Real Time Blue Manta Review: Banda Sea 9 – 19 Sept 2019

[Christian]

Just ´crank up the pO2 for those dives
I've had 28% mixes to be able to go a little deeper and have some extra time. Ideally you'd want a bigger tank too when you're spending time at 30+.
Sometimes air is the only option. You easily run into deco if you're not very attentative to your computer/watch. Can be challenging when you have 30 sharks in front of you.

 

[matts1w]

Just because it needs to be said... one needs to consider how remote we are when diving areas discussed in this thread. Where I come from in Florida deep water gear is readily available. Many try to generally follow the cubic feet to depth guideline. Simply stated- if diving an 80 cubic foot low-pressure aluminum tank (a standard scuba tank) one should not really dive much below 80 feet. Most of us who spearfished regularly dive big overfilled high-pressure steel 120s to solve this problem on deep wrecks. This was especially true 2 or 3 hours offshore and away from medical care.

I know it is preachy, but please take a minute to think about the risks of diving to 35 or 40 meters on a little a$$ bottle literally a thousand miles and many, many hours away from any sort of decent care. Hammer sharks are cool and all... but maybe not that cool.

Sorry. Preach off.

 

[Christian]

... diving to 35 or 40 meters ...

 

[Lorenzoid]

I just found this thread. Glad you kids had fun. Were any of the crew aware of this thread? I think it could be a little awkward posting feedback in real time that the crew could read. But I've never been on a dive boat with offshore WiFi.

 

[charlier]

Liveboards don't really know where and how to dive Alor because they need to understand the currents and the spots. Having seen some of them at work from a resort boat (like for instance the Indosiren going backwards in the current, or another posh boat selecting the resort housereef as one of their few dives ), I wouldn't care diving Alor with a liveaboard.
It's one of the few places in Asia where you can spot hammerheads and rhinopias on the same day. But you'll need to dive from a resort with guides in the know.
I looked at SB member Ocdiver's facebook page yesterday, he's currently diving Alor : he had a wall of hammerheads, pilot whales and molamola all in clear water. not too bad for a weekday.

I am with Luko on this. Alor is a special place and finding the best sites using the tides and lunar cycle takes experience. In addition, the dive group experience plays into the mix. My experience at Alor Eco has always been outstanding. Alor has very good guides. Gilles is a pleasure to dive with and at least for me, we have similar interests. Plus, I am a good UW dive model.

@thesynatx - at 35m with repetitive dives, I commonly only dive twice in the morning and once in the afternoon. Nitrox is blending to 28-29% and watch our NDL carefully and place our dive accordingly.

 

[charlier]

I had the exact same experience in Blue Magic(!) right in the middle of Dampier Straight in Raja Ampat. We were diving with a home stay - these guys dive the same region practically every single day year in and year out so they can find the spots with closed eyes. A poss-looking liveaboard was near by, but the dinghies obviously couldn't find the pinnacle. Once we arrived they were trying to follow us. Our crew made fun of them moving here and there for a while. Too bad we couldn't see the name of the LoB...

At Blue Magic, missing the dive site is due to a lack of understanding of the dive site and the currents/tides. A good cruise director will not make such mistakes. Like many things in life, LOB’s vary in their ability to provide the best dive experience. Personally, I prefer to dive RA from a LOB.

 

[Steelyeyes]

The hammerheads I saw on Maui were in the clearest water I have ever seen.

Hawaii does have some incredible visibility from time to time.

 

[acidrush]

Just because it needs to be said... one needs to consider how remote we are when diving areas discussed in this thread. Where I come from in Florida deep water gear is readily available. Many try to generally follow the cubic feet to depth guideline. Simply stated- if diving an 80 cubic foot low-pressure aluminum tank (a standard scuba tank) one should not really dive much below 80 feet. Most of us who spearfished regularly dive big overfilled high-pressure steel 120s to solve this problem on deep wrecks. This was especially true 2 or 3 hours offshore and away from medical care.

I know it is preachy, but please take a minute to think about the risks of diving to 35 or 40 meters on a little a$$ bottle literally a thousand miles and many, many hours away from any sort of decent care. Hammer sharks are cool and all... but maybe not that cool.

Sorry. Preach off.

I'm not an instructor or an expert, but I think its not just the depth but how you ascend. Just ascend slowly and do your stops( not just your 5m stop). On most LOB trips I've seen divers do their safety stop and once they're done they are up to the surface from 5m within 10-15 seconds which I think is silly. The last few metres in my humble opinion are the most important. I take about a minute to go up from 5m to the surface and often get dirty looks from the other divers who have to wait, but that's just me. I also don't do night dives on such trips, so its 3 dives a day.

 

[Anish]

Very interesting thread. Im doing a Banda Seas liveaboard in Oct but not a crossing. Just Ambon too Ambon. The water temperature is interesting. I was just planning on my 3mm wet suit which I used all over Komodo with no problem. 24-25 C is a bit chilly with 3mm but I can manage if its just a day or two of that. Maybe I have to take a second layer also.

 

[outofofficebrb]

Very interesting thread. Im doing a Banda Seas liveaboard in Oct but not a crossing. Just Ambon too Ambon. The water temperature is interesting. I was just planning on my 3mm wet suit which I used all over Komodo with no problem. 24-25 C is a bit chilly with 3mm but I can manage if its just a day or two of that. Maybe I have to take a second layer also.

It might be warmer in October but don’t forget on repetitive dives, after so many days, your body doesn’t handle colder water (haha, I guess it is relative...not as warm water!) as well as if you were just doing a couple dives and done.

You can bring an extra layer just in case. If you don’t use it, no big deal, but it sucks to want it and not have it. Some boats might have something you can rent or borrow but having something that you know fits you well is always nice.