Kevster
Contributor
PNG Trip Report May 2013- Kimbe Bay, Fathers Reef, Witu Islands
Flights
Perth-Brisbane-Port Moresby-Hoskins return $1500 on Qantas & AirNiugini.
Very smooth journey, all flights were on time and connections were good. I was surprised how easy the journey was. Unfortunately a few other guests missed the 1st mornings diving on the Febrina when their PM-Hoskins flight was cancelled. I would definitely recommend a few days at Walindi before a Febrina trip.
Weather
Perfect conditions. Late May is in the doldrums and we had flat seas, sunny weather & very little rain. During the last few days at the Witus the wind picked up a little.
Water temp was 30C and viss was generally good to excellent. I did not use a wetsuit, although there were a few stingers in the water, normally shallow during the safety stop. I was very surprised how little current there was at any of the dive sites, very easy diving. All up the conditions were perfect.
Walindi
3 nights, 5 dives (Joelles,Susans,2xOttos & Veronicas) at Walindi. Fantastic resort in picturesque setting. Accom in the plantation house was nice. Resort was very quiet, only a few guests. Dive sites were approx 40-60 mins from the resort. Some fantastic dives with great coral. Best dive was at Joelles reef. Land based trip to see some WWII plane wrecks in the forest. This short trip is definitely worth doing if you are staying at Walindi.
Very nice resort and I would definitely consider a return visit. Approx $1000 for 3 nights, 5 dives. Very good value in my opinion. Much better value compared to my previous land based trip at Loloata.
1 of 2 WWII Plane Wrecks near Walindi
Febrina
Quite a small boat, but one of the best! I really enjoyed my time on this boat. I had a single ensuite room. The crew are absolutely fantastic. Jose & Digger are great dive guides. The food was very good throughout the trip. As there were only 7 guests onboard there was lots of space for camera gear, charging batteries etc. All the diving was from the main boat. Jump in and follow the mooring line down the dive site. As there was very little current and vissibility was good there was never a problem getting back to the boat at the end of a dive. Generally the diving was on deep pinnacles using Nitrox 30%. Three dives in the morning, 6.30,9.00,11.30 then one at 15.00. Night dives were offered but I did not do any.
Days 1 & 2 – Diving in Kimbe Bay.
Veronicas, Zero Plane, Kirsty Jane, Ingils Shoal, Emma,Bradford Shoals . Poor viss at the plane wreck as it’s close to shore. Ingils Shoal was the standout dive. Sharks, turtles, eels, general fishlife, great dive. Lots of barracuda/Jacks at Bradfords.
3-4 hour journey to Father reef on after the 2nd morning dive.
Zero Fighter Wreck in Kimbe Bay
Days 2 to 5 - Diving at Fathers Reef.
Four days of fantastic diving!
Most of the dives were similar, diving on pinnacles, some deep, some rising to the just below the surface. Really great visibility and full of fish. One of the dives had a really nice arch. Three staged shark dives which brought in Silvertips, grey reef sharks and white tips. One of the sites had a really friendly small turtle that has obviously been feed by the dive guides. As soon as we were in the water the turtle would find us and remain with us throughout the dive.
Generally lots of fish and not uncommon to see large groups of barracuda and jacks. My favourite dive was Jaynes Gully. Just a great reef dive with heaps of fish and amazing corals. One of the dive sites had a huge barrel sponge , the largest I have ever seen.
Typical Diving in Fathers Reef
Massive Barrel Sponge
5 hour travel to the Witu islands.
Days 6 to 8 – Diving at Witu Islands
The highlight of the Witus had to be the two dives at Krakafat. Amazing dives. So many large fish. Huge shoal of Jacks & Barracuda. Lots of large fish hunting GTs, Tuna, couple of large Napoleon Wrasse. Turtles , sharks. Lots of black coral with different colours. It was great to see such an amazing dive site so close to a populated village. Unfortunately the viss had dropped to 15-20m.
Another dive site had an interesting arch with some Bumperhead parrot fish.
Some of the black sand macro diving at the Witus was a bit average (I have dived a lot in Indonesia). Highlights were ghost pipefish, a blue ribbon eel, & lots of really nice clownfish in anemone balls of various colours. Not many interesting critters or nudis.
Black coral at Krakafat
5 hour travel back to Kimbe bay
Day 9 – Two morning dive at Joelles, Susans reef.
Vissibility had reduced to 15m. Lots of fish at Joelles. Amazing red coral whips at Susans.
Camera notes
Note sure if it was my batteries, but having two Inon S2000 strobes was not powerful enough to capture the stunning reefs. It was the first time I was really disappointed with my GH2 for photos & video. Due to the sunny conditions & great viss it was very difficult to avoid lots of colour banding , even when trying to avoid shooting into the sun.
Friendly Turtle
Summary
This was such a great trip. Perhaps one of favourite liveaboard experiences.
The diving was so easy, warm water, great viss, little current and very very fishy. The reefs are amazing. Lots of fishlife, corals/sponges. Throw in some very friendly turtles, a few shark dives, a wreck and you have some of the best diving in the world. The diving at Fathers Reef was like diving in an aquarium, so many reef fish. Some of the macro/black sand diving at the Witus was average (compared to Indonesia). However Krakafat at the Witus was amazing. Would rank highly as one of the best dives I have done.
For several years I put off a trip on Febrina due to the hassle of travelling to Hoskins. In the future I would not hesitate to make a return trip.
Flights
Perth-Brisbane-Port Moresby-Hoskins return $1500 on Qantas & AirNiugini.
Very smooth journey, all flights were on time and connections were good. I was surprised how easy the journey was. Unfortunately a few other guests missed the 1st mornings diving on the Febrina when their PM-Hoskins flight was cancelled. I would definitely recommend a few days at Walindi before a Febrina trip.
Weather
Perfect conditions. Late May is in the doldrums and we had flat seas, sunny weather & very little rain. During the last few days at the Witus the wind picked up a little.
Water temp was 30C and viss was generally good to excellent. I did not use a wetsuit, although there were a few stingers in the water, normally shallow during the safety stop. I was very surprised how little current there was at any of the dive sites, very easy diving. All up the conditions were perfect.
Walindi
3 nights, 5 dives (Joelles,Susans,2xOttos & Veronicas) at Walindi. Fantastic resort in picturesque setting. Accom in the plantation house was nice. Resort was very quiet, only a few guests. Dive sites were approx 40-60 mins from the resort. Some fantastic dives with great coral. Best dive was at Joelles reef. Land based trip to see some WWII plane wrecks in the forest. This short trip is definitely worth doing if you are staying at Walindi.
Very nice resort and I would definitely consider a return visit. Approx $1000 for 3 nights, 5 dives. Very good value in my opinion. Much better value compared to my previous land based trip at Loloata.
1 of 2 WWII Plane Wrecks near Walindi
Febrina
Quite a small boat, but one of the best! I really enjoyed my time on this boat. I had a single ensuite room. The crew are absolutely fantastic. Jose & Digger are great dive guides. The food was very good throughout the trip. As there were only 7 guests onboard there was lots of space for camera gear, charging batteries etc. All the diving was from the main boat. Jump in and follow the mooring line down the dive site. As there was very little current and vissibility was good there was never a problem getting back to the boat at the end of a dive. Generally the diving was on deep pinnacles using Nitrox 30%. Three dives in the morning, 6.30,9.00,11.30 then one at 15.00. Night dives were offered but I did not do any.
Days 1 & 2 – Diving in Kimbe Bay.
Veronicas, Zero Plane, Kirsty Jane, Ingils Shoal, Emma,Bradford Shoals . Poor viss at the plane wreck as it’s close to shore. Ingils Shoal was the standout dive. Sharks, turtles, eels, general fishlife, great dive. Lots of barracuda/Jacks at Bradfords.
3-4 hour journey to Father reef on after the 2nd morning dive.
Zero Fighter Wreck in Kimbe Bay
Days 2 to 5 - Diving at Fathers Reef.
Four days of fantastic diving!
Most of the dives were similar, diving on pinnacles, some deep, some rising to the just below the surface. Really great visibility and full of fish. One of the dives had a really nice arch. Three staged shark dives which brought in Silvertips, grey reef sharks and white tips. One of the sites had a really friendly small turtle that has obviously been feed by the dive guides. As soon as we were in the water the turtle would find us and remain with us throughout the dive.
Generally lots of fish and not uncommon to see large groups of barracuda and jacks. My favourite dive was Jaynes Gully. Just a great reef dive with heaps of fish and amazing corals. One of the dive sites had a huge barrel sponge , the largest I have ever seen.
Typical Diving in Fathers Reef
Massive Barrel Sponge
5 hour travel to the Witu islands.
Days 6 to 8 – Diving at Witu Islands
The highlight of the Witus had to be the two dives at Krakafat. Amazing dives. So many large fish. Huge shoal of Jacks & Barracuda. Lots of large fish hunting GTs, Tuna, couple of large Napoleon Wrasse. Turtles , sharks. Lots of black coral with different colours. It was great to see such an amazing dive site so close to a populated village. Unfortunately the viss had dropped to 15-20m.
Another dive site had an interesting arch with some Bumperhead parrot fish.
Some of the black sand macro diving at the Witus was a bit average (I have dived a lot in Indonesia). Highlights were ghost pipefish, a blue ribbon eel, & lots of really nice clownfish in anemone balls of various colours. Not many interesting critters or nudis.
Black coral at Krakafat
5 hour travel back to Kimbe bay
Day 9 – Two morning dive at Joelles, Susans reef.
Vissibility had reduced to 15m. Lots of fish at Joelles. Amazing red coral whips at Susans.
Camera notes
Note sure if it was my batteries, but having two Inon S2000 strobes was not powerful enough to capture the stunning reefs. It was the first time I was really disappointed with my GH2 for photos & video. Due to the sunny conditions & great viss it was very difficult to avoid lots of colour banding , even when trying to avoid shooting into the sun.
Friendly Turtle
Summary
This was such a great trip. Perhaps one of favourite liveaboard experiences.
The diving was so easy, warm water, great viss, little current and very very fishy. The reefs are amazing. Lots of fishlife, corals/sponges. Throw in some very friendly turtles, a few shark dives, a wreck and you have some of the best diving in the world. The diving at Fathers Reef was like diving in an aquarium, so many reef fish. Some of the macro/black sand diving at the Witus was average (compared to Indonesia). However Krakafat at the Witus was amazing. Would rank highly as one of the best dives I have done.
For several years I put off a trip on Febrina due to the hassle of travelling to Hoskins. In the future I would not hesitate to make a return trip.
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