Scuba Diving at Sipadan Island, Borneo – Turtle patch

Dive Site: Turtle Patch
Location: Sipadan Island
Description: Reef / wall

Depth: 28 metres (92 feet)
Visibility: 30 metres (100 feet)

There a few words to describe the experience on this dive. The dive site is named Turtle Patch, however unlike almost every other site here on Sipadan it isn’t the turtles that monopolise the dive. Located towards South Point, the most southerly dive site off Sipadan it is the usual deep vertical wall. For almost the entire dive one may find jacks, giant trevallies and white-tip sharks more prolific.

Scuba diving in Tanzania – Manta reef, Pemba

Dive Site: Manta Reef

Location: Pemba, Tanzania

Description: Reef / wall

Depth: 29 metres (95 feet)

Visibility: 20 metres (65 feet)

Rating: ****

Though the name of the reef comes from the Manta rays, there aren’t much left because they are caught by the local fishermen and sold in markets of Zanzibar. The sight of one manta ray is considered lucky. That said, it is still a picturesque reef covered in cabbage coral. The reef itself is a moderately steep wall that flattens out to sand at about 40m. The coral garden is home to many fish, visible by the rays of sunlight. The reef is home to huge numbers of reef fish such as lizardfish, large triggerfish, to pufferfish, bigeyes, trevally, trumpetfish and pipefish as well as critters such as sea stars and sea cucmbers.

Scuba diving in Tanzania – Mtangani Hammerhead Shark Dive, Pemba

Dive Site: Mtangani Hammerhead Shark Dive

Location: Mtangani, Pemba, Tanzania

Description: Reef / drift

Depth: 15 – 60 metres (50 – 200 feet)

Visibility: 20 metres (65 feet)

Rating: *****

Hammerhead sharks are known to patrol Mtangani Reef and a good time to see them is at the crack of dawn. The rib journey out of Mtangani Lagoon to the reef is around 30 minutes because of the current that is under the surface.

Alongwith Hammerheads one can come across turtles, Napoleon wrasse as well as a shoal of about 50 giant trevally.

There are lots of big shoals of reef fish in the reef.