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The Best Wreck Diving Along the West Coast of Sabah, Borneo

Article by Joanne Cotterill

Many divers visit Sabah, Borneo to go diving world famous Sipadan. Home to stunning drop-offs, Turtles on every dive and dived by Jacques Cousteau it’s not a surprise it’s a popular scuba diving destination. What many divers do not realise is that there are a range of World War 2 (WW2) wrecks offering some memorable diving experiences along the west coast of Sabah. And all are accessible via diving day trips from Kota Kinabalu (the capital city of Sabah).

Whilst there are believed to be many wrecks in the South China Sea (from World War 2), there are currently four WW2 wrecks identified off the west coast of Sabah which are also suitable for scuba diving. All of the wrecks are Japanese cargo ships – meaning they are large (~150m – 200m) and have historic ‘treasures’ that were being transported at the time they went down. Due to the length of time they have been sunk (~65 years) they are all covered in stunning soft coral gardens, hard corals, teeming with fish life and home to an amazing range of tropical water marine life. Find schooling Barracuda, Nurse Sharks, large Groupers and large shoals of Yellow Snappers and Fusiliers.

Three of the wrecks are located in Usukan Bay (Rice Bowl Wreck, Upside-Down Wreck and the Usukan Wreck) which is located 30 nautical miles north west from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. The fourth wreck, the Gaya Wreck, is located ~ 20 minutes west of Pulau Gaya (outside Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park near Kota Kinabalu, Sabah). The wrecks offer both non-penetration diving (i.e. swimming over and around the wreck) and limited penetration diving, within the “light zone”. The rest of this article provides an overview of the wrecks to be dived along the west coast of Sabah.

The Rice Bowl Wreck – So-called because a cache of rice bowls was found in the bow when it was first dived, this is a relatively long vessel (~150m) lying in a North Easterly direction in 40m at its deepest and 26m at its shallowest. The depth of this wreck makes it suitable for minimum PADI Advanced Open Water Divers and is best dived recreationally using nitrox (EANx30). The superstructure is punctured in many places, making some exploration possible and interesting, and the metalwork is robust. The soft coral garden is memorable. During the ‘Dry Season’ you can often enjoy stunning visibility on the wreck of 30m+.

The Upside-Down Wreck – The name gives away the orientation of this ship, which lies in the same direction and at similar depth to the Rice Bowl wreck. This wreck has good swim-throughs, though a torch is essential and is good for exploring as well as a training ground for Wreck Diver specialty.

The Usukan Wreck – This is the deepest of the three Usukan Bay wrecks at 35m – 45m and consequently only available to technical divers (divers certified for decompression diving). It is a good wreck for diving on rebreathers or diving twin-tanks / Trimix. The wreck is interesting and has a spectacular whip coral coverage that can give it a frosted appearance in a certain light.

The Gaya Wreck – The large Gaya wreck is a deep wreck and sits upright in 36m – 50m of water. The wreck is generally intact and there are lots of interesting exploration and wreck penetration opportunities for technical divers with suitable experience and training (rebreather divers of twin-tank divers). Whilst the identify of the wreck has not been confirmed, it is believed to be the Nittetsu Maru. On October 14th 1944, Submarine Dace (SS-247) sank two Japanese merchant tankers, the Eikyo Maru and Nittetsu Maru, and damaged merchant ore carrier Taizen Maru off North Borneo, 06°05′N, 115°55′E”. The description of this wreck matches that of the Nittetsu Maru. Post action reports state the Dace sunk the Nittetsu Maru (a cargo ship of 5,993 tons), the Eikyo Maru (an oil tanker of 6,948 tons) and heavily damages the cargo ship Taizen Maru (5,396 tons).

Wreck diving is a popular form of scuba diving amongst leisure divers. Diving along, or inside, a shipwreck is attractive to divers for several reasons. Shipwrecks have a history to them which provides a different perspective when diving along one. Wrecks also quickly become an artificial reef, which creates a habitat for many types of marine life – they are normally surrounded by fish and home to critters. Scuba diving along a wreck also presents new skill challenges for scuba divers.

The best time to go diving the dive sites along the west coast of Sabah is from April to September (with April – June offering typically the best diving conditions).

Whether you be visiting Kota Kinabalu, Sabah as an experienced diver, a new diver, wanting to learn to dive or enjoy a try dive there are dive sites to meet your needs.

Find out more about wreck diving from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Borneo at http://www.borneodream.com

Dive Schools question by johnnyboy44: where does the school dive team get their swimsuits?
does each diver have to buy their own or does
the dive team have a special store where they buy them
or how do they get them?
i want to know because i want to be on the dive team
next year
does anyone have any dive team tips/ tricks/ comments
im a guy btw

Dive Schools best answer:

Answer by Polak365
they usually let u order them from some special place or they tell u to go to the store and get ur own.

go to macy’s or kiefer

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Solitude

(Maldives Trip December 2008)

Where to Go Scuba Diving in Bali

Article by Alfred Hernandez

Despite a series of terrorist bomb attacks in 2002 and 2005 killing hundreds of tourists and locals hitting the tourism industry hard for short periods, the tropical Indonesian island of Bali is still attracting many vacationing tourists.

Tourists are attracted by the island’s rustic charms, mystical culture and tradition, spectacular tropical sceneries and beautiful white sandy beaches. Many of these tourists are also scuba divers and are in Bali for scuba diving. After all, Bali was voted by several scuba diving magazines as one of the top ten dive location in the world.

Bali have many scuba diving locations where awesome underwater landscape and marine creatures abound. Let’s take a tour of some of Bali’s diving destinations.

Sanur and Nusa Dua – These 2 dive spots are located just 5 minutes away from the shore and therefore are very accessible. Beginners and novice divers will enjoy diving here because of the very gentle current. Visibility depending on seasons is low to moderate. Although hard corals are scarce, the many species of colorful fishes made up for the shortfall. Soft corals and sponges can also be found thriving on the reefs.

Nusa Penida and Lembongan Islands – Drop off reef diving is the main attraction on these islands. It is a 45 minute speedboat ride to the islands. Water visibility is rated as good because the islands are further away from the coast and therefore less polluted. The current here is very strong and experienced divers can enjoy drift diving. Sometimes the current may get too strong and dives may be abandoned.

There is a very good variety of hard corals, colorful sea gorgonian fans and many huge pelagic fishes to see. Highlights of diving here are sightings of huge schools of sweet lips fish, huge hawksbill turtles, sharks and giant manta rays.

Amed and Jemeluk Beach – These dive spots are one and half hour from Denpasar, a popular tourist town. Only experienced divers can dive here because of the strong current. The dives here can be very spectacular because of the long coastal reef, reef slopes and wall diving. Water visibility is moderate to good. This diving location is reputed to be the home of the best hard coral community in Bali.

The Padang Bay – This dive scuba diving location in Bali have a flat bottom seabed and is made up mixed reef and sandy bottom. Because of its close proximity to the shore, the water visibility is rated at best to be moderate. The attractions here are frequent sightings of large triggerfish and blue-spotted stingrays.

Tulamben Wreck Dive – For those who enjoy shipwreck diving, then this is the dive site in Bali that you must not missed. Water visibility here is fair to good and the current is generally gentle. Night dive on this wreck is described by many divers as spectacular.

The wreck was the USS Liberty, sunk in World War 2 by Japanese submarine torpedoes 1942. Since the wreck is so near the beach, scuba divers can simply swim to the wreck from the beach.

These are merely some of the many scuba diving destinations in Bali. For more excellent diving sites, you can check out with the many scuba diving operators when you are in Bali.

Dive Schools

Whales swim and polar bears dive! So do hippos and little fish! These are just some of the many animals moving through this book as they hunt, keep warm and play. The key movement words are repeated on each page encouraging children to repeat them as they go through the book.

Let’s All Swim and Dive (Animals on the Move)

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Dive Schools question by freezing_out_here: How to do a reverse dive?
I’m a sophmore in high school and started diving last year for my school since we didn’t have any divers and I’ve done mediocre. I just can’t seem to get a reverse though. I know in my head it’s extremely simple and I know I can do it it’s just mostly in my head of the fear of spinning backwards. There may be nothing you guys can tell me since my coach has tried a number of things (I can do all other dives- forward, back, inward, twist) it’s just this stupid one. I had to do it in a meet once and I pulled out a 1 somehow…open for suggestions.

Dive Schools best answer:

Answer by can’ywait2getoutofhere
I am also a sophmore in highschool and a reverse dive was always my problem too. my dad was a diver and he taught me a few tricks. he had a really long pole that would extend to the middle of the pool but not to far away from the board. on the end of the pole there was a flag. you have to start a reverse dive before anything else. you dont want to get into the habbit of throwing your head backwards. what you do is you go straight off the board (like a straight jump.. same hurdle and approach), then tuck your legs in then kick out at the flar to pull you around. this is the BEST thing to do. it worked for 9 year olds. and if a 9 year old can do a reverse then you can too. also if you watch vidoes and other ppl doing it , that can help too. Also trying it under water when you are waiting for your turn. and ALWAYS do dryland traing, like go through the dive on dryland. whatever you do… DON”T THROW YOUR HEAD BACK!!! you know wat will happen. the most important thing to worry about is getting your tuck around. remember legs to chest not chest to legs.
goodluck! (you’ll get it)

Dive Schools

Eid Greetings wishing u all well

Diving Thailand

Article by Andrew Stanford

Much like the landscape, the underwater world in Thailand is rich in natural beauty and diversity. Claiming one of the top ten dive areas in the world and split geographically between two seas, Thailand’s waters are also home to some of the worlds’ largest pelagic creatures such as manta rays and whale sharks. Choosing the best dive sites, however, is not just a simple case of creating a list. Strong currents and deep waters mean that some of the most spectacular and memorable dives are reserved only for advanced divers with the right experience under their weight belts. With this in mind I have written this article from the perspective of a complete beginner and the order in which I would suggest tackling the various underwater wonders on offer.First you have to learn to dive (assuming you are not already certified). Since on completion of your Open Water Diver course you are only qualified to dive in conditions equivalent to or better than those in which you learnt, it’s probably advisable not to do your course in completely idyllic conditions as these will then be difficult to replicate. This makes the Northern Gulf of Thailand a perfect place to start. The visibility is generally not as good as the south and experience of tidal current can be introduced gradually under controlled conditions, although in terms of marine life there is still plenty to see.As a newly certified Open Water Diver I would suggest that your next port of call be Koh Tao. The easiness of the dive sites here combined with the relatively good visibility and quality of the reef make it an ideal place to further your experience. There are over 30 dive sites all within a maximum distance of 45 minutes by boat. Twin Peaks and Green Rock are notable starter sites with plenty of variety in coral, sponges and tropical fish and minimal current to boot. As your underwater ability increases you will want to try more adventurous dives such as the renowned Chumphon Pinnacle where you may be lucky enough to encounter grey reef sharks bigger than you (although quite harmless) and Sail Rock with its underwater chimney rising from 18m all the way to the surface. Both of these sites are regularly visited by whale sharks and are a must see.As we move further south it may be a good idea to consider an Advanced Open Water certification (again assuming you are not already there) in order to fully appreciate the exciting new spots. From Phuket you can reach many of the best places including multiple sites around Racha Yai, Racha Noi, Phi Phi and various other outcrops and islands. Shark Point; Anemone Reef and Koh Ma number among the more gentle dives and they are blessed with an amazing array of underwater flora and fauna, whilst King Cruiser makes for an unforgettable wreck dive. Leopard sharks and turtles are common here as are stingrays and the more discerning can spot seahorses and frogfish and all different kinds of moray eel. For the really large pelagic encounters you cannot miss South Pinnacle (Raya Noi) and Hin Daeng & Hin Muang. These are not for the faint hearted and I would recommend an absolute minimum of 20 dives before attempting them. On my first dive at the Pinnacle I saw absolutely nothing (apart from huge manta rays) and I breathed my tank dry in 27 minutes (I have been diving for 20 years). This is how strong the current can be. The two Hins (Hin Daeng & Hin Muang – red and purple) are so called because of the colour of the soft corals that adorn them and are considered the jewels of the South Andaman. Whale Sharks and Manta rays love these places almost as much as divers do. It’s not difficult to see why. Even when the gentle giants are absent the spectacular drop offs, amazing visibility and sheer volume of marine life tantalize the senses. Again these places are not to be missed, but require a certain skill in order to be fully appreciated. Now you are ready for the Similan Islands and Surin, the ultimate in Thailand’s diving inventory. Although there are many dive sites here suitable for novice divers, as usual the best ones tend to be deep and subject to strong current. Big fish, I’m afraid, just love strong current and once you get used to it so will you. The best way to see them is on a three to five day liveaboard cruise, and it would be a shame to shell out the money for this if you cannot enjoy it to the max. In the Similans, Christmas Point is a dramatic series of underwater pinnacles and canyons. Here you’ll find an explosion of life in the soft coral gardens; parrotfish, lionfish, wrasse and groupers are all common. There are often big jacks on the hunt here and you may glimpse white tip sharks prowling. Elephant rock is unsurprisingly named after the bulbous looking rock formation. This dive site is one of the best around. Below the surface it offers gigantic stacked boulders and a labyrinth of swimthroughs, arches and caverns. Marine life is abundant and huge schools of yellow goatfish and snappers can be found around the deeper levels. Turtle Rock is an impressive series of submerged boulders and swimthroughs in typical Similan fashion. Surrounded by coral and marine life this is one of the better places to spot turtles. Encounters with eagle rays are not uncommon. Moving towards Surin, Koh Bon features one of the only vertical walls in Thailand with depths of over 40 metres. Leopard sharks are common on the ridge and on the sandy flats below the. The soft corals here are radically different and include shades of turquoise, yellow and blue, besides the more common pinks and purples. Koh Bon is one of the better places to see manta rays, especially towards the end of the season. Koh Tachai has an offshore underwater ridge that runs perpendicular to the island and is considered to be one of the finest dives in the Kingdom of Thailand. It is famous as a place to see larger animals such as rays, leopard sharks, nurse sharks and hawksbill turtles. Richelieu Rock is Surin’s ace card. It is a small submerged rock about 18 km east of Surin and rates as one of the best places in the world for swimming with the whale shark. For some reason, Richelieu Rock attracts more than its fair share of these graceful animals. If by now you have the impression that manta and whale shark sightings are commonplace please accept my apologies. Such encounters although frequent remain a privilege and an honour and the animals themselves choose when. Also in the world of diving no two days are the same. Keep an open mind and accept that everything is subject to the laws of nature and you will not be disappointed. That said, the more often you dive these places the better chance you have, by the law of averages and the more you dive the better diver you become. So where does it go from here? Well, you may have noticed that Bangkok sits right in the middle of Southeast Asia, which arguably makes it centre of the diving universe. It gets better. Good Diving.

Dive Schools

superbly indexed annotated illustrated diving manual in full color spiral bound with classroom study outlines diving tables

Open Water the Most Prestigious Sport Diving Program in the World (Dive Safe)

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Dive Schools question by Brian: Are there any Base Jumping classes or schools in Washington State?
I need to find a base jumping or sky diving class/school soon and be ready before June of 2010

Dive Schools best answer:

Answer by Sean W
There’s a place that I went skydiving at in Snohomish, WA It was good I did a Tatum were I was on the under side of the skydiver, Just type in: Skydiving in Snohomish, WA or skydivesnohomish.com I did through Google but it should work through other servers a well, Then just click on the link to it, should have a picture to the left of it of a map, that’s the first place that I went jumping at, If you want you can have a guy jump out with you and take pictures of you and also take video while your skydiving, Good Luck Now can you help me find a place that does Base Jumping : ) Sean