Tulamben

[dangles]

HI

I did the Tulamben about 9 months ago, and can vouch that some DM's are definitely hit and miss. I think the place I dived with was called Blue Water, but dont quote me. Its the place that the Perama bus drops people off at. The divemaster was diabolical. You should have at least a passing interest in diving to take divers out, this guy just did not care. He:

1) Was monsylabic - did not communicate with me at all.
2) Returned from the dive when me and my buddy had well over 100 bar, despite being told not to.
3) Hoiked me back by grabbing my hoses
4) Openly laughed at a disabled diver.

I dont even want to think about how he would have handled an emergency, and would not be suprised if he wasnt even trained as a dive master.

As a rule dont dive with anyone who jumps out of their skin to get you into an acommadation/dive arrangment, and talk to others who have dived there before you sign up.

Dangles

 

[debcov]

Juggernut -
I made 4 dives with Spice Dive when I stayed in Lovina last month. Went to Manjegan Island and had nice dives. Had no problems with the shop...they knew what they were doing. I was the only person on the dive, so I was not able to see how the DM interacted with less experienced divers. I only wanted him there to make sure I got back to the boat.

They do seem to have one of the bigger shops in Lovina compared to the other shops there. I would have no problem going with them again.

I am not familar with Scuba Bali...

Hope this helps
Deb

 

[juggernutt]

Thanks for the reply Deb,

Was the DM a local or Western person?
Anyway I was thinking of doing the AOW..do you know who the instructor is?

How was menjangan? How does it compare?

I was thinking of staying in Lovina because I can do trips to Menjangan and Tulamben...

Or stay at Tulamben and dive at Nusa Penida and Tulamben

 

[jiveturkey]

Is Menjangan worth diving now? I heard they had a lot of problems with coral bleaching during the last el nino. I seem to remember reading that the good diving is now beyond the recreational depth due to dead corals.

 

[debcov]

I dove with a local DM while diving in Tulamben. I do not know the instructors at Eco Dive in Amed, however the owner is western. Spice Dive in Lovina has mostly all local DM and instructors. I did not see any western employees when I was there.

While in Lovina, I made 4 dives in Menjangan and thought the diving was fine. The vis was good, the only thing I did not like was hearing dynamite from nearby Java...it was a bit suprizing to be underwater enjoying a peaceful dive and all of a sudden hear a blast going off. The coral in Menjangan was good, altho one could see some problems. In most places it still was a worthwhile dive. Menjangan is part of a protected area, altho the garbage on the North and South Posts of the island where we stopped for lunch was disappointing. All in all, my dives there were nice...not much current and good vis...I wish my camera was working.

I found when I was diving in Tulamben, it was handy to stay in Amed which was 20 min away. That way I was the first to be on the wreck of the Liberty and did not have to worry about other divers and silt while trying to take pix. The drive from Lovina to Tulmaben takes about 2 hrs...and I could think of better things to do on my vacation going back and forth each day. The vis in Tulamben is not great...the wreck is silty, as is typical with wrecks. The volcano erupted in '61, so the beach is black ash, but I enjoyed the dives there the most...seeing my first sea horse, ribbon eels, etc. Vis is not 70 feet plus, but the sea life there is great to see...

The diving in Nusa Penida was so-so...good vis, but the current was so strong....I just whizzed by everything and could not poke around and look at the sea life. I would recommend Menjangan over Nusa Penida for that reason....altho Mola Mola appear at Nusa Penida in July.


Hope this helps

 

[Snoopy]

YOu mean Bali Scuba ? The DS ?

I dove with them on all my trips there. They had modern facilities, including a newly setup operation for experienced divers, and could incl trimix facilities too.

Check out their site BS. Look for Simon or Christ or David, they are the owners and help me planned my trips there.

juggernutt once bubbled...
Anyone familiar with Spicedive or scuba bali?
Is baruna anygood?

[

 

[annie]

Bali Scuba:
I think I spoke to a Simon in Bali Scuba when I first arrived in Bali and he was very helpful with accomodation etc even though I never ended up diving with him as I decided to go to the Gili Islands.

Tulamben:
As I said in previous post when I was in Padangbai I did a day trip to Tulamben with Helena from Diving Groove in Padangbai and she is absolutely excellent.

I dived with Blue Water when I actually went up to T to stay a while and have no complaints really - just the the general awareness that the Indonesian DMs don't really think much about safety or emergencies etc.

As I was leaving T - an Australian guy was setting up a new shop - he's the guy from Exmouth Diving who started all the whaleshark stuff in Exmouth in Western Australia - worth trying out I suppose.

I LOVED diving in Tulamben thought it was excellent. When I first looked underwater there, it was crystal clear and the fish stood out against the black sand - amazing effect and one that I probably won't see again. There's a massive Napolean wrasse living in that wreck too.

I would issue a word of caution about diving in Padangbai - when I was there some friends of mine went to dive 'The Toilet' with Gecko Dive and by all accounts it was dangerous. Very dangerous site in terms of down / up currents and the divers were not up to it and I felt that the dive shop should have let them know in advance what they getting into. And that's a western shop so you never do know. However Gecko dive were very helpful to me when I was trying to change my ticket with Garuda Airlines . . .god was that a hassle.