Diving in Southeast Asia. David Espinosa
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Traditional fishing boats with outriggers are excellent dive vessels because they offer stability in the water.
TOGEAN ISLANDS
Situated in gin-clear, millpond-calm Tomini Bay, the idyllic and alluring Togean Islands are distinguished by the simple fact that they feature all three major coral reef formations—fringing, barrier and atoll—within a small area and in a sheltered environment. This means that divers can marvel at exquisitely delicate coral growth, but only in areas where the rampant bomb fishing that has effectively destroyed much of these reefs can be avoided.
There are only a few dive operators in the area, mainly operating out of Kadidiri. Other than an intact World War II plane wreck, the inner central region of the islands doesn’t offer much, but with a good guide the outer areas do. Fine dives can be had around Kadidiri and its smaller neighboring islands and also on the volcanic cone of Una-Una to the northwest. Diving is also offered by the Walea Dive Resort located near the southeastern tip of Walea Bahi. In that area, there are some decent reefs off the beach, which owe their continued healthy existence to the protective actions of the resort. There are also a number of nearby seamounts rising from the depths that offer superlative dives in astounding visibility, featuring possible encounters with a range of shark species as well as numerous reef fishes.
SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST SULAWESI: SELAYAR ISLAND AND WAKATOBI
Traveling further south in Sulawesi undoubtedly offers some of Indonesia’s finest diving and world-class dive sites. Bira on the tip of South Sulawesi features some strong currents, occasional cooler temperatures but occasional passing pelagics and is now home to a handful of operators.
More notably, however, is the marine park created by the Selayar Dive Resort on the east coast of Selayar Island (South Sulawesi) and Wakatobi Dive Resort situated in the Wakatobi National Marine Park (Southeast Sulawesi). Both of these resorts are blessed with exceptional house reefs that feature plunging walls pocked with caverns and crevices and covered in a profusion of healthy, untouched hard and soft corals.
Selayar Dive Resort is situated in the heart of the marine protected area, which it created in 2002. The boutique resort, which is open from October to May, has only nine bungalows that are located along a 1-km stretch of white sand beach. Diving in the marine park here is truly a delight, with no other dive boats in the region, stunning walls (such as Steps, Caves and Overhangs and Opera) adorned with a diverse mix of soft and hard coral species and huge gorgonian fans, which are awash with macro and critter life, including candy soft coral crabs, ghost pipefish, pygmy seahorses, innumerable species of nudibranchs and shrimps, eels, leaffish and scorpionfish, to name but a few. The deeper sites in the park, such as Shark Point and Karl’s Corner, offer the possibility of numerous shark sightings in one dive, including grey reef sharks and black and white tips. Mobula rays, eagle rays, huge tuna, giant trevallies, Napoleon wrasse, schooling jacks and a number of barracuda species are also amongst the residents here. Green turtles also thrive within the park and a handful of sightings on each dive are not unusual. In short, diving within the Selayar Dive Resort marine protected area offers something for everyone and should not be overlooked if you are seeking some of the best diving that Sulawesi has to offer.
Christmas tree worms are found in a range of colors. These were photographed in Wakatobi.
Wakatobi Dive Resort (Wakatobi being an acronym for the four main islands of the Tukangbesi Archipelago— WA-ngi- Wangi, KAledupa, TOmia and BInongko) is located in the vast Tukangbesi National Marine Park. This high-end eco resort boasts two types of accommodation across over 20 bungalows in addition to a handful of luxury villas, all complete with impeccable service and transfers from Bali by private plane.
Diving in the Wakatobi National Park gives divers the opportunity to dive world-class pristine reefs, stunning wall dives and abundant marine life, particularly in the Tomia area. Turtles, rays, sharks and a whole host of critters are common, and when coupled with quiet dive sites and good visibility, it makes for some phenomenal diving.
A pink sea fan in Wakatobi is home to a school of anthias.
The islands of Wakatobi are stereotypical picture perfect, with white sand, palm-fringed beaches, tropical clear water and beautifully diverse flora and fauna. There are a number of operators in the area now offering dive packages for a range of budgets, but if you are looking for tropical luxury and top-class service combined with some of the best sites within minutes of your resort, then Wakatobi Dive Resort remains the resort of choice. More than six species of seahorse have been found on their stretch of house reef alone and they are also at the forefront of marine conservation and reef protection projects in the area.
For those seeking the ultimate luxury liveaboard experience, Wakatobi Dive Resort also operate the Pelagian Liveaboard, a 35-meter yacht that offers an exclusive experience to the 10 guests for which it caters.
For those who have deep enough pockets, Wakatobi Dive Resort is the ultimate in luxury high-end comfort and the diving is undeniably world-class.
—Bruce Moore/David Espinosa/Sarah Ann Wormald
Tulamben
The Legendary USS Liberty Wreck and Other Sites
Access Beach; the ship is 30 meters offshore. Avoid midday—often crowds
Current Fair to good, 15 meters
Reef type Mild
Highlights Good growth on ship, fine growth on wall
Visibility Liberty shipwreck; wall; muck diving
Coral Excellent variety, prolific
Fish Full moon night dive
At first sight, the little village of Tulamben is rather uninviting. Its beach is a rough spread of black sand, with small boulders and rubble cast here by nearby Gunung Agung’s eruption in 1963. But people travel in great numbers to Tulamben to dive the predominantly black sand sloping sites, beginning, for most, with the wreck of the Liberty.
The wreck is Bali’s most popular dive site and it does become crowded, as daytrippers from the south brave the three-hour drive just to make 2–3 dives. If you are hoping for a more exclusive experience, it is best to base yourself directly in Tulamben and make early morning or sunrise dives on the Liberty before the crowds arrive. The volcanic rock is a bit hard on the feet, and the waves can be rough, but all inconveniences are soon forgotten on Bali’s most famous site.
There are now numerous operators in Tulamben offering both resort facilities and diving only. Prices range from backpacker deals to more high-end dive and stay packages. Tauch Terminal Tulamben offers upmarket accommodation and diving in their ideally positioned resort on the beach front next to the entry point for the wreck. A little to the south, the reputable Markisa Resort also offers Seraya Secret as their house reef and dive and stay packages in their boutique resort.
The Liberty wreck at Tulamben, Bali, is completely encrusted with coral.
USS LIBERTY WRECK
Just 30 meters from the beach, the wreck lies on its starboard side, almost parallel to the shore. Parts of the superstructure are broken up and it is largely only the main frame of the ship that remains, but the wreck is still large and impressive, stretching more than 100 meters along the steeply sloping black sand. On 11 January 1942, this ship was hit by torpedoes from a Japanese submarine and was beached in Tulamben. She remained there for more than 20 years until the eruption of Agung pushed the ship