Dan
Contributor
Summary
This is a twelve-day (14-25 January, 2020) liveaboard trip to Raja Ampat on Amira liveaboard. The itinerary, as shown in Table 1, includes 10 days of diving, 4 dives / day, except during long passage and the last dive day for 24-hour surface interval before flying home.
Figure 1 shows the dive sites we visited and Amira cruising routes (marked by red loop line) from Sorong to Misool, Batanta, Penemu, Gam, Dampier Strait and back to Sorong.
Figure 1: Dive sites and Amira route in Raja Ampat on 14 – 25 January, 2020 trip (courtesy of Nora Nigg, Cruise Director of www.amira-indonesia.com).
Here is a short video of the highlight of what I saw during the 10 days of diving in Raja Ampat:
Background
I was thrilled when @Casey Smith the son of Larry Smith (the legend of Indonesian’s diving industry) invited me to join his father’s Memorial trip to Raja Ampat on MSV Amira. Although I have been to Raja Ampat a few times in the past, I have never been on Amira, but have heard a lot of good feedback about the boat, which would make the trip even more appealing. We even posted the invitation in Scubaboard to share the experience with some Scubaboard members who know about Larry Smith and / or have never been in Raja Ampat:
Raja Ampat 14-25 Jan 2020 with Amira $837 off
Raja Ampat is located just about at the equator with Misool slightly below it (Latitude: -2°, Longitude: 130°). So, the air temperature is pretty much constant throughout the year at around 32°C with 1- 2°C swing between sunny day and rainy day. Similarly, water temperature would be around 29°C +/- 1°C with no thermocline to speak of. I usually wear 3mm full wetsuit more for skin protection than for keeping my body warm. After 5 days of 4 times/day of diving, I may put 2mm shorty over the 3mm full wetsuit as I tend to start feeling chilly.
It is marine protected area, so no glove policy is enforced. Fortunately, pointer (a foot long stainless-steel stick) is allowed to use, which is a good thing to have for anchoring yourself on a rock while taking picture and for keeping your hand off the coral, especially away from those stinging hydroids.
Another background information, we have the honor of having Burt Jones and Bill Macdonald on this trip. They were with Larry Smith during the early diving exploration days of Raja Ampat. Some of the dive sites were named by them.
The Liveaboard
MSV Amira, as shown in Figure 2, is 52m long Phinisi boat with 5 double cabins and a single cabin at the lower deck, 4 double cabins at the upper deck for up to 19 guests, along with two rigid inflatable boats (RIB / Zodiac) and a skiff. More detail info is available in Amira-Indonesia
Figure 2: MSV Amira sailing in Raja Ampat, Indonesia on 24 January, 2020
Here is a video clip about MSV Amira, courtesy of Dive The World
The Zodiac can take 10 people, but we normally have it filled to 6 people (for the Zodiac pilot, a DM and 4 divers). There were 15 divers on that trip. We were divided into 4 groups with divers-to-DM ratio of 4.
Setting up our dive gears and handling them were pretty typical liveaboard diving. Each diver has his / her own station in the dive deck in back of the boat. I was in station 25A, as shown in Figure 3. All dives were on 30-32% Nitrox.
Figure 3: Dive gear station in back of MSV Amira
After dive briefing, we kit up our dive gears at our assigned stations in the dive deck. Deckhands would assist us to get ready including getting onto the Zodiac. Once everyone was onboard, the deckhand would hand over the fins and the cameras. Then we went to the dive site.
Before backrolling into the water, DM would check the water condition (entry location relative to the reef, current direction and strength, etc.). He / she would would freedive into the water if needed. If a negative entry is necessary, we would be advised to empty all the air out of the BCD and backrolling to the water with camera, otherwise the camera would be handed to us after we are in the water. Once we were all ready to enter the water, the Zodiac pilot or DM would count to 3 and we all backrolled into the water at the same time. Then we would descend together following the DM.
The meal (breakfast, lunch & dinner) were buffet type in most of the days. Full course of dinners were served during special day (e.g., last dinner). The food were excellent. I love their Indonesian-style breakfast. Special dietary meals were served to those who asked for it.
The diving
As shown in Figure 1, we did 4 dives / day in most of 10 diving days, except on the day when needed to sail on a long passage from Misool to Batanta and on the last diving day in order to meet a 24-hour surface interval before flying home, with a total of 35 dives. The diving schedule would be posted in the lounge whiteboard and cruise director would announce it to everyone 5 minutes before the scheduled dive briefing. The drive briefing was conducted 15 minutes before the scheduled dive. Typical 4-dives / day schedule was as follows:
06:30 – continental breakfast
07:00 – dive 1
09:00 – hot breakfast
11:00 – dive 2
13:00 – lunch
15:00 – dive 3
17:00 – snack
18:30 – dive 4 (night dive)
20:30 – dinner
We saw a variety of fishes including anemonefish, angelfish, anthias, barracuda, butterflyfish, eel, grouper, lionfish, pipefish, ray, shark, snapper, trevally, wrasse, variety of critters, including clam, crab, cuttlefish, nudibranch, octopus, seahorse, and turtle. They would be too many to list them all here from every dives. So I would just mention a few unusual / uncommonly seen by me or the first time I saw them during the trip and anything that was noted in my logbook.
continue to post # 2.
This is a twelve-day (14-25 January, 2020) liveaboard trip to Raja Ampat on Amira liveaboard. The itinerary, as shown in Table 1, includes 10 days of diving, 4 dives / day, except during long passage and the last dive day for 24-hour surface interval before flying home.
Figure 1 shows the dive sites we visited and Amira cruising routes (marked by red loop line) from Sorong to Misool, Batanta, Penemu, Gam, Dampier Strait and back to Sorong.
Figure 1: Dive sites and Amira route in Raja Ampat on 14 – 25 January, 2020 trip (courtesy of Nora Nigg, Cruise Director of www.amira-indonesia.com).
Here is a short video of the highlight of what I saw during the 10 days of diving in Raja Ampat:
Background
I was thrilled when @Casey Smith the son of Larry Smith (the legend of Indonesian’s diving industry) invited me to join his father’s Memorial trip to Raja Ampat on MSV Amira. Although I have been to Raja Ampat a few times in the past, I have never been on Amira, but have heard a lot of good feedback about the boat, which would make the trip even more appealing. We even posted the invitation in Scubaboard to share the experience with some Scubaboard members who know about Larry Smith and / or have never been in Raja Ampat:
Raja Ampat 14-25 Jan 2020 with Amira $837 off
Raja Ampat is located just about at the equator with Misool slightly below it (Latitude: -2°, Longitude: 130°). So, the air temperature is pretty much constant throughout the year at around 32°C with 1- 2°C swing between sunny day and rainy day. Similarly, water temperature would be around 29°C +/- 1°C with no thermocline to speak of. I usually wear 3mm full wetsuit more for skin protection than for keeping my body warm. After 5 days of 4 times/day of diving, I may put 2mm shorty over the 3mm full wetsuit as I tend to start feeling chilly.
It is marine protected area, so no glove policy is enforced. Fortunately, pointer (a foot long stainless-steel stick) is allowed to use, which is a good thing to have for anchoring yourself on a rock while taking picture and for keeping your hand off the coral, especially away from those stinging hydroids.
Another background information, we have the honor of having Burt Jones and Bill Macdonald on this trip. They were with Larry Smith during the early diving exploration days of Raja Ampat. Some of the dive sites were named by them.
The Liveaboard
MSV Amira, as shown in Figure 2, is 52m long Phinisi boat with 5 double cabins and a single cabin at the lower deck, 4 double cabins at the upper deck for up to 19 guests, along with two rigid inflatable boats (RIB / Zodiac) and a skiff. More detail info is available in Amira-Indonesia
Figure 2: MSV Amira sailing in Raja Ampat, Indonesia on 24 January, 2020
Here is a video clip about MSV Amira, courtesy of Dive The World
The Zodiac can take 10 people, but we normally have it filled to 6 people (for the Zodiac pilot, a DM and 4 divers). There were 15 divers on that trip. We were divided into 4 groups with divers-to-DM ratio of 4.
Setting up our dive gears and handling them were pretty typical liveaboard diving. Each diver has his / her own station in the dive deck in back of the boat. I was in station 25A, as shown in Figure 3. All dives were on 30-32% Nitrox.
After dive briefing, we kit up our dive gears at our assigned stations in the dive deck. Deckhands would assist us to get ready including getting onto the Zodiac. Once everyone was onboard, the deckhand would hand over the fins and the cameras. Then we went to the dive site.
Before backrolling into the water, DM would check the water condition (entry location relative to the reef, current direction and strength, etc.). He / she would would freedive into the water if needed. If a negative entry is necessary, we would be advised to empty all the air out of the BCD and backrolling to the water with camera, otherwise the camera would be handed to us after we are in the water. Once we were all ready to enter the water, the Zodiac pilot or DM would count to 3 and we all backrolled into the water at the same time. Then we would descend together following the DM.
The meal (breakfast, lunch & dinner) were buffet type in most of the days. Full course of dinners were served during special day (e.g., last dinner). The food were excellent. I love their Indonesian-style breakfast. Special dietary meals were served to those who asked for it.
The diving
As shown in Figure 1, we did 4 dives / day in most of 10 diving days, except on the day when needed to sail on a long passage from Misool to Batanta and on the last diving day in order to meet a 24-hour surface interval before flying home, with a total of 35 dives. The diving schedule would be posted in the lounge whiteboard and cruise director would announce it to everyone 5 minutes before the scheduled dive briefing. The drive briefing was conducted 15 minutes before the scheduled dive. Typical 4-dives / day schedule was as follows:
06:30 – continental breakfast
07:00 – dive 1
09:00 – hot breakfast
11:00 – dive 2
13:00 – lunch
15:00 – dive 3
17:00 – snack
18:30 – dive 4 (night dive)
20:30 – dinner
We saw a variety of fishes including anemonefish, angelfish, anthias, barracuda, butterflyfish, eel, grouper, lionfish, pipefish, ray, shark, snapper, trevally, wrasse, variety of critters, including clam, crab, cuttlefish, nudibranch, octopus, seahorse, and turtle. They would be too many to list them all here from every dives. So I would just mention a few unusual / uncommonly seen by me or the first time I saw them during the trip and anything that was noted in my logbook.
continue to post # 2.