A tattered skull and crossbones fluttered high on the stern mast of the double-mast prahu KLM Shakti as it cut through tranquil waters off the western tip off Papua. This is the secret islands of Raja Ampat, an area steeped in a shadowy past and present. It’s a life of intrigue and adventure out here, the glorious bay we entered was framed by looming cliffs and primeval jungle.

In terms of diving and snorkeling exploration, remoteness, and biological diversity, there are few places remaining worldwide that compare to eastern Indonesia. Many scientists, photographers, and divers consider this area as the holy grail of the Indo-Pacific region, yet it’s still largely unexplored both above and below the surface. In fact, the most precise descriptions of these islands come from the writings of Alfred Russell Wallace who blundered through the region in 1860 searching for rare specimens of the bird of paradise!

The sea surrounding Raja Ampat, translated as ‘the Four Kings,’ (Waigeo, Batanta, Sulawati, and Mysool Islands) is literally the world’s epicenter of marine life. The massive species number is primarily due to the islands’ location. Marine fauna originating from Micronesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and western Indonesia, have congregated over millions of years in Raja Ampat due to plate tectonics, the warm, equatorial waters, stable climate, and variety of habitats. More fish and invertebrate species are expected amongst the reefs of these four islands than anywhere else on Earth. The two highest fish counts ever recorded on single dives, 283 and 281 species, were within Raja Ampat’s waters. Simply put, the reefs are overwhelming.

Raja Ampat covers a gigantic area, nearly 10 million acres, and has an endless supply of dramatic dive sites. Undoubtedly, a good quantity of un-described species exist among these waters as well. It is literally a last frontier for those seeking the planet’s untainted marine communities, home to pygmy seahorses, tassled wobbegongs, stealthy mantas, and mellow turtles. The desire to stay one step ahead and venture even further to where few footsteps have fallen and where even fewer divers have blown bubbles is an innate yearning, and Raja Ampat had all of the means to satisfy this desire.

The sea surrounding Raja Ampat is not only amenable to high diversity but is also a healthy ecosystem. Along the larger volcanic islands, vast tracts of mangroves supporting a wide array of epiphytic, parasitic, and climbing plants. Early each morning the bird calls from the forest canopy were outrageously loud, giving a prehistoric aura to the area. The intricate mangrove root systems revealed sponges, crustaceans, molluscs, echinoderms, and fishes in a variety of life stages. The thick mangroves serve as a gigantic filter, protecting nearby reefs from runoff during the monsoon season and as a nursery for hundreds of species of small reef fish which shelter and feed there. Though I enjoyed exploring these mucky habitats at high tide, searching for weird critters, it was hard to concentrate knowing that Indo-Pacific crocodiles, the world’s largest and toothiest living reptile, also dwelled in the mangroves and adjacent sea-grass beds.

The raison d’étre in Raja Ampat, the vibrant coral reefs. It’s tricky to adequately illustrate any one dive site in such a lush and vibrant marine environment like Raja Ampat, but a few have recurred in my dreams and begged to be put down in words.

Backrolling into tropical 30 meter is always a rush, but it’s even more so to be instantly surrounded by dense schools of size-able fish. In blue water at Sardine Reef, chevron barracuda, slender unicorn fish, bigeye trevally, and longfin bannerfish formed concentrated shoals. But the substantial patch reef, with its hundreds of species of vibrant reef fishes and thousands of invertebrates, couldn’t be ignored. From a brown-spotted cat-shark, giant trevally, dogtooth tuna, Spanish mackerel, and giant bumphead parrotfish, to petite nudibranchs, spider crabs, mantis shrimp, toadfish and jawfish, it was sensory overload.

The tiny islet of Kerupiar, another spectacular spot, sat amidst the myriad of islands and swirling currents, supporting a little bit of everything imaginable. Dropping in on an incredible assortment of hard corals, the reef quickly morphed into a magnificent wall dripping with soft corals, gorgonians, and barrel sponges. Jacks, batfish, fusiliers and anthias obstructed views of not only the wall’s inhabitants but also several hawksbill turtles and blacktip sharks. Drifting with the strong current gave me little time to admire it all, but a field of colossal boulders soon appeared so I hunkered down in the lee with a large school of ribbon sweetlips. Two tawny sharks had squeezed under the rocks just underneath me but my attention was shortly called elsewhere. Upon ascending past a slope of seawhips and garden eels, an immaculate plantation of table and leather corals flourished as far as the eye could see a tiny piece of paradise. David soon pointed out a tiny manta, no more than 1.5 meters wing to wing, that swooped in out of nowhere.

Conservation International and The Nature Conservancy previously counted more coral species on the reef of Batu Born than are known from any other place of similar size on Earth. Needless to say, descending onto this gently sloping reef brought seemingly endless fauna. Hundreds of vivid reef fish zipped in and out of this three-dimensional coral city going about their daily business. Out in the blue Spanish mackerel, great barracuda, and dogtooth tuna, prowled amongst redtooth triggerfish and fusiliers.

Like large predatory carpets, funky tassled wobbegongs were found lounging on several large table corals. Yet again, towards the end of the dive, floating amongst an absurdly beautiful zone of corals and gorgonians. It mesmerized even the most seasoned `been there, done that’ diver amongst us. Beginning on a wall smothered in sponges, corals, crinoids, or tunicates, we drifted leisurely around some bends, noting a few reef sharks below and an occasional green or hawksbill turtle munching on a sponge. Approximately two-thirds of the way through the dive we ascended into one of the most intricate and aesthetic coral gardens in the Pacific Ocean. Ranging from 20 to 5 feet deep, it was difficult to believe that the beauty there wasn’t a mirage. While I meditated on the splendor of the shallows, thousands of silver sides encased me in a whirlwind of silver and blue.

The entire trip went by in a blink of the eye and it was time to head for Sorong, Papua’s main port. As we sailed out of the stunning limestone islands of Wayag, or `God’s Country’, lusting for more undiscovered paradises. The possibility of Raja Ampat becoming a World Heritage site, which has been proposed by several NGOs. As with other areas within Southeast Asia, the use of dynamite and cyanide is not unheard of, though we didn’t see any signs of their use. The lack of larger predators does indicate the shark finners long arms have reached even these remote spots. But Raja Ampat is one of the few areas on Earth that’s retained an impressive proportion of intact forests and reefs, making its overall health well worth protecting.

Water quality in Bass Strait is generally good, with visibility varying from five to 20 meters, but averaging around 10 meters. The best sea conditions are usually around June with predominant northerlies and water temperature around 14 degrees. February through March sees water temperatures around 18 to 20 degrees and periods of favorable winds. If there’s a lot of rain from August to October, vis will be constantly less than 10 meters until late December, but low rainfall can result in October to December having the best vis!

All these sites are within 20 minutes by quality charter boats from both sides of the bay out of Queenscliff and Portsea, and as a bonus you get to cross the boiling waters of the notorious Rip at the Heads. There’s plenty of other world class dives in this region, including some of the world’s most colourful reefs. Diving the reefs and wrecks around Port Phillip Heads will seriously lift your benchmark for great dive locations. For surface intervals and non divers, the Bellarine and Mornington peninsulas boast a range of quality restaurants, vineyards, and world-famous sandbelt golf courses.

There are also plenty of fun and adventure activities available for all age groups. Melbourne Airport is less than two hours from the action, and Avalon Airport is just over half an hour away. So do yourself a favor, slip on your pirate hat and come dive for scuttled treasure…Captain!

The best known of these wrecks are the four WW1 J Class submarines. After serving in the Atlantic for Britain in WWI, the remaining six J Class Subs were gifted to Australia in 1919, but were in such poor condition that two had to be towed to Sydney’s Garden Island Naval Base for refitting. After much expense, the J Class subs were based in Geelong, until 1922 when it was decided to scrap them. They were taken to Flinders Naval base in Westernport to be stripped and between 1926 and 1930, J I, J2, J4, and J5 were towed into Bass Strait and scuttled. J3 was towed to Swan Island, and beached in shallow water so her diesel engines and generators could provide power for the Swan Island Naval Base. J7 was sunk as a breakwater at Sandringham, and is now a feature of the marina at the Sandringham Yacht Club.

After more than 40 years lost on the seabed, the four J’s were discovered off Point Lansdale, creating huge excitement within the diving fraternity. These warships of stealth had become vibrant artificial reefs in depths between 27 and 40 meters. All were virtually intact except for breaks at the bow of the J4 and stern of the J2. Since then, time and tempest have taken a toll, and all the hulls are now broken.

J2, or the Deep Broken Sub, is in 39 meters close to the main shipping channels at the Heads. She sits upright with a 30 degree list to starboard, has formed a gully in the rocky reef, is broken aft of the engine room, and well covered in growths. The break is particularly colorful as the immediate interior is smothered in zoanthids and sponges. Large schools of bull’s-eyes patrol the break, along with leather jackets, and boar fish. The top of the hull is covered in stumpy algae and sponges and home to wrasse, small leather jackets plus schools of short finned pike. The conning tower, now without its outer sheeting, is covered in zoanthids, a great backdrop for the schools of butterfly perch.

Like all the subs 110W, the bow has collapsed, leaving the torpedo tubes exposed. Penetration of the subs has been somewhat facilitated by the removal of the engines and most of the machinery and pipes, but J2 has mounds of silt inside which can be even more dangerous. For the properly equipped and experienced, interior access can be gained at the break or through one of the larger holes in the aft deck. Much of the engine rooms are buried in silt, but some fittings can be found in the control room, and remnants of brackets possibly used for bunks or torpedo storage are visible in the crew quarters. The torpedo tube hatches are still in place. The stern section can also be penetrated, but again has mounds of sand inside.

To highlight the dangers of diving J2, a plinth to the starboard side of the conning tower has been placed in memory of a diver who lost her way inside the sub in 1997.

J5 was also known as the Yellow Submarine, but not because of the Beatles. Her entire bow and conning tower were covered in yellow zoanthids, a stunning sight. Sadly a severe storm in 2005 tore a lot of the plating off the bow and with it the zoanthids. The conning tower is still spectacular, and yellow. A feature of this wreck is the swim under the stern; the rudder is obvious, as are the three propeller shaft bearings and outboard supports. Large brackets on the sides of the hull were actually propeller guards to prevent the props getting too close to wharves. The 2005 storm also broke the J5 just aft of the conning tower, though the sections are still roughly in line. Large schools of pike are regularly seen flowing over and around this wreck, and there’s an obligatory school of perch on the conning.

Penetration of this wreck is always a serious matter as it’s in 38 meters and there are limited escape routes. It’s cleaner inside than the J2, but it’s still can sit it out.

J 1 was also known as the Winged Sub as it had an awning around the conning tower, which was removed by a violent storm in 1995. It was also intact until the 2005 storm broke it aft of the conning tower, almost identically to the J5. Lying upright in 36 meters on a rock bottom, it’s lightly covered in weed and sponge. Prior to 95, its bow was clear enough from the bottom to swim under, but now it is wedged hard into the reef. It has the usual fish inhabitants, but never as prolific as the other subs. There was a memorial plaque to a diver lost on this wreck in 1986, attached to one of the awning uprights. It was recovered a few years after the ‘95 storm, and plans are to return it on a plinth as another reminder of the need to treat this as a serious dive. Again, this wreck is fairly clean inside, but with enough fine silt to completely brown nut the interior with a few careless fin kicks.

Entry is via deck holes in the aft section and heading forward, shattered bulkheads, the remains of the radio room, crews’ quarters and torpedo room, and the torpedo tubes with hatches still in Place can be found. The interiors of these subs are quite large mid-ships, but get narrower towards each end and are quite constrictive at the stern.

Nelson Bay is on the southern shoreline of Port Stephens, near to the ports headlands. Made up of a series of volcanic peaks and sand dunes formed around forty million years ago, Port Stephens became an estuary about 70,000 years ago when the sea level rose about 60 meters.

A harbor more than 2.5 times the size of Sydney Harbor and nearly 23 kilometers long, it is the largest estuary in New South Wales. The incredible tidal flow in a harbor of this size, combined with its rich volcanic soils, provides nutrients and strong currents to nurture a wide variety of marine life. Due to this rich and strong tidal flow, Nelson Bay is one of the few places you can go where the shore diving rivals and even outdoes the boat diving.  It is no wonder that so many people start hunting down cheap airline tickets and an empty holiday home for their visit to Nelson Bay.There’s a profusion of unusual life beneath the slate blue waters. Standing on the shore gives you no clue as to what waits below. Dive in and be surprised!

The most popular site at Nelson Bay is Halifax Park. On any weekend day there’ll be a swarm of divers kitting up waiting for high tide. It’s an outstanding shore dive, probably one of the best in New South Wales and such an easy dive that everybody will enjoy it. The slope is gentle and the life is prolific at every level so each diver can suit themselves to their profile and be assured that they will have a fantastic time. At times the visibility will be up to 20 meters which makes this site almost like a tropical dive.

From the rocky entry you swim down a gentle slope with periodic drop offs that range down to a depth of about 30 meters. At about 4-5 meters beautiful sponge gardens start with an incredible density of soft corals and sponges and a mass and diversity of fish life. It’s a nursery for young wobbegong and Port Jackson sharks, cuttlefish and many species of tropical and temperate fish. At every level there are bommies covered in soft growth and almost obscured by schools of fish.

Schools of juvenile old wives and bream mix it up with large golden trevally and drummer. If you look closely at the bommies there are strange nudibranchs, unusual crinoids, tiny brittle and basket stars. Halifax also has the greatest concentration of eels of anywhere that I’ve ever dived. Their curiosity often brings them out to swim amongst the divers — it can be startling to look down and find an eel swimming between your legs!

Further into the bay from Halifax Point is Fly Point. At about five meters or so the weed clears to a sandy bottom. Swimming on a bearing of 33″ takes you down over a ledge to beautiful sponge gardens. This is a wide flat area filled with all sorts of soft coral. Its home to hundreds of decorator crabs, all carefully camouflaged with bits of sponge. There’s all manner of uncommon life from pineapple fish, sea spiders and sea fleas to strange and unusual crabs. The last few times we’ve been to Nelson Bay even a turtle has been seen at Fly Point.

This is also a fabulous night dive. As you descend in the darkness over the fields of brown sargassum weed and sea grass, keep your eyes peeled for sea hares and octopus. I love this part of this dive: the weed waves slowly back and forth, enticing me — what interesting things might be hiding in there? Watch out for lurking numb rays though: this is not a place to put your hand in the sand without looking first!

For the true macro enthusiast there is nowhere more interesting than the Pipeline. This area is home to some of the most unusual life you’ll have the chance to see. A submarine cable runs for 250 metres from the shore in a northerly direction. Between the sea wall and the pipe are vast gardens of the spectacular soft corals Capnella. These are host to decorator crabs and seahorses amongst other things. You may also find unusual tubeworms, angler fish, and blue-lined octopus.

Due to the strong currents generated by the vast tidal flow, the dives in and around Nelson Bay can only be dived on the slack. If you time your trip right you can dive twice a day — one site at say 7.30 on the morning high and a second on the night high at about 8pm. The norm is not to dive on the low tide as the visibility drops quite dramatically. But we die-hard Sydney divers are sometimes used to diving in only a few meters of vis, so if you’re keen there are options for a low tide dive, particularly if the high tide vis has been good.

Little Beach is just such a site —good for a low tide dive, as it’s shallow and has an amazing conglomeration of rubbish such as wheelbarrows and shopping trolleys that form a somewhat ‘unusual’ artificial reef! If the vis has been good on the high tide it should still be reasonable on the low tide at Little Beach. Though for quite a bit of this dive you’ll be over sand, you may be surprised at what you’ll find. No-one ever seems to mention that some pretty interesting underwater creatures can be found on the sand — pipe fish, seahorses, angler fish, blennies, anemone crabs, hairy stone crabs and unusual nudibranchs to name but a few.

Following a triangular pattern from the ’swimming only’ sign at Little Beach will take you round the most interesting parts of this dive. There’s a rope attached to the bottom of the pole which leads from one section of the artificial reef to another but it’s not always easy to find! However, if you end up following the wrong rope or can’t find a rope like we’ve done on many attempts, it doesn’t matter you’re bound to see something interesting and different regardless. Despite the shallow and sometimes murky water, I’ve had some great dives there — been surrounded by schools of golden trevally, followed a hunting octopus, and watched squid laying eggs.

Between dives, take the time to explore Port Stephens. Climb Tomaree Head. The views from the Tomaree lookout are spectacular. The climb to the top will take around 30 minutes. Drive out to Stockton Beach — at 32 kilometers you’ll be in the largest continuous sand dunes in the state. It is advisable to stay in a beach hotel nearby to make the most of your stay here.

Along the beach, half in the surf, lies the wreck of the Sygna, a 53,000 tone Norwegian bulk carrier, the largest ship ever wrecked on the Australian east coast. Its dive able, but only on those super-flat winter days, and it definitely has a shark feel! Or you can walk across the spit to Fingal Lighthouse, accessible only at low tide, and look back towards the coast for breathtaking views. All in all, there’s plenty to do while you’re waiting for high tide to come round again.

Then, on each descent, we were greeted by devastation. White skeletons of dead or dying corals and almost everywhere we looked, crown of thorns were eating the few surviving corals. The reefs were all but deserted; most fish had moved out of their coral homes. We thought the reefs of Pemuteran were dying right before our eyes.

Fast forward 10 years to 2007. We’re visiting Pemuteran again for a dive trip. What would we find — decimated reefs or signs of recovery? We were really surprised — the story that unfolded during our recent visit was a legacy to the human spirit, a shining example of -what can be achieved by the active participation of local community members in ecology and conservation projects. We discovered the Reef Gardeners of Pemuteran Bay.

Pemuteran is in a dry arid part of Bali in the rain shadow of the island’s central mountain chain, but due to little fresh water runoff, coral reefs thrive around the coastline. Once just a small quiet fishing village, its potential as a base for visiting divers to explore the offshore reefs was recognized and in 1992 Pemuterants first dive center opened, plus a couple of small accommodations. Since then these accommodations have expanded, plus a few more mini-resorts have opened, along with their own dive center.

In 1999 the local community recognized the importance of the area’s marine attractions and declared the inshore waters of Pemuteran Bay a Marine Protected Area (MPA); in 2005 the area was extended to cover an offshore reef known as Tukad Jarang. Brainchild of expat Australian Chris Brown, also a long­time resident of Pemuteran, the Reef Gardeners are a small group of local Balinese who were first trained as scuba divers and then introduced to the conservation methods required to help save the damaged reefs.

Funding for the Reef Gardeners has come from a combination of the AUSAID program, public donations, and from funds raised by the Reef Gardeners themselves by taking visitors out on snorkeling trips to see the coral reefs. One of the primary roles of the Reef Gardeners is to remove crown of thorns and the coral-consuming drupella snails from the reefs. Without these predators, corals often naturally recover rapidly from the effects of bleaching. To date the Reef Gardeners have removed over 5,000 crown of thorns and 53,000 drupella snails from Pemuteran Bay. They’ve also scuttled six ‘wrecks’ close to one of the offshore reefs, plus constructed and sunk a bio-wreck – a boat-shaped steel structure – at the same site. They’ve also constructed Bali’s first underwater Hindu temple, complete with stone statues 30 meters below the surface.

Our first dive back at Pemuteran was at Kuburan Kapal (Ships Graveyard), where we explored some of the Reef Gardeners sunken wrecks. These are mostly old fishing boats scuttled on a sand bottom close to the edge of Tukad Jarang reef. Among these is a Madurese fishing prahu that was enveloped in steel mesh before being submerged.

Each day the Reef Gardeners take their boat Reef Re-Gee out to the Ships Graveyard and connect an on-board low voltage generator, via buoyed cables, to the Madurese fishing prahu and the Bio­Wreck. This electrical current stimulation is known as Bits-Reef and has been used along the inshore reefs of Pemuteran for over 10 years and is recognized as one of Just after the Bin-Wreck was submerged the Reef Gardeners tied small pieces of live corals all around its structure. These were collected from patches of reef damaged by boat anchors in the area, which are now thriving with plenty of healthy new growth in vibrant colors. Now many smaller reef fish have taken up residence here after less than a year on the bottom. The Reef Gardeners’ daily patrols out to the reefs ensures that fishermen from outside Pemuteran are reminded this area is now closed to dynamite fishing and aquarium collecting, destructive practices previously carried out here.

We were invited by the Reef Gardeners to join them on a reef monitoring dive. A 15 minute boat journey had us tied to a mooring at Napoleon Reef a few kilometers offshore. We descended armed with a metal hook, collecting bag and Kadek our Reef Gardener guide. We slowly finned along the reef following Kadek as he searched the reef for crown of thorn sea stars and drupella snails. We meandered among healthy patches of elegant staghorn and large table corals; this reef had recovered well, with very few signs of damage at all. But not too far into the dive Kadek was gesturing for us to look below a small coral ledge. We could just see one spiky arm of a crown of thorns, well hidden in the dark recesses.

Kadek carefully hooked the feeding sea star from its coral breakfast and slipped it into his collecting hag, moving along the reef in search of more predators. On this dive alone, he collected eight crown of thorns and around 30 drupella snails, all of which we wouldn’t normally have seen as they are camouflaged so well among the corals.

To us the jewel in the Reef Gardeners crown of achievements has been the construction of an underwater Balinese Temple at a dive site known as Taman Pura (Temple Garden). The reef lies along the western shore of Pemuteran Bay, overlooked by three traditional Balinese hillside temples. There’s beautiful shallows close to shore that make excellent snorkeling, but just a little further out the reef drops dramatically over a sheer wall to 28 metres. It’s here that the Reef Gardeners have erected a dozen or more large Balinese stone statues on plinths, plus a Candi Bentar gateway — the traditional entrance gate to a Balinese Temple.

Our first glimpse of Bali’s underwater temple was in near-perfect calm and clear conditions. We could see the entire assemblage of statues as we descended. The entrance guardian statues sternly look out to sea over a vast sandy bottom. Inside the gateway were more statues, already encrusted with yellow, green and orange sponges. The underwater shrine has been constructed around a huge boulder overgrown with corals and surrounded by schools of fish. Swaying orange seafans, red soft corals and technicolour sponges cover the rock while shimmering schools of tiny glassfish seem to flow among the statues. This is a very impressive dive and a must-do for visitors.

With the Reef Gardeners caring for and maintaining the reefs of Pemuteran, marine life in the area is nose thriving. As the reefs rejuvenate, the reef fish are re- inhabiting the coral crevices and ledges. And all the other forms of life that make coral reefs the richest natural habitats on Earth are arriving. In this era of nothing but had news for the environment, the Reef Gardeners brought us some good news.

The dive involves a 200 meter surface swim out to a midships mooring, followed by a diagonal descent down to the stern area. The Coolidge lies on her port side and as you approach the stern the naked starboard prop shaft comes into view, the prop having been salvaged many years earlier. Over the stern rail and the 30 centimeter high letters President Coolidge became apparent. Underneath in smaller letters could just be made out the home port ‘San Francisco’. For the next 10 minutes we scrubbed the letters with the wire brushes at depths between about 62 and 68 meters. After that we swam off to inspect the wrecked lifeboat and some other debris on the sand behind the ship to allow time for the dust to settle, then came back to take the photos shown here. Well worth the effort I believe! I’m sure you will agree, this adds yet another attraction to a world class wreck site for advanced divers to enjoy.

That very afternoon came exciting new dive number two! The wreck of the Tui Tuate, a tug use during the salvage of the 650 tons of bunker oil from the Coolidge in the 70’s, was scuttled in the western end of the Segond Channel in about 1990. She started life in the 1940’s in an Aberdeen shipyard as the Empire Shirley, 105 feet long and 232 tons. She underwent a number of name changes becoming the Tapuhi (1947-1973), then the Tui Tuwate and finally the Tui Tuate. The wreck has significant historical significance as she was also involved in the rescue of over 170 of 733 passengers in the New Zealand Wahine ferry disaster in 1968. She was scuttled by the owner (Clement Griffith) in a secret spot, as he believed the wreck was too cramped and dangerous for divers.

However some persistent detective work and searching by Kevin Green of Aquamarine uncovered its location in 46 metres, and he has taken only two or three groups of divers to her since. So I felt very privileged to dive her with Barry and Key. The dive site is current prone and subject to poor visibility, but on this occasion luck was on our side and we spent 30 minutes exploring this small but unique piece of history. Sitting alone on the sand, a deep trough is carved around her who bears witness to the strong currents which sweep past. Batfish, large pelagic and numerous reef fish stand guard over her forlorn structure. My time ran out before any serious penetration of the wreck could be performed but there appear to be some good areas for exploration near the stern.

The next few days were spent dive the Coolidge and I thought things couldn’t get much better. Riding high on the excitement of the great diving in Santo, on my arrival home in Vila I called friend to see if he felt, like a dive. We decided to have another look for the lost wreck of the coastal trader The Kathleen. The Kathleen was scuttled as a dive site near Hideaway Island for tourist divers. In 1987 the full fury of cyclone was unleashed on Pt Vila causing massive destruction, and in the process washing the poor Kathleen off the top of the reef into deeper water. For few years she was dive by locals in around 40-50 meters, but then after PENTECOST another big storm disappeared into even AMBRYM     deeper water. Since then a couple of divers a claim to have caught glimpses of her, but her exact location was unknown.

I had previously dived to 90 meters searching the steep seaward side of the reef in the mistaken belief that this was where she lay. On this occasion we searched in a radial pattern with the boat’s sounder on the landward side of the reef and at 70 meters a ANATOM small blip registered. Taking a compass bearing from the top of the reef, myself and my buddy Dale started our search. On the downward slope we picked up the debris trail from the wreck and followed this down to the sand at just over 71) meters. No wreck. We decided to swing left initially in the direction the trail seem to be heading as it petered out.. No wreck. With five minutes bottom time left, we swam to the right until in the distance I picked up the vague shadow… initially thinking my eyes were playing tricks on me.

But gradually the shadow solidified into a small wreck sitting upright on the sand, prop in sit, and a large cargo hatch lying next to her. We could not have been more excited if we had found the Titanic or a galleon full of treasure… that is the thrill of even such minor discovery! With two minutes to spare. I swam part of the wreck blaring away with my camera then started the ascent and deco, already planning my return to this pretty little. We returned the very next weekend and captured the images shown here. Three great dives, all new to me, but all in my backyard and right under my nose. Part of the thrill of diving is never quite knowing what lies around the corner. What a great sport!

An Australian owned, operated & built dive resort located on one of the Pacific’s most beautiful & peaceful islands. If you’re looking for lots of crowded dive boats, then stay away from Kosrae, chances are that you & your dive buddies will be the only ones out there, at least until the rest of the world discovers this hidden gem. Imagine yourself diving a steep vertical wall with hundreds of Pacific barracudas encircling you, feel your eyes widen in amazement at the huge and remarkably colorful coral reef systems, or watch the resident spinner dolphins as they jump and twirl for your entertainment. Leisurely drift dives with visibility from 25 to 60 meters are typical on Kosrae, with our purpose- built dive boat waiting to bring you aboard at the end of the dive.

You’ll enjoy the comfort of a full shade canopy and a powerful engine to transport you to the best dive sites. Our intimate 16- room grounds are located in tropical gardens, staffed by friendly faces ready to attend to your every comfort. Rest easy in our air- conditioned rooms, all with two double beds, cable TV, mini bar, and tea/coffee-making facilities. Venture out from your room into our full restaurant and bar, and take a dip in the swimming pool. At Nautilus, we aim to please: and your pleasure is our uncompromising goal. The restaurant offers cool, air-conditioned comfort, or outside dining by the pool. Western and local foods – think breadfruit chips and incredibly fresh sashimi.

Discover Bali with Tulamben Wreck Divers – we are a modern newly-built Dive Centre & Resort, situated in the heart of Tulamben village, a picturesque three hours drive from Kuta. Our Resort accommodation is the best in Bali and consists of a variety of stylish rooms from penthouse to deluxe, set around a sparkling tropical pool serviced with western standards and friendly professional service. Our Dive Centre is a stone’s throw away from one of the world’s most celebrated wreck dive, the USAT Liberty, amongst many other fantastic dive sites — more being discovered every day. We have every type of diving to suit the entire range of certification.

Want a gorgeous reef dive? We have it! Want a deep wreck discovery? We have it! Want a shallow, colorful wreck with a stunning array of marine life? We have it! Wall dives, reefs and wrecks; Tulamben has everything close to hand. A perfect place to Learn to Dive or combine your diving with Advanced, specialty or Dive master training. We have top diving equipment, fully serviced ready to use. For Day Trips and Cultural Tours other than diving; Tulamben Wreck Divers can organize anything from White Water Rafting to Kings Palace & Water Gardens. Bali has so much to offer, let us help you discover it!

PRO DIVE CAIRNS SIMPLY 7140 NM’ Since 1983 Pro Dive Cairns has developed and maintained an international reputation as the premier dive company in Cairns. Our commitment to providing our customers with the highest standards in quality, safety, professionalism and value in both dive education and live aboard dive trips to the outer Great Barrier Reef has made us the most highly awarded dive operator in the region. For the certified dive we have 3 day/2night dive trips departing 6 times each week, all year round. These trips visit a variety of our 16 exclusive outer reef dive sites on every trip and allow the diver up to 11 dives per trip.

Our 3 multi-million dollar purpose built live aboard dive boats carry a maximum of 32 passengers in air conditioned, twin or double cabin comfort. In conjunction with our 3 day trips we have a range of PADI higher education and specialty courses available. Advanced and specialty courses are available on every trip, Rescue and Dive master programs start weekly. Instructor courses commence 8 times each year and are taught by our staff Course Director. We also have great ‘Learn to Dive courses for your non certified friends. All dive and snorkeling equipment including dive computers, a guided orientation and night dive, twin or double cabin accommodation, meals, and transfers to/from accommodation are included. For those doing courses we also include the relevant PADI course manual and passport photos required for certification. Pro Dive Cairns really is ’simply the best’ when it comes to diving on the Great Barrier Reef.

Ocean Diving & Photographic invites you to join us aboard our spacious 8.4 m, (225 hp) purpose built dive boat “Ocean Dive” (not one of those cramped little rubber ducks) for superb offshore diving adventures. Go to the entire well known and not so well known offshore reefs and wrecks in the Gold Coast and Tweed Heads area. (Experienced & Inexperienced) certified divers catered for. Ocean Dive is large and fast, a maximum of 20 mins to any dive site.

We have sit down tank racks, canopy for shade and side curtains to protect you from the wind during the surface interval while tea & coffee are being served, between our two dives. We have the latest electronic navigation equipment to pinpoint our dive sites. Our operation is purely dive charters with no dive shop or ’shop front’ involved (hire gear available.) Ocean Diving & Photographic is most fortunate to have the expertise and experience of Chris Mair (Master Mariner) who is one of the most experienced dive charter skippers on the coast.

The Tugs, Empire Gladstone Wrecks, The Cave & Reefs. Dive the Safest and most accessible wrecks on the south coast of NSW. Suitable for open water to advanced divers and great for underwater photographers! Other sites include the wharf at Merimbula — easiest shore dive around giant, cuttlefish, morwongs, rays, groper, moray eels, and beautiful soft corals.

Dive Short Pt Bommie, the Pestles, Nth Head, The Pinnacle, Big Kangarutha and more! After your dive relax in the newly refurbished, fully self-contained units at the Divers Lodge. We have accommodation for up to 24 people and each unit has its own lock-up room, wash off area, color TV, microwaves, lounge, dining, bathroom, kitchen etc. Package deals for groups, clubs and dive schools, special mid-week rates available. Dive courses done regularly.