Two newly qualified LSAC members Chris & Kelly packed there suitcases for there first diving trip abroad to North Sulawesi, Indonesia. 

Dives:                 12 (Including 2 night dives)

Divers:                Chris, Kelly

Depth:                15-20 metres

Dive times:         50-60 minutes

Water Temp:     28 degrees C

Vis:                     30m +

Dive Sites:

Bangka – Lelade, Busa Bora 2, Sahaung, Tanjung, Delphine Point, Crystal Bay, Demak and Jalan Likupang

Manado (Bunaken Marine Park) –  Celebes Jetty, Mandolin and Fukuy

Species: Blue Spotted Rays, Spine Cheek Anemone, Fingered Dragonet, Cockatoo Wasp Fish, Spider/Decorator/porcelain Crabs, Stick Pipe fish, Schooling Cat Fish, Common/Pygmy Sea Horses, Sexy Shrimp, Porcupine Fish, Peacock Mantis/Clown Anemone/Banded Coral  Shrimp, White Tip Reef Shark, Yellow Margin/White Eye/ Giant Moray Eels, Warty Frog Fish, Clown Anemone Fish, Big Sweet Lips, Upside Down Jelly Fish, White Snake Eel, Coconut Octopus, Bumphead Parrot Fish, Broadclub Cuttlefish, Hawksbill/Green Turtles, Red Tooth/Clown Trigger Fish, Coral Reef Lobster, Giant Clams, Puffer Fish, Napoleon Wrasse.

We dived in two main areas (Bangka and Manado (Bunaken Marine Park) all boat dives.

Bangka:

We had the pleasure of diving in Bangka, Indonesia. The sea was very calm and clear and warm, visibility was extremely good on all dives. A couple of the sites produced challenging currents at times, but it was nice to just ride them and enjoy the view. There was an abundance of healthy hard and soft corals, sea fans and sea life were plentiful at all depths. The dive sites had a mixture of reef slopes and small coral walls. The guides were very experienced and knowledgeable and showed us plenty of smaller critters that we otherwise would have missed. The house reef at Bangka was wonderful for snorkelling and diving walking in straight from the beach, again full of coral, invertebrates and fish.

Manado (Bunaken Marine Park):

This was our second location on our honeymoon. The house reef was not quite as impressive as Bangka and visibility was a little less due to the black volcanic sand but gave us the opportunity to experience muck diving. However, we still saw plenty of activity under the water.

The diving at Bunaken consisted of dramatic drop offs, mixed with sloping areas and beautiful coral gardens that offer a home to an abundance of reef fish, critters, soft and hard corals, various sponges and see fans are aplenty and colourful.