Recommendations for diving in mid-August

[rhadamantus]

hope they don't arrive earlier than end of september!

 

[Harley1962]

Well, I just did my first 2 dives here in Bor (directly off the ferry from Manila and onto the dive boat) and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised; it was drizzling very lightly, but that's fine since the water is usually calm during extended light rains.--and in this case it was! Also had the Camia site 100% to ourselves (group of 4 divers):10:

The Camia wreck was fine; in great shape, still early in coral growth development but well worth doing (26-28m), easy mooring lines for beginners, too. Viz was 25m (and I am being conservative)
The Crocodile Rock area was a very relaxing 2nd dive, around the bend from White Beach on the other side (facing Caticlan); generally healthy corals (surprising for the amount of marine traffic I saw here), and great colors. Granted, I picked up 2 plastic bags and 1 large plastic jug from between the coral, but overall :"not bad at all", would be my initial impressions! I also saw a group of 3 divers when descending, but they were out of there within 5 mins of our arrival! Another "empty" site!

Anybody want to make further suggestions (sites? I am doing Yapak tomorrow) or Shops to visit please feel free as I am completely "free" as far as plans.

And FYI, staying at Blue Mango Inn (AC room, but small-ish, TV, free WiFi, decent little restaurant) for 500 pesos/night.

Thanks!
HB

P.S. No need for the "bikini ogling", as I live/work on Phuket, so I get more than I need (and want) of that!

 

[wndrlst02]

Bohol Dive Trip Report: Cabilao and Alona Beach

First of all, thank you to everyone who responded to my post.

I ended up going diving in Bohol. When I arrived in Manila, Typhoon “Egay” (or “Sepat” internationally) was just leaving Luzon so Anilao was out of the question. My non-diving parents who live in Manila decided to come with me on this trip. I decided to go to Cabilao for two nights and then to Alona Beach for another fortnight if my parents get bored in Cabilao.

We flew into Tagbilaran City and was picked up by a van that I arranged with Polaris Resort (http://www.polaris-dive.com) for $30 one way. It took about an hour by van and another 30-45 minutes by banca to get to the resort. Once we arrived, we were immediately greeted by the staff and given buko (coconut juice still in the husk) to drink. Rooms in Polaris were quite big and very clean, the staff were all friendly and the resort had most everything I would want (swimming pool, social area with billiards table, dartboard and cable tv). The only thing missing was some fresh fish or shrimps for lunch/dinner. Being on an island, I was really looking forward to eating "the catch of the day", which is not an option at all. Even dried bangus or "tuyo" would have done the trick for me, but the menu seem to be more Western food catered towards their European guests.

Diving in Cabilao was amazing. Given that it is the low season, I was the only diver for the afternoon and had a guide all to myself. Visibility was great and the DM pointed out all the little critters that I have never seen, such as the Pegasus and other really tiny crusties. It just made me wish I had a camera that can take good macro pics.

I also managed to convince by 65-year old dad to do a Discovery dive the next day. After the Padi video and some short instruction in the pool, my dad went on a boat dive where he did a 20-minute dive with the Polaris instructor (Greg) while I again enjoyed a private guided tour of some of the most colorful coral reefs and marine life I've seen.

As I suspected, my city-living parents had enough of the serene island life after a couple of days, so Polaris arranged for us to be transferred to Alona Beach for the remainder of the trip. As soon as we got to Alona Beach in Panglao Island, I picked the first resort we saw (Alona Kew) and I immediately joined a diver and his guide from the diveshop across from Alona Kew for a dive at a site around Panglao Island. It was during this dive that I saw a huge school of Jackfish, probably thousands of them. Now I wished I had a video camera! I did a couple of dives that day while my parents hired a tricycle for a tour of the city malls (two of them) for P500 return trip to Alona Beach.

Next day I went to Balicasag Island for a couple of dives where I finally saw a few pygmy seahorses... which again I wished I had the right camera to take a good closeup. Dive condistions were similar to Cabilao. Visibility was amazing and marine life was abundant. Water temp was also a nice 84-86 degree Fahrenheit.

Unfortunately, dynamite fishing still happens in Bohol. On a couple of occasions, one in Cabilao and one in Panglao, I heard the explosions during my dives. According to the divemasters, this is quiet normal. Very unfortunate.

As for the weather, despite being rainy season, it would only drizzle early in the morning or rain overnight, but it was warm and sunny during all my day dives. Typhoon Egay also didn't hit Bohol. The staff at Polaris were telling me that it hardly rains in Cabilao... which is not necessarily a good thing for them as they're on an island and need fresh water.

Overall, I really enjoyed my short trip to Bohol. My flight back to Manila was not until 4:40pm, so I had the chance to do a topside tour of Bohol with my parents. P1800 pesos for a whole day tour of Bohol in an airconditioned car: passed by the python ("longest and biggest python in captivity"), the Philippine tarsiers, Chocholate hills, and lunch on a floating restuarant on Loboc river. We got to the airport early, but were not allowed in until President Arroyo arrived for her visit of Bohol. I did get some pictures of the arrival of the C-3 plane carrying some Philippine high ranking military types.

I posted some pictures of my trip on Facebook in case you're interested:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=12627&l=6ba4e&id=553836103

Thanks again,
P Gaw

P.S. Harley1962, sorry I didn't get the chance to ping you. Maybe next time we'll get to meet up. Hope you enjoyed your dives in the Philippines.

 

[jonix]

Bohol Dive Trip Report: Cabilao and Alona Beach

First of all, thank you to everyone who responded to my post.

I ended up going diving in Bohol. When I arrived in Manila, Typhoon “Egay” (or “Sepat” internationally) was just leaving Luzon so Anilao was out of the question. My non-diving parents who live in Manila decided to come with me on this trip. I decided to go to Cabilao for two nights and then to Alona Beach for another fortnight if my parents get bored in Cabilao.

We flew into Tagbilaran City and was picked up by a van that I arranged with Polaris Resort (http://www.polaris-dive.com) for $30 one way. It took about an hour by van and another 30-45 minutes by banca to get to the resort. Once we arrived, we were immediately greeted by the staff and given buko (coconut juice still in the husk) to drink. Rooms in Polaris were quite big and very clean, the staff were all friendly and the resort had most everything I would want (swimming pool, social area with billiards table, dartboard and cable tv). The only thing missing was some fresh fish or shrimps for lunch/dinner. Being on an island, I was really looking forward to eating "the catch of the day", which is not an option at all. Even dried bangus or "tuyo" would have done the trick for me, but the menu seem to be more Western food catered towards their European guests.

Diving in Cabilao was amazing. Given that it is the low season, I was the only diver for the afternoon and had a guide all to myself. Visibility was great and the DM pointed out all the little critters that I have never seen, such as the Pegasus and other really tiny crusties. It just made me wish I had a camera that can take good macro pics.

I also managed to convince by 65-year old dad to do a Discovery dive the next day. After the Padi video and some short instruction in the pool, my dad went on a boat dive where he did a 20-minute dive with the Polaris instructor (Greg) while I again enjoyed a private guided tour of some of the most colorful coral reefs and marine life I've seen.

As I suspected, my city-living parents had enough of the serene island life after a couple of days, so Polaris arranged for us to be transferred to Alona Beach for the remainder of the trip. As soon as we got to Alona Beach in Panglao Island, I picked the first resort we saw (Alona Kew) and I immediately joined a diver and his guide from the diveshop across from Alona Kew for a dive at a site around Panglao Island. It was during this dive that I saw a huge school of Jackfish, probably thousands of them. Now I wished I had a video camera! I did a couple of dives that day while my parents hired a tricycle for a tour of the city malls (two of them) for P500 return trip to Alona Beach.

Next day I went to Balicasag Island for a couple of dives where I finally saw a few pygmy seahorses... which again I wished I had the right camera to take a good closeup. Dive condistions were similar to Cabilao. Visibility was amazing and marine life was abundant. Water temp was also a nice 84-86 degree Fahrenheit.

Unfortunately, dynamite fishing still happens in Bohol. On a couple of occasions, one in Cabilao and one in Panglao, I heard the explosions during my dives. According to the divemasters, this is quiet normal. Very unfortunate.

As for the weather, despite being rainy season, it would only drizzle early in the morning or rain overnight, but it was warm and sunny during all my day dives. Typhoon Egay also didn't hit Bohol. The staff at Polaris were telling me that it hardly rains in Cabilao... which is not necessarily a good thing for them as they're on an island and need fresh water.

Overall, I really enjoyed my short trip to Bohol. My flight back to Manila was not until 4:40pm, so I had the chance to do a topside tour of Bohol with my parents. P1800 pesos for a whole day tour of Bohol in an airconditioned car: passed by the python ("longest and biggest python in captivity"), the Philippine tarsiers, Chocholate hills, and lunch on a floating restuarant on Loboc river. We got to the airport early, but were not allowed in until President Arroyo arrived for her visit of Bohol. I did get some pictures of the arrival of the C-3 plane carrying some Philippine high ranking military types.

I posted some pictures of my trip on Facebook in case you're interested:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=12627&l=6ba4e&id=553836103

Thanks again,
P Gaw

P.S. Harley1962, sorry I didn't get the chance to ping you. Maybe next time we'll get to meet up. Hope you enjoyed your dives in the Philippines.

nice trip rep. glad you enjoyed your trip.

 

[clgsamson]

P, why not post a new thread re your Cabilao trip.

Glad you had a great time and bonding with your parents.

 

[shugar]

Bohol Dive Trip Report: Cabilao and Alona Beach

First of all, thank you to everyone who responded to my post.

I ended up going diving in Bohol. When I arrived in Manila, Typhoon “Egay” (or “Sepat” internationally) was just leaving Luzon so Anilao was out of the question. My non-diving parents who live in Manila decided to come with me on this trip. I decided to go to Cabilao for two nights and then to Alona Beach for another fortnight if my parents get bored in Cabilao.

We flew into Tagbilaran City and was picked up by a van that I arranged with Polaris Resort (http://www.polaris-dive.com) for $30 one way. It took about an hour by van and another 30-45 minutes by banca to get to the resort. Once we arrived, we were immediately greeted by the staff and given buko (coconut juice still in the husk) to drink. Rooms in Polaris were quite big and very clean, the staff were all friendly and the resort had most everything I would want (swimming pool, social area with billiards table, dartboard and cable tv). The only thing missing was some fresh fish or shrimps for lunch/dinner. Being on an island, I was really looking forward to eating "the catch of the day", which is not an option at all. Even dried bangus or "tuyo" would have done the trick for me, but the menu seem to be more Western food catered towards their European guests.

Diving in Cabilao was amazing. Given that it is the low season, I was the only diver for the afternoon and had a guide all to myself. Visibility was great and the DM pointed out all the little critters that I have never seen, such as the Pegasus and other really tiny crusties. It just made me wish I had a camera that can take good macro pics.

I also managed to convince by 65-year old dad to do a Discovery dive the next day. After the Padi video and some short instruction in the pool, my dad went on a boat dive where he did a 20-minute dive with the Polaris instructor (Greg) while I again enjoyed a private guided tour of some of the most colorful coral reefs and marine life I've seen.

As I suspected, my city-living parents had enough of the serene island life after a couple of days, so Polaris arranged for us to be transferred to Alona Beach for the remainder of the trip. As soon as we got to Alona Beach in Panglao Island, I picked the first resort we saw (Alona Kew) and I immediately joined a diver and his guide from the diveshop across from Alona Kew for a dive at a site around Panglao Island. It was during this dive that I saw a huge school of Jackfish, probably thousands of them. Now I wished I had a video camera! I did a couple of dives that day while my parents hired a tricycle for a tour of the city malls (two of them) for P500 return trip to Alona Beach.

Next day I went to Balicasag Island for a couple of dives where I finally saw a few pygmy seahorses... which again I wished I had the right camera to take a good closeup. Dive condistions were similar to Cabilao. Visibility was amazing and marine life was abundant. Water temp was also a nice 84-86 degree Fahrenheit.

Unfortunately, dynamite fishing still happens in Bohol. On a couple of occasions, one in Cabilao and one in Panglao, I heard the explosions during my dives. According to the divemasters, this is quiet normal. Very unfortunate.

As for the weather, despite being rainy season, it would only drizzle early in the morning or rain overnight, but it was warm and sunny during all my day dives. Typhoon Egay also didn't hit Bohol. The staff at Polaris were telling me that it hardly rains in Cabilao... which is not necessarily a good thing for them as they're on an island and need fresh water.

Overall, I really enjoyed my short trip to Bohol. My flight back to Manila was not until 4:40pm, so I had the chance to do a topside tour of Bohol with my parents. P1800 pesos for a whole day tour of Bohol in an airconditioned car: passed by the python ("longest and biggest python in captivity"), the Philippine tarsiers, Chocholate hills, and lunch on a floating restuarant on Loboc river. We got to the airport early, but were not allowed in until President Arroyo arrived for her visit of Bohol. I did get some pictures of the arrival of the C-3 plane carrying some Philippine high ranking military types.

I posted some pictures of my trip on Facebook in case you're interested:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=12627&l=6ba4e&id=553836103

Thanks again,
P Gaw

P.S. Harley1962, sorry I didn't get the chance to ping you. Maybe next time we'll get to meet up. Hope you enjoyed your dives in the Philippines.

nice report! thanks!

Jag

PS
checked out your photos: MORE MORE MORE!!! some of them are real nice!