Blue Paradise diving Bali |
Diving Bali Video - Dive sites East Bali
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Blue Paradise diving Bali |
Diving Bali Video - Dive sites East Bali
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1. Tulamben
2. Ahmed - Jemeluk
3. Padangbai
4. Mimpang - Tepekong
5. Gili Biaha
Diving Tulamben
The sunrise is beautiful - it is worth to spend the night and do an early morning dive
The "Liberty Wreck"
The beauty of the soft corals there is amazing, too. The LIBERTY is covered by colorful sponges and corals from the bottom to the top. Colors which tend to be overseen if divers don't bring a dive light. If there is a dive light at hand the LIBERTY looks like a masterpiece of modern art, like a painting by Kandinsky maybe. The night dives at the LIBERTY are amazing.
RATING: From beginner to expert.
Especially interesting for photographers and videographers. One attraction is a big barracuda who does not mind divers. He looks scary but he behaves friendly. At least he has behaved friendly as far as we know.
DEPTH: From 5 to 30 meters.
The "Drop - Off"
There are some dive sites in Bali named Drop - Off. The DROP - OFF in Tulamben is about 800 meters to the east of the LIBERTY. Sightings if Bumphead Parrotfish are frequent who spend there nights in the wreck and go for breakfast to the DROP - OFF. There size can be amazing.
There is a beautiful more than two meter high Gorgonia at the Drop-Off in 30 meters. It is a great photo opportunity. But lately it is looking worse than it did before.
Other divers told us that they saw Mola Mola (sunfish) at the DROP - OFF. This is rare, maybe as rare as seeing Mola Mola (oceanic Sunfish) at the LIBERTY WRECK.A friend told us that sightings of Spanish Dancers are frequent here during night dives.
RATING: From beginner to expert. DEPTH: From 5 to 40 meters or more.
SAFETY: Concerns Michael has about diving at the DROP - OFF is not being aware that you can get very deep and beyond decompression limits. Be aware of this and dive in your training level. There might be stonefish among the black stones. Watch your buoyancy. Wear booties because the entry on the black stones - a reminder of Gunung Agung - is not easy without.
The Patch Reef
This shallow dive site is between the LIBERTY and the DROP - OFF. It is a great place to do the last dive of the day - or do a night dive. It is full of rare fish life like white eyed moray eels, blue and yellow eels (Ribbon eels). Common species are anemonefish, damselfish and others.
A big big barracuda can be often seen between the LIBERTY and the PATCH REEF. He looks majestic as he hovers over the reef and sometimes is very friendly to divers. The PATCH REEF is a very easy night dive.
RATING: From beginner to expert
SAFETY: The only concern we have about diving at the PATCH REEF is the possible presence of stonefish among the black stones. Watch your buoyancy. Wear booties because the entry on the black stones - a reminder of Gunung Agung - is not easy without.
Batu Kelebit
You reach this dive site continuing your way around the corner after the "Drop Off". Normally we take a Jukung, a small outrigger boat, starting at the beach at the "Drop Off". It just takes around ten minutes from there to reach Batu Kelebit. Batu Kelebit literally means the Kelebit Rocks.This refers to two big boulders - one is always submerged, the other exposed depending on the tides. From those rocks several ridges extend to the depth. Between the ridges are patches of white sand. Batu Kelebit is quite rich in fish and invertebrate life. There are many different species of hard coral, sponges, gorgonians, black corals. There are white tip reef sharks around and a lot of different species of reef fish. Finally Batu Kelebit is the best site to bigger animals like pelagics. There are bigger sharks in the depth, silky sharks, hammerhead sharks, whale sharks, manta rays roam around.
RATING: From advanced
SAFETY: The only concern we have about diving Batu Kelebit is the depth. The ridges go to more than 60 meters which is way below recreational diving limits. Be conservative with your air and always watch your pressure gauge.
Come and visit Tulamben Bali and dive with the old barracuda at the wreck, the jacks circling above, myriads of fish and a very special bali diving atmosphere. It is a two hours drive from Sanur.
Ahmed - Jemeluk
If you turn right about half an hour before you reach Tulamben you are on your way to Ahmed - Jemeluk. The coast line is dramatically beautiful. The hills are steep and the diving is very beautiful.
Their is a drop - off, too. It is beautifully covered with sponges, soft and hard corals. There are all kind of reef fish: lion and scorpion fish, myriads of Anthias but there are more colour varieties compared to Tulamben. It is possible to do this dive as a shore dive.
Safety concerns: Be careful because of the (possible) depth. And, if you do the dive as a shore dive without a Jukung to pick you up, be conservative. If there is a current make sure to dive against the current at the beginning of your dive. Rating: From beginners to experts.
Bunutan is very rich. There are plenty and all kind of different species of morray eels. There are giant barracudas, all kind of reef fish, a lot of sponges, good hard and soft coral cover.
Safety concerns: Be careful when the current is up. It can be strong. Rating: From beginners to experts.
"The shipwreck" is a dive site around three kilometers along the coast to the East from Jemeluk, between Bunutan and Tg. Puri. The vessel which is already very much disintegrated lies in very shallow water (around six to twelve meters). It is nicely encrusted with gorgonians and corals. The reef around is very beautiful, too. Safety concerns: Be careful and don´t dive into the wreck. Rating: From beginners to experts.
It takes about two hours to reach Ahmed/Jemeluk from Sanur by car.
Diving Padangbai Bali
The dive sites around Padangbai offer sharks (wobbegong and white tip reef sharks), sunfish from July to October. There are a lot of nudibranches, good hard coral cover in the shallows. There are dream beaches (BLUE LAGOON). Padangbai offers good night diving, too. Just stay with the group! There is a lot of small stuff one can take photo or video of: banded cleaner shrimps, and other cleaner shrimps. There are the strange leaf fish hanging around in the slight current, there are frog fish, sweetlips hover above hard corals in the shallow water. The water can be cold there (from July to October the time when sunfish sightings take place) because of upwellings from the abyss. The current can be strong, but usually it is moderate.Padangbai is a harbour town connecting Bali with Nusa Penida and Lombok.
Blue Lagoon
Blue Lagoon is a great place to get accustomed to the diving around PADANGBAI. It is the easiest dive site available. The coral cover is good, as is the fish life. There are sightings of white tip reef sharks in the shallow. If cold upwellings occur sightings of oceanic sunfish (mola mola) are likely. There are big frog fish waiting for small bait fish motionless if not disturbed by a divers photo flashlight. Blue spotted stingrays are present as they are on many other dive sites in Bali.
RATING: From beginner to expert. Interesting for photographers and videographers. Macro might be a good option.
DEPTH: From 5 to 25 meters.
The Dropoff
The Dropoff is about 500 meters away from Blue Lagoon. It is not a difficult dive site. But sometimes there are currents which make it difficult to continue diving to Blue Lagoon. Normally we dive from the drop off to blue lagoon.
Because of the deeper water beginners should be more aware of controlling their bouyancy that they don´t find themselves all of a sudden in the abyss.
It is a nice wall dive with beautiful nudibranches. Shark sightings are possible here, as in the season sunfish (mola mola).
Depth: From 10 to 30 meters.
RATING: From beginner divers to experts. It can a bit more difficult than blue lagoon.
Mimpang - Tepekong
Mimpang is an amazing dive site. It is relatively small but very rich. The coral cover is fantastic, so is the fish life. If divers would like to encounter sharks MIMPANG seems to have almost a guarantee of shark sightings. White tip reef sharks are seen mostly in depths between 15 to 30 meters, on a slope that can be current swept. Mola Mola - oceanic sunfish - sightings are frequent in the season of the cold upwellings and the presence of schooling bannerfish. The current can be very strong here. It´s crucial to know your way when diving because if the small dive site is missed there is just the deep blue around it. Photo: sunfish off Mimpang
RATING: From intermediate to expert. Interesting for photographers and videographers. DEPTH: From 15 to 30 meters. Safety advice: Watch you pressure gauge regularly in the currents. Bring a surface marker in case you get separated from your dive master.
Tepekong is also a place with cold water from upwellings, with very good coral cover, sightings of oceanic sunfish in the season and strong currents.
RATING (except the CANYON): From beginner to expert. Interesting for photographers and videographers. DEPTH: From 10 to 25 meters.
"The Canyon"
Off tiny Tepekongs southwest corner lies one of the most famous dive sites Bali has to offer: the canyon. Diving there can be very tricky because of currents which might pull the diver down. Even bubbles start to sink there in certain conditions.
The diving is tricky but in can be very beautiful, too. When there is a lot of current, there tend to be a lot of fish. This site is attractive to blue and yellow fusiliers, white tip reef sharks, bumphead parrotfish and Napoleon wrasse, to sunfish, to huge schools of sweetlips, to turtles, to groupers and many other marine animals.Diving the canyon is worth the effort when the experience and fitness level is sufficent, when the divers have experienced downward currents before, when the diving takes place with an experienced dive master who knows to read the conditions, which means who understands what is going on below the waves when he is watching the currents above.
Why do divers sometimes face downward currents at the Canyon?
It is because the prevailing current from southwest which can be very strong meets swell from east or northeast – a combination which leads to a downward direction of the currents.What can you do when you are diving and are confronted with a current like that?
1. Try to do your best to avoid a downward current. Listen to your dive master and follow his advice.
2. When it happens, keep calm. Don´t forget: stop, think and act.
3. Try to work your way back slowly to the shallows where you started your dive. You might have to hold on to rocks.
4. If you cannot do that, dump the air of your BCD and go with the flow. Be relaxed. The current will not bring you deeper than 50 meters. Be careful when you are out of the current that you don´t surface too fast. Ascent slowly watch your computer and come up in the open water. Don´t forget to let your safety saussage go up first.There are less demanding sites off Gili Tepekong. On the opposite side of the canyon there are very beautiful corals. The visibility can be very good and sightings of sunfish in the season are common, too.
RATING: Expert.
DEPTH: From 15 to 30 meters.
Gili Biaha
is not a dive site for beginners. But maybe for this reason quite interesting for advanced divers who like currents, who don´t have problems diving a steep wall, who can handle a compass and know how to set up a surface marker. The tiny island, Gili Biaha, sometimes called kambing (goat island) is formed out of black volcanic rock. Blue triggerfish - which can be found around Mimpang, too - practise their amazing flying skills. Sometimes they lie around sleeping at the ground and take off panicking when a diver approaches unexpectedly. Big angelfish zick-zack through the reef. There is a huge cave, known as a resting place for white tip reef sharks. A friendly hawksbill turtle got its territory around the cave. Red eyed fish - lovers of the darkness - live inside the cave.
There are giant triggerfish patroling, ready to attack divers when nesting. Sometimes it seems they love to fight anybody even outside of their nesting season. Here a video about gili biaha.Hints: Always have a surface marker ready. The currents can be strong and the surface marker makes it easy for the boatmen to spot you after surfacing. Be prepared for the cold water in the months from July to October.
You can contact Blue Paradise Diving Bali:
081 33 77 55 729 and 0361 87 55 788
mail: michaelhaas75@yahoo.de
PT. Laut Indah, Jl. Danau Poso, Gang Wana Sari 21, 80228 Sanur-Denpasar Bali Indonesia
