dirtfarmer
Contributor
I Love diving in Indonesia. I'm hopelessly hooked and I can't see any way out of my addiction except to dive there as much as I can. I recently returned from a epic trip which included a two days diving in Ambon before I started a crossing trip from Ambon thru the Banda Sea to Raja Ampat. The diving in Ambon impressed me even though I was only able to make a few dives there in limited locations. The crossing trip was EPIC with schools of Hammerheads in the Banda Sea, Manuk Island which is known for having lots of sea snakes, ( and in the morning, incredible bird watching seeing all the birds circling before heading out to sea to feed for the day) and Koon Island . Then after the Banda Sea, we headed to my first exposure to the fantastic diving of Raja Ampat. We dived 4 days in the Misool area and upon surfacing after my first dive on "Boo Windows" I had confirmed for myself that the diving in Raja Ampat is truely epic! Huge schools of fish of many kinds, amazing sea fan gardens, spectacular soft coral of every color and the wonderful underwater topography that the Misool area brings to the table. The Misool area is my favorite of Raja Ampat as it has such great sites with huge schools of fish, and some we had really good Oceanic Manta action. They are truly beautiful, amazing, giant, and graceful creatures, and it was my first time seeing Oceanic's.
Then since I turned 50 this year, (the age that many people come to grips with their mortality buy a sports car and divorce their wife), I decided instead to double up and spend another 10 days diving from a liveaboard in the North/Central/South of Raja Ampat. Yes 20 days! of liveaboard diving and I can say it was the trip of my lifetime. On the second liveaboard we started out diving the Misool area for 4 days which I was more than happy to dive some more. Then we cruised up North to the Penemu area and I again was impressed with the diving. There is some amazing hard coral gardens, with corals sized larger than I have ever seen. The visibility wasn't the best so I made the best of it and shot some black and white photos which really accent the shape and texture of the coral gardens. Our next area we dove was the Wayag area which brought back the profusion of colorful soft coral that I so love, loads of fish and more Manta action. Next was diving the Gam area where I finally was able to see my first "Bamboo walking shark" so cute, so shy and the topping on a amazing night dive. Lastly we finished up in the Kri area diving the Dampier Strait which brought fast currents, more fishy dive sites, and even a pregnant black tip reef shark. And to top it all off while my wife was home having Thanksgiving with friends I was having a tasty BBQ of shrimp, chicken, and fish on the beach watching fruit bats take off to feed and an incredible sunset.
After quite a few trips to Indonesia and one more soon to come I'm hopelessly addicted. In this years Scuba Diving Magazine readers choice awards in the Pacific and Indian Oceans regions, Indonesia takes the top spot in "Best Overall diving", "Healthiest Marine Environment", "Best Underwater Photography", and "Best Macro".
I know why I love diving in Indonesia.
Why do you?
Then since I turned 50 this year, (the age that many people come to grips with their mortality buy a sports car and divorce their wife), I decided instead to double up and spend another 10 days diving from a liveaboard in the North/Central/South of Raja Ampat. Yes 20 days! of liveaboard diving and I can say it was the trip of my lifetime. On the second liveaboard we started out diving the Misool area for 4 days which I was more than happy to dive some more. Then we cruised up North to the Penemu area and I again was impressed with the diving. There is some amazing hard coral gardens, with corals sized larger than I have ever seen. The visibility wasn't the best so I made the best of it and shot some black and white photos which really accent the shape and texture of the coral gardens. Our next area we dove was the Wayag area which brought back the profusion of colorful soft coral that I so love, loads of fish and more Manta action. Next was diving the Gam area where I finally was able to see my first "Bamboo walking shark" so cute, so shy and the topping on a amazing night dive. Lastly we finished up in the Kri area diving the Dampier Strait which brought fast currents, more fishy dive sites, and even a pregnant black tip reef shark. And to top it all off while my wife was home having Thanksgiving with friends I was having a tasty BBQ of shrimp, chicken, and fish on the beach watching fruit bats take off to feed and an incredible sunset.
After quite a few trips to Indonesia and one more soon to come I'm hopelessly addicted. In this years Scuba Diving Magazine readers choice awards in the Pacific and Indian Oceans regions, Indonesia takes the top spot in "Best Overall diving", "Healthiest Marine Environment", "Best Underwater Photography", and "Best Macro".
I know why I love diving in Indonesia.
Why do you?
