RA & Komodo diving difficulty

[Worldwide Dive and Sail]

Hi Owl,
Normally dive guides on liveaboards know when is the best time to dive a site according to the moon and tides in order to avoid strong currents. So, you shouldn't have any problem diving Raja Ampat or Komodo.

 

[Hintermann]

Hi Owl,
Normally dive guides on liveaboards know when is the best time to dive a site according to the moon and tides in order to avoid strong currents.

That is the impression that I got too, particularly the local guides. On the Komodo trip they changed the order of diving of certain reefs to suit the best possible conditions and that way we managed to cover all the sites that were on their schedule. One of the night dives was already omitted due to its vicinity to then recent volcanic eruption but the replacement, a night dive of the muck of Bima Bay turned out to be one of the best.

 

[kixy1]

How difficult are the entry/exits? I understand you leave the main boat and use smaller pangas to get to the dive sites... Do you carry all your gear and tanks between boats or do you gear up on the main boat and just transfer? I assume back roll entry. How do you get back into the pangas? Can you hand off your BC to climb in without the extra weight? I have some back issues and although I've gotten quite a bit stronger, I wonder if 2 weeks of climbing in and out of boats 4 times a day, with all my gear is yet feasible...

 

[dirtfarmer]

I've usually entered the dingy from teh main boat with my BCD on, then a back roll entry, and exiting the water you usually you hand off your BCD and go up the ladder with no extra weight, if you choose a boat where that is not the case simply tell them you have back issues and want to do it that way.
Oh and if you have a weight integrated BCD like I do, give the boatmen a break and remove your weight pockets before they lug the thing up into the dingy

 

[bracko]

How difficult are the entry/exits? I understand you leave the main boat and use smaller pangas to get to the dive sites... Do you carry all your gear and tanks between boats or do you gear up on the main boat and just transfer? I assume back roll entry. How do you get back into the pangas? Can you hand off your BC to climb in without the extra weight? I have some back issues and although I've gotten quite a bit stronger, I wonder if 2 weeks of climbing in and out of boats 4 times a day, with all my gear is yet feasible...

Every holiday destination I've been to, liveaboard or land based offer help to those that can't manage their gear on awkward surfaces, komodo no different. Just consider the staff and use weight belts or remove pockets.

 

[Hintermann]

How difficult are the entry/exits? I understand you leave the main boat and use smaller pangas to get to the dive sites... .

The entries are not difficult at all since they are all backflips over the site. The exit depends upon the boat and the accessory craft they use. On Mermaid I over Komodo (and it does RA too), they were standard dinghies with ladders. You kit up on the main boat and enter the dinghy with fins and mask. But if anyone has difficulties with that, I am sure that they crew will help.

For the exit, hand over the fins and then unclip the fully inflated BCD which is then pulled through. If you are using weight belts or integrals over 6 kilos (14 lb) the weights will also have to ne handed over first. After that, it is a relatively easy climb using the flipover steel ladder. When there are strong currents, the ladder can also be used to anchor yourself before removing funs and the kit.

Some liveaboard yachts use larger panga-like accessory boats (eg MSV Seahorse, in which I went to RA) where there is enough room to kit-up on the smaller boat. The crew transfer the gear for you and you take only the fins and mask with you. Of course, you can kit-up on the main boat if you prefer that - I always did that on night dives because I did not like kitting-up on a dark boat. Once on the panga, the procedure is the same - backflip entry and kit-off before exit just like the dinghies.

There may be some differences like above, but I have been on several liveaboards in the Indo-Pacific region and they are all well geared-up for the job. If any guest requires special assistance, they will provide it.

 

[kixy1]

Thanks all! That sounds perfectly doable. Wasn't sure I would be ready to climb up a ladder with all my gear in possibly rough conditions. Especially 3 or more times a day

 

[Hintermann]

Wasn't sure I would be ready to climb up a ladder with all my gear in possibly rough conditions. Especially 3 or more times a day

I have never come across a situation where a diver would be required to climb back into a dinghy in full gear. Cameras first, then fins, then weights, then rest of the gear to be handed in before the diver climbs the ladder.

Of course, where the diver jumps directly off the mother boat (common in Caribbean liveaboards and the occasional itinerary in the Indo-Pacific) they can climb back onto the dive deck in full gear after handing over cameras and fins.

 

[Snoobles]

We have done Komodo twice and loved it. I would say with 100 dives it should be feasible. I did it the first time with 150 dives and the second with 250ish. First time on the Komodo Dancer and second on the Arenui. There are a few technicalities diving Komodo. First - current. Some dives have ripping current. On the arenui we reef hooked in a few of the dives which at 250 was new to me. I think one would need to have some physical fortitude, but even me at 5'1 petite 35 year old female there was only a few times I struggled. But to caveat, I still successfully did the dives. Just know what to expect. On the dancer we did not reef hook in and there were a few dives nice guys on the boat did tow me underwater when the current was too much. But in those instances I would say the dives were perhaps less well planned than the Arenui's dive plans. 2) muck diving - perhaps my favorite type of diving but good buoyancy control is a must to not kick up silt and to not accidental pet say a cute devil fish or scorpion fish but the coolest diving ever 3) southern Komodo waters can get to 74 degrees Fahrenheit or so., so pack warm enough wetsuit and gear. Diving in cold affects everyone different but just FYI.

I LOVE diving Komodo and would do it again and again. As long as you Re prepared 100 dives should be fine, just pack warm gear, reef hook and a long pointer. It offers so much macro and wide angle life it isn't to be missed!

As for raja Ampat we have a trip there planned for December 2015 on the arenui and October 2016 on the Damai so feel free to message me after that for feedback!

Happy diving!


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---------- Post added August 18th, 2015 at 08:57 PM ----------

Ps. Sorry our 2016 trip is on the dewi nusantara. Not the Damai. My bad.


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[billt4sf]

Hi Owl,
Normally dive guides on liveaboards know when is the best time to dive a site according to the moon and tides in order to avoid strong currents. So, you shouldn't have any problem diving Raja Ampat or Komodo.

Yeah, sure. Except when they don't, or something unusual happens.

Personally, I prefer to make sure I have the skills and comfort with the environment to be able to dive a site if something goes wrong rather than to rely on a dive guide to keep me safe.

If I were diving a site with known currents, I would want to make sure I could ascend comfortably using my own SMB, and I would want to have a pretty good idea what to do in a down or up current. Not to mention a couple of strong signal devices in case I am drifting off on the surface for a while....

- Bill