Banukan, Bangka and Lembeh in 5 days??

[diver69]

Hi all,

I'm planning a 4-week trip to Asia in September, and will be spending 6 days in Manado.

I need to know if I can dive at all three of the locations (Banukan, Bangka and Lembeh Straits) during that time. Is it do-able? I will be arriving in Manado on a Malaysian flight at 14:25 on Sep 14, and flying out at 15:15 on Sep 19.

I've been to Sipadan quite a few times (will be there again the week before arriving in Manado), been to Maldives, Moalboal, and Apo Island in Philippines. so, I am looking for a little bit of everything for this trip. I really want to see creatures like Pigmy Seahorse, Fogfish, Mandarin Fish and macro stuff like that.

So, do you think I can get to all three locations with my schedule? Is it best to go to different resorts at these locations or stay at one and take day trips to other locations?

So far, I've found Murex and Eco-Divers who will arrange trips to Bangka and Lembeh Straits from Manado. Haas anyone had any experience with these operators and their day-trips to Bangka and Lenbeh? I understand Murex has an excellent house reef. What's your thoughts on staying on the mainland vs staying right on Banukan? (I'm am leaning toeard using Banukan/Manado as a base, and taking day-trips to Lembeh and Bangka)

Would appreciate any info.

 

[TheNitroxinator]

I stayed at Tasik Ria Jun 12th through the 16th (i.e. eco-divers) and KBR the 17th through the 23rd. I did the day trip to Bangka from Tasik Ria; it's a 6 hour round trip, and you only get 2 dives. One dive was at Bangka, the other was off of North Sulawesi. The North Sulawesi dive was great, the Bangka dive was good. If you have the diving package at Tasik Ria, the day trip is only $20, so its really a question of whether you want to spend the 6 hours for the boat trip. And you can still do the night dive on the house reef (Tasik Ria's house reef was excellent).

Because I was staying at KBR, I didn't do the day trip there. Its roughly a 2 hour bus trip if you do it, and you get 2 dives at KBR (and, again, if you have the package its a measly $20, well worth it). Lembeh straight is awesome, I would pay the extra money and stay there if you're going to have just 6 days (but that may just be me, wall diving is nice but I'd rather see the creatures myself). The divers that were staying at Tasik Ria who did the day trip were all very happy with it, so if you do choose to stay at Manado, the day trip to Lembeh won't disappoint you.

 

[wahlaoeh]

I stayed at Tasik Ria from 12th to 16th too...probably did crossed path with TheNitroxinato. This is my 3rd trip with eco divers & found them to be v.good...accomdation, diving arrangement, DM knowledge etc..

I will have to agree TheNitroxinator that if u're looking for macro stuff, suggest u to stay in Lembah Straits. During my stay, I did two days in Lembah & it was absolutely wonderful..flamboyant cuttlefish, pygmy seahorse..etc
Think that KBR is now managed by eco divers but the resort is more basic.

Here is the link to my pix gallery.
http://sg.homeunix.com/jovin/Manado-June04

 

[diver69]

It's a toss-up between staying at Tasik Ria and Lembeh Strait right now. Have to read up more on the resorts/accommodation at Lembeh and will decide in the next few days.

By the way, Jovin, what camera did you use for the pics? I just got myself an Olympus C5050 and housing - can't wait to use it u/w.

Thx

 

[wahlaoeh]

Hi,

My tiny camera is from Minolta, Dimage xt...it is a 3.2 mega pixels camera with unlimited video recording. I like it for it's compact size & it is easy to use...the only problem with this camera is that due to the minimum air space in the marine pack, it foggged up easily underwater when the water is too cold (temperature changes). I am planning to get a new camera, Nikon CP5200 for my big trip, Sangalaki in mid Aug. Only problem is the uw housing is not available worldwide now...accordingingly to Nikon Singapore, it will be in 1-2 months time...hopefully I can get it before my trip.

Olympus C5050 is definitely a v.good camera for uw photography...looking forward to seeing your pixs..Cheers.

 

[TheNitroxinator]

I took all of my shots with a C5050. I have somewhat of an unusual case (made by Patima in South Korea, not the Olympus case or the one made by Ikelite). I have never had a fog up problem, but the C5050 is difficult to get used to (at least for me, my case requires me to use manual mode to fire my Nikonos 105 strobe), and the Patima case also took some getting used to (it weighs 10lbs out of water, is significantly negatively bouyant in water, and the removable strobe gives you tons of lighting capability but takes practice because you have to hold the negatively bouyant case with just one hand, and you have to figure out where you want to aim the strobe from). Check the Olympus threads for advice on the C5050. I highly recommend you practice with manual mode and a strobe OUT OF WATER. Its digital, you can throw away your practice shots without wasting money on processing, and it will give you much needed practice with a camera that is not point-and-shoot. Whatever yo do, don't plan on using "P" mode in Bunaken or Lembeh, the water is not crystal clear and you'll need extra light to get good shots - I can attest to this, I screwed up and didn't have the hot shoe attached correctly, and basically got a bunch of worthless shots on a day dive at the Tasik Ria house reef using "P" mode as an alternative. Also, if you don't have one, I highly recommend getting an XD card - it is significantly faster than a compact flash or SmartMedia. Keep a compact flash card in your camera as a backup just in case (my laptop fried, I needed the extra storage while I was in Lembeh).