very interesting group of divers coming from US, Australia, Singapore and Canada diving with us in Komodo this week. We welcome Brian back, who joined us for the Alor cruise in July but it was really unfortunate that he had to leave in the middle of the cruise as he was not feeling well.
We had fantastic weather throughout the cruise. The sun was shining and the seas were calm with a comfortable water temperature ranging from 23- 27 degrees celcius. We started the day with an easy check out dive at Sebayor island, just to make sure everyone has their gear and proper weights checked. We ended the first dive day with Gili Lawa Darat and guest had a nice spotting of leaf scorpionfish, blue spotted stingray, comet fish and a few nudibranches.
Second day started early with Golden Passage, Karang Makassar and Batu Bolong for an exhilarating current dive. A firm favorite of guests, Batu Bolong did not disappoint with the busy activities buzzing around. We had fun watching a green turtle munching onto hard corals. After the three dives, we decided to go for a change of scene and invited the guests for a bit of hiking where an amazing 360 degrees view of the Komodo National Park can be can seen at the top of the hill. It was well worth a 30 minutes hike. Ending the day with a dusk dive at West Reef slope, guests had a spectacular day with a wonderful sightings of tons of Fusilier, Napoleon Wrasse, Blacktip Sharks, Giant Barracuda, Green Turtle,Bumphead Parrotfish, Oriental Sweetlips, Giant Grouper, Giant Trevallies, Giant Sweetlips and Decorative Crabs.
Third day started with a bang on Shotgun, aptly named for its strong currents going through a narrow channel where guests experience a swift drift dive through it. Great site to get your adrenalins pumping! After that we dived at Castle Rock and Crystal Rock, one of Komodo’s signature site and ended the day with Circus where we meet our friendly Stargazer. School of Fusilier,Giant Jack, Napoleon, Sweetlips, Giant Grouper, White Tip Shark, Green Turtle, Dog Tooth Tuna, Bobtail Squid,Flathead, Snake Eel.
Day 4 was macro day at Bima Bay with sightings of Coconut & Mimic Octopus, Saw Blade Shrimp, Bobtail Squid, Snake Eel, tons of Frogfishes & Thorny Seahorse,Demon Stinger, Dragonet, Tons of Nudibranches, Colman Shrimp, Urchin Commensal Shrimp,Stick Pipefish to name a few. Another fantastic day of diving with a cozy water temperature of 27 degrees celcius.
We started a wonderful first dive on day 5 at Hot Rocks with little tiny bubbles popping from the sandy bottom of the site. Bubbles’ originating from the volcano, the feel of warm sandy bottom is an amazing contrast to the cooler water temperature. Ghost Pipefish, Saw Blade Shrimp, Sharon Shrimp, Bobtail Squid, hips of Nudibranches, Snake Eel, Pigmy Seahorse, Cuttlefish, Reef Octopus, Ye!ow Snappers and Long Nose Hawkfish was spotted at Sangeang island. wehad a short detour in the evening for a short visit at the nearby Bonto Village, a nice cultural visit. A small celebration of pancake was made for the only rose among the thorns, Serena, in commemoration of her 200th dive. A toast was made around the table for this mini celebration.
Day 6 came pretty quickly with us diving in North West of Komodo National Park. Giant Jack, Napoleon,White Tip Shark, Manta Rays, Green Turtles, Snake Eel, Leaf Scorpionfish was our companion underwater.
As we headed towards south of Komodo National Park that will be our destination for the last 3 days, the water temperature dropped to a low 23 degrees celcius. It is definitely a fruitful place to dive despite the cooler waters. Colourful pristine reefs at Cannibal Rock and Yellow Wall beckons photographers to take extra shots and macro enthusiasts was not left out as they also had a great time shooting the array of nudibranches the site has to offer. We stayed at Horseshoe Bay for 2 days with findings of Sea Apple, GreenTurtles, Zebri Crabs, Cuttlefishes, Morey eels, Decorator Crabs, Ghost Shrimps, Ghost Pipefish and many others. On land, we spotted Komodo Dragons, wild boar and Timor deer lazing around on the beach, basking under the sun, probably getting a tan.
We ended the last day of diving in Langkoi with a good ending as we dived with Manta Rays, Nurse Shark, Black Tip Shark, White Tip Shark, Green Turtles, Bumphead Parrotfish, school of Batfish, Crocodile Fish, Twin Spotted Goby.
Thank you, Henry, Mike, Serena, Sean, Barry, Darryl and Brian for making this a memorable trip.
