Dive Log

The folks at Wakatobi make diving as easy as it can be. I had hoped to do five dives a day, but the wind and rain started up not long into our 14 days at the resort, making diving conditions at the house-reef less than optimal for an underwater photographer. Despite the rain, I enjoyed the diving a lot. The visibility deeper than around 30-40' was always quite good, even during hard rain. We were told that the conditions at the resort during other times of the year yield water that is flat-calm. I hope to go back to experience those conditions, at some point. :)

A note about the photos on this travel report:

They are not all of the sort that I might include as part of an official photography portfolio. Many of the photos might not hold up to artistic scrutiny, but certainly help to tell a story -- and, they are good for critter ID. :)

A typical day at the resort (weather permitting):

05:45 - Wake up. (I only did this a few times)
06:00 - Slip into the water at the 2nd Gully for an early morning dive.
07:20 - Full breakfast. Join the lazy types at the table.
08:30 - Dive briefing.
08:40 - Board boats for morning boat dives.
09:00 - First boat dive.
11:15- Second boat dive.
13:20 - Big lunch.
14:00 - A short, shallow dive in the sea grass.
15:30/17:30 - Dive briefing for afternoon/night dive.
15:45/17:45 - Leave for afternoon/night dive.
19:00 - Big dinner.
20:30 - Paul goes to sleep. The rest of us stay up for a bit.
Bedtime - Peaceful slumber (when the wind/rain isn't strong).

Although the reefs and macro life at Wakatobi are definitely the lushest I've encountered, we did stumble upon the remnants of dynamite fishing at several of the dive spots. It's amazing that coral can be so thoroughly reduced to rubble. During one dive, the other group saw groups of fish, gasping in their last breaths of oxygen -- the results of either cyanide or dynamite fishing. Cornetfish were scattered nose down in the coral, and clownfishes lay dead in their host anemones. But during our 14 days there, this was the only hint we saw of the reef being fished by an unsustaineable method. The conservation money that Wakatobi pays to the local village seems to be working well to maintain the local preserve.

Date Dive Time Dive Site Duration Max Depth Temp Nitrox 09-Dec-03 01   House Reef 58 min 57' 85°F 21% PO2 10-Dec-03 02 06:28 House Reef, 2nd Gully 46 min 73' 80°F 21% PO2   03 08:26 Fan Garden 68 min 74' 79°F 21% PO2   04 11:06 Kolossah Beach 66 min 68' 82°F 21% PO2   05 15:30 House Reef, Cavern 71 min 95' 83°F 21% PO2   06 17:39 Sea Grass 49 min 7' 83°F 21% PO2 11-Dec-03 07   Waiti Ridge       21% PO2   08   Fan 38 East   ~155'   21% PO2   09   Barracuda       21% PO2   10   House Reef (night)       21% PO2 12-Dec-03 11 09:07 Lorenzo's Delight 39 min 68' 82°F 21% PO2   12 11:29 Cornucopia 71 min 164' 81°F 21% PO2   13 15:26 Turkey Beach 67 min 85' 82°F 21% PO2   14 16:49 Sea Grass 62 min 8' 84°F 21% PO2 13-Dec-03 15 08:47 Table Coral City 75 min 70' 81°F 21% PO2   16 11:12 Pinkey's Wall 68 min 73' 80°F 21% PO2   17 14:45 House Reef 60 min 60' 82°F 21% PO2 15-Dec-03 18 09:14 Pastell's Wall 71 min 90' 80°F 21% PO2   19 11:33 Fan 38 West 59 min 115' 81°F 21% PO2   20 15:46 Dunia Baru 58 min 71' 81°F 21% PO2   21 17:40 2nd Gully 45 min 15 81°F 21% PO2 16-Dec-03 22 08:52 Spiral Corner 74 min 126' 80°F 21% PO2   23 11:25 Table Coral City 63 min 68' 82°F 21% PO2   24 15:38 House Reef 60 min 86' 82°F 21% PO2   25 18:12 House Reef 50 min 36' 81°F 21% PO2 17-Dec-03 26 06:08 2nd Gully 61 min 55' 78°F 21% PO2   27 09:01 Blade 60 min 81' 81°F 21% PO2   28 11:22 Batfish Wall 71 min 82' 82°F 21% PO2   29 15:16 House Reef 56 min 80' 82°F 21% PO2   30 18:19 Barracuda 52 min 35' 82°F 21% PO2 18-Dec-03 31   Black Coral       21% PO2   32   Fan Garden       21% PO2   33   Pockets       21% PO2 19-Dec-03 34 09:00 Renee's Reef 74 min 159' 83°F 21% PO2   35 11:41 Lintea East 70 min 116' 82°F 21% PO2   36 16:00 Pockets 69 min 67' 82°F 21% PO2 20-Dec-03 37 08:53 Conchita 67 min 139' 79°F 21% PO2   38 11:11 Barracuda 86 min 73' 79°F 21% PO2   39 18:09 Barracuda 60 min 36' 82°F 21% PO2 21-Dec-03 40 06:20 House Reef 48 min 51' 80°F 21% PO2   41 09:01 Renee's Reef 74 min 143' 81°F 21% PO2   42 11:25 Pockets 70 min 71' 80°F 21% PO2 22-Dec-03 43 08:50 Fan 38 West 69 min 82' 79°F 21% PO2   44 11:13 Barracuda 80 min 52' 81°F 21% PO2