pygmyghostpipeturtle
Registered
Hello there. My name is Erwin Filius and I'd like to tell you about an area we (critters@Lembeh) have been exploring in North Sulawesi. I don't wish to sound cheeky in doing so, as my employer is the only operator specializing in the area, I just want to share the wealth, as it were. As a very keen diver, I think the place is fantastic and worth seeing and sharing with others who love to explore new spots.
Anyone that has been to Indonesia knows how huge it is and how many great places there are to dive, well, here's another, and the good thing is, it's 3 hours from an international airport! Not often you hear about new destinations that have such good diving and are relatively easy to get too...
Buyat is on the south coast of North Sulawesi province, about 3 hours by boat (doing 20 knots) from Lembeh Strait or 3 hours drive from Manado. If you travel by boat from Lembeh you can dive some great sites on the way and make a day out of it or if you go by car, you travel through the Minahasa highlands, a spectacular trip in it's own right.
We have been extensively exploring the area for the better part of this year (with the help and support of Newmont, the American owned gold mine that was operating in the area until 2004) and have found some really fantastic diving!
Most of the dive sites thus far are sloping reefs with the exception of a few walls and a couple of great muck dives. These slopes are so chock full of corals of all varieties, hard, soft, sea fans, sea whips, it's really quite something in itself. Early morning dives normally turn up reef sharks, we see the odd eagle ray and big wahoo too, so the pelagics are there. Lots of critters, pygmy seahorses, nudis, crustaceans, cephalopods.. I'm not trying to say it's the next Raja Ampat, but I will say, in my humble opinion, the diving is very good and worth seeing..
For anyone planning a trip to Indonesia in the near future should check it out. It's an easy tag on to a trip to Bunaken, Bangka, Manado or Lembeh, all already well established dive destinations, so it's easy just to plan a few days if that's all you've got..
Check out these links for more background info:
Buyat Bay Reborn | The Jakarta Post
Underwater Photography & Video Portal
scuba diving buyat bay north sulawesi indonesia
Any questions? I'd love to help..
Anyone that has been to Indonesia knows how huge it is and how many great places there are to dive, well, here's another, and the good thing is, it's 3 hours from an international airport! Not often you hear about new destinations that have such good diving and are relatively easy to get too...
Buyat is on the south coast of North Sulawesi province, about 3 hours by boat (doing 20 knots) from Lembeh Strait or 3 hours drive from Manado. If you travel by boat from Lembeh you can dive some great sites on the way and make a day out of it or if you go by car, you travel through the Minahasa highlands, a spectacular trip in it's own right.
We have been extensively exploring the area for the better part of this year (with the help and support of Newmont, the American owned gold mine that was operating in the area until 2004) and have found some really fantastic diving!
Most of the dive sites thus far are sloping reefs with the exception of a few walls and a couple of great muck dives. These slopes are so chock full of corals of all varieties, hard, soft, sea fans, sea whips, it's really quite something in itself. Early morning dives normally turn up reef sharks, we see the odd eagle ray and big wahoo too, so the pelagics are there. Lots of critters, pygmy seahorses, nudis, crustaceans, cephalopods.. I'm not trying to say it's the next Raja Ampat, but I will say, in my humble opinion, the diving is very good and worth seeing..
For anyone planning a trip to Indonesia in the near future should check it out. It's an easy tag on to a trip to Bunaken, Bangka, Manado or Lembeh, all already well established dive destinations, so it's easy just to plan a few days if that's all you've got..
Check out these links for more background info:
Buyat Bay Reborn | The Jakarta Post
Underwater Photography & Video Portal
scuba diving buyat bay north sulawesi indonesia
Any questions? I'd love to help..
