Blue Realm

Posts Tagged ‘wreck’

Dive Schools

Hug A Hoodie

Digital photography backlog continues…

Hooded crow, Loch Linnhe

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

Diving In The Sea

The very best wreck dives in the Maldives

Write-up by tery dives

The Maldives when had a significant and varied fleet of freight vessels and remains portion of a common shipping route. This nautical historical past,blended with the country’s many atolls and fairly shallow waters,hasleft some stunning wrecks on the ocean floor of this tropical diving paradise.

Wreck diving in the Maldives supplies a fascinating glimpse into both nature and human heritage. Divers can witness firsthand how marine ecosystems adapt to and takeover these sunken relics of human civilization. The warm, distinct, relaxed waters of the Maldives supply a amazing possibility to observe this method as coral reefs increase about the hulls of wrecked ships, producing a magical home for localmarine flora and fauna.

Divers of all levels can count on to expertise sunken vessels covered in equally tough and gentle corals, teeming with colorful species offish and offering shelter for eels, turtles, rays and sharks. Liveaboard diving safaris are the ideal way to access these amazing websites as they offer the most time, convenience and accessibility to a range of top rated scuba diving spots.

Right here is a record we’ve compiled on the best wrecks to dive in the Maldives:

Fesdhoo Wreck

The Fesdhoo (Fesdu) wreckin Ari Atoll is the ultimate resting spot of a 30 meter (100 ft) extended fishing trawler, which varieties a ‘man made’ reef on the ocean floor, some 30 meters beneath the surface area. Difficult and gentle corals, sponges, feather stars and brightly colored sea slugs have colonized the exterior of the wreck. Inside of its cavernous hull lurk moray eels, lionfish, universities of glassfish, anthia,blue fin trevally and groupers. Fesdhoo wreck lies alongside a modest pinnacle (thila) that reaches a depth of twelve meters (40 ft). It is suitable for intermediate divers and is a wonderful 12 months-round wreck and reef web site.

Maldives Victory Wreck

Located in North Malé Atoll at the Hulhule House Reef is the huge Maldives Victory wreck. The Victory is an incredible 110-meter (360 ft) long steel Singaporean cargo ship, which sunk on Friday the 13th, 1981. Suitable for only knowledgeable divers because of to robust currents and sharp protrusions, the wreck lies some 35 meters (115 ft) deep on the sandy ocean floor. The cargo rooms of the Maldives Victory are effortlessly available and the entire coral-encrusted wreck is house to a significant range of marine life, which includes significant groupers, batfish, lionfish, pipefish, puffers, hawkers and the odd sea turtle. The intact primary mast of the Maldives Victory adds to the uniqueness of this ever before-common sophisticated dive web site.

Kuda Giri Wreck

The Kuda Giri wreck is one of the principle wrecks located in South Malé Atoll. It is a tiny, intact wreck with a depth variety of 18-30meters (sixty-100 ft) and is perfect for tiny group dives and also comes very recommended for night time dives. The bow of the wreck factors in the direction of a reef tower or ‘giri’, offering a great dive on its very own. The Kuda Giri wreck capabilities a range of corals, sponges, universities of glassfish, batfishand blue fin trevally, as well as the occasional leaf fish, frogfish, turtle, humphead wrasseand guitar shark. The gentle currents about the Kuda Giri make this site appropriate for divers of all amounts.

Halaveli Wreck

The Halaveli wreck, a 33-meter (108 ft) extended freighter, was sunk in 1991 in North Ari Atoll, some fifty meters (165 ft) from the primary reef. It is yr-round dive internet site, which is ideal for intermediate degree divers and is a excellent spot for night time dives. The Haveli wreck is specially popular for stingray spotting and is also home to moray eels, groupers, batfish, bannerfish and lionfish. This 18-28 meter deep wreck is covered in a assortment of colorful soft corals.

The British Loyalty Wreck

For divers interested in background, the British Loyalty wreck is a must. Built in 1928 and hit by Japanese torpedoes in both 1942 and 1944, the large oil tanker was finally purposefully sunk by a British warship in 1946 in Addu Atoll. The British Loyalty wreck is a whopping 140 meters (460 ft) long and twenty meters (65 ft) extensive and lies on its sideat a depth range of 16 to 33 meters. The wreck is appropriate for all ranges of divers and is teeming with marine life. Highlights contain a significant range of coral formations, parrotfish, clownfish, wrasse, angelfish, triggerfish and turtles. Knowledgeable divers can swim through the torpedo holes or check out out the Loyalty’s nonetheless-intact propellers. The Shipyard Wreck

Yet another wonderful wreck dive in the Maldives is the Shipyard wreck, a particular sitebecause it contains two wrecks, Skipjack one and two, each of which sunk in the course of the early 1980s. 1 wreck lies on its side on the ocean floor although the other sits on its stern with its bow poking a number of meters out from the surface of the drinking water.Found west of Hinnavaru Island in Lhaviyani Atoll, the Shipyard wreck has a optimum depth of 30 meters (100 ft), is suitable for intermediate diversand isa highly advised spot for night dives. The website is property to several species of challenging and soft corals, universities of glassfish and species these as blennies, damsels, anthias, angelfish and butterfly fish as nicely as the occasional stingray.

liveaboardsdiving.com

Research Continues for 7 Adult males Following Boat Sinks
Diving in the sea
The U.S. Coast Guard and Mexican Navy are scouring the Sea of Cortez by boat and helicopter in a continuing hard work to track down the 7 U.S. visitors who are nevertheless lacking soon after the sinking of a charter boat off the coast of Mexico Sunday.

Diving in the sea question by Dev: What are the qualifications for a sea diving job / occupation?
I just started out university in Sydney and I am not pleased with the Uni lifestyle, I adore the ocean and sea diving given that I was child, and I genuinely want to have it as a life time career which I get pleasure from,

but ahead of I do nearly anything, I want to know what do I require to have, so that I can be an official sea diver?

Diving in the sea best reply:

Answer by carmac
There are diving educational institutions here is California it runs about $ one,600 for the program, they have the exact same factor in Louisiana but the cost is only close to $ 500.00 for which you will be licensed to fix, weld, clear ships and physique recovery as well………good luck to you!