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Indonesia's Dive Resorts | Live-aboards | Resorts | Bali Land Based Divings

Adventure Komodo
March 11 - 25 2005 - 14 nights.
Raja Ampat (Sorong), Banda Sea, Pantor (Alor Region) - Trip Report

Finally after waiting nearly 2 yrs to dive with my ol' mate Larry Smith for this very special sojourn aboard the lovely Adventure Komodo; the day had arrived.

Ten of us included old and new friends alike, a blending of great divers all keen to revel in the magic of these very prolific waters of Eastern Indonesia!

We began in the now very popular Raja Ampat region at Wai Island. Our check out dive offered us; a pair of rabbit eared nudi's (thecacerna pacifica), two Pegasus sea moths (very odd looking creatures, as though they were put together with left over body parts including a platypus!) An extraordinary find Larry had never seen before, a very juvenile round batfish! Very cool indeed. Plus the usual array of abundant unusual creatures.

*Highlight- We had a magical dinner on the island with the chief and his family. The crew prepared the food, brought the wine and set up picnic tables under the stars. Larry kept telling us about our 'surprise'..... I called it 'Fairy Magic'! The most incredible light show on earth; millions of Fire Flies in the tall trees alongside the ocean. How does one explain millions of pulsating synchronized fire fly's all around you? This was a fairy tale night, like something from Lord of the Rings.

The water is warm, in this region unlike Komodo & Rinca. Samples of some critters in this region; baramundi cod, crinoid shrimp, ghost pipe fish (found by me), twin spot gobies, wahoo, spine cheek clown fish, sting ray. Deer Island is beautifully abundant including a purple/pink frog fish, 5 large squid, nudi's everywhere, ocellaris clown fish and huge hard coral gardens! Larry took us to a Giant tradacna clam (Larry the clam) and I found 2 ghost pipe fish imitating the swaying sea grass.

*Highlight- Main town pier, Picture Dragnet's everywhere! Under the pier were clouded moray eels, harlequin ghost pipefish, banded pipefish, giant barbershop shrimp everywhere, cuttlefish & schools of fish. The night dive was OUTSTANDING with mating Picture Dragnets! The male & females meet then go apart a few times, then at precisely ten to seven p.m. the pairs come up the water column cheek to cheek like in an X shape, then in a cloud of smoke (sperm & egg), they separate! Very rare to find these fish, let alone mating!

We had a variety of gorgeous wall dives full of hard & soft coral, color & life. Coral slopes and muck dives which are always so much fun, it's like being on a hunt. Another novelty of Raja Ampat is the black crocodile fish! I have only ever seen normal sand colored; they are smaller and mostly black. Very cool!

Misool-Raja Ampat- Eddies Cave, the most beautiful wall I have seen since Wakatobi. Large fans, brilliant soft corals, huge barrel sponges and brown sponges some spawning and nudi's everywhere again.

*Highlight- 5:00pm went for a wine and cheese cruise through the beautiful limestone rock formations, eagles overhead, wild orchids and pitcher plants, ahhhh this is the life!

It was great to be back on the island of Bandenaira once again. It was 11 years ago I first dove with Larry Smith on the Cehili! Nothing has changed I am happy to say. The diving here is incredible, we stayed here for 2 days diving the Pier, the harbor (dump) and volcano sand and rock slides. We found old gin bottles from when the Dutch were here some 500 years ago. Fire urchins with coleman shrimp, and the pontoniiane shrimp that looks like a crab. Mating cromodoris nudi's with emperor shrimp on them, humpback scorpion shrimp. The beautiful Mandarin fish hang out at the steps from the town with juvenile sweetlips doing the dance. Oh and my friend Davey-o found a discarded bra that I wore over my bc as it appeared to fit me pretty well.

The hard coral gardens here at the lava flow are the most pristine and diverse I have yet seen in Indonesia. The table corals are massive and giant patches of cabbage coral.

Run Island is part of the Banda Is, was traded by the English for Manhattan Island in NYC; if they only knew what a blunder that was. There is a lot of great history here in the Spice Islands to learn about. Also this island has fabulous diving, very fishy and busy waters with 2 types of fusiliers flowing over the wall; surgeonfish, jacks and Napoleon Wrasse, what a place!

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