January 2004 :
Australia
Papua New Guinea
Micronesia
Other Topics
- Need a special gift?, want to entice your buddy to join you? -Diversion Giftvouchers are right for you!t
- Strengthening Australian Airport Safety
DIVERSION DIVE TRAVEL Newsletter / January 2004
G'day
everyone and belated best wishes for 2004!
It is mid January
now, usually a very crucial period for all those New Year's resolutions.
Are you carrying it through this time or will it have to wait for another
year?
More dive vacations in 2004 amongst your resolutions ? Sooner rather than
later, is the best time to make enquiries and get those crucial live-aboard
and airline reservations finalised. First in - best dressed.
To make this process a little sweeter and less financially painful, we are currently offering a AU$ 50.00 discount per diver for all Live-aboard cruises and resort stays with a value of AU$ 800.00 or more per person, confirmed and deposited by 29 February 2004. This voucher is valid on top of all other discounts and specials which are available.
This newsletter
features stories by Phil Page on his dive trip on the STARDANCER in PNG
as well as Claudia Lutrop's take on Cocos (Keeling) Island - one of the
most remote destinations in the Indian Ocean.
Combined with the latest news from the region, we hope you enjoy reading
this issue and please, if you know a dive buddy that you think would enjoy
it, why not forward it on?
For
all our German speaking Readers a big apology! There will be no German
issue this time, as we didn't have the time to prepare it. The reason
being that thre of us (Dirk Werner-Lutrop, Claudia Lutrop and Irma Schwarz)
will be with at BOOT 2004, one of the world's biggest watersports shows.
Please visit us from 17 to 25 January in Duesseldorf, Germaby, hall 3
booth F/82. All visitors will receive a AUD 50 travel voucher
which can be redeemed with bookings prior to 29 February. The same
is good for all visitors to our website. More details at http://diversionOZ.com/en/50dollaroff.htm
Australia
Cocos
(Keeling) - Indian Ocean Hideaway
Have
you ever dreamed about travelling to the end of the world ? Where is it?
Dirk and I had a dream and decided to search for the "end of the
world" just like Colombus did over 500 years ago. We found it!
A look at the
map will very likely convince you as well, that Christmas Island and Cocos
(Keeling Islands) both deserve that label. Both are located somewhere
in the middle of the Indian Ocean, but still belong to Australia. Christmas
Island is 2300 km away from Perth, Western Australia, (but only 350 km
south of Jakarta). Cocos Keeling is 900 km further west from Christmas
Island.
This trip was something different and really special!
In
October 2003 at Cocos Keeling airport, we were greeted by Dieter and Karen
who run the local dive operation. Instead of unloading our dive gear from
the airport trolley into a car, we just pushed it across the street from
the airport building to our "Castaway Apartment".
Most accommodations on Cocos Keeling are self-contained units, ideal for
doing your own cooking, which is the way to go on the island. The local
supermarket is reasonably well stocked; you can get bread, cereals, cheese
and some (limited) fresh produce for your breakfasts. If you like to eat
out, there is one place only, "The Cantina". It is not a culinary
highlight, but it's okay. It's best to keep the focus in Cocos Keeling
to diving rather than gastronomic delights.
However,
Karen's lunch, which is served on a sandy island between the 2 daily dives
is fantastic. She somehow always manages to have a fresh salad in her
picnic basket, a minor miracle in this remote part of the world !
The diving is very well organised. The dive boat (2x50 hp outboard motors)
takes a maximum number of 4 guests plus Dieter and Karen. They have access
to a bigger boat when they have more guests.
Safety and procedures on board are very good. You are well looked after,
which is comforting in a remote location like this! You get 2 dives per
day and each dive is 60 minutes or longer. The surface interval time is
usually more than 2 hours between dives, which is spent on a beautiful
beach (on Direction Island) where you devour the aforementioned lunch.
(We usually don't mention lunches in our trip reports!!). The whole day
is spent on the water. You will be back at your accommodation early evening.
The diving
Cocos
Keeling has some spectacular dive sites, like "The Rose Wall"
which is ideal for drift dives. Red cabbage coral dominate the reef as
far as the eye can see in-between brain coral and boulder corals. On almost
every dive, you see the Cocos Angel Fish, which is unique to Cocos and
Christmas Island. Diving at "Eden" is usually a drift dive as
well. The wall is teaming with Gorgonians , and if the current is right,
you fly past barracudas, huge yellowtail tunas, grey reef sharks, surgeon
fish, and rainbow runners.Generally, there is a good chance that you will
see mantas in the lagoon. We saw many on the surface and stopped to snorkel
with them.
We were extremely lucky and got a treat, which we never had before in our diving life. We saw a Dugong ( A "Manatee" to translate that for those of you in the US & Canada) ! The Lagoon hosts a resident Dugong, living on its own and for fun she chases mantas. We could not believe our eyes ! Check the picture below:
A
number of dive sites are more barren and provide good opportunities to
watch octopi to do their magnificent stealth operations!
The world above
surface is as peaceful as below on Cocos. This is what many people dream
of. No need to lock the house and car, the locals are very friendly, always
have time for a chat, and everyone knows everyone. If you like to mix
with the locals, go to the Club for a few drinks and you will definitely
hear many an interesting tale. With most accommodations you get free bicycle
hire, which is a perfect way to explore the island. Again no locks needed!
A visit to home island on Cocos brings you to another world. A very relaxed,
peaceful, Muslim community is living here. There is a museum (explaining
how they got here), a beautiful beach and a few mosques. Is this different
world really a part of Australia ?
When you are ready to pick "your end of the world spot", Cocos
(Keeling) Island is the perfect place to write that novel that you always
wanted to write and to get in some good diving as well.
http://diversionOZ.com/en/wa-cocoskeeling.htm
If you travel that far, you should not miss Christmas Island, which is
very different and has an even more interesting underwater world. See
my trip report in the next newsletter!
Taka
Dive has launched the brand new "TAKA" dive vessel to replace
Taka II on their trips out to the far reaches of The Great Barrier Reef
and Coral Sea.
The new "TAKA" is a 30 metre purpose built dive boat, being
built from the ground up, designed to visit those remote dive sites in
maximum comfort. After doing over 1000 trips with Taka II, Taka Dive have
used all that knowledge, to help evolve a new Hi-Tech vessel that has
more room, more comfort and more features than before, such as:
Unique stabilised hull design to smooth out those Coral Sea trips.
Bow and stern thrusters for safe maneuvering while getting divers as close
to the Reef as possible.
Additional and larger ensuite cabins on the top deck, comfortable 4 share
cabins below deck.
The most impressive
addition is the massive saloon area which features large Plasma screens,
comfy lounges and even three I-MACs. Those Internet junkies, who need
to send their fantastic digital underwater images from the Cod Hole 5
minutes after the dive to their drooling mates back home, can do so in
comfort.:-)
The dive schedule, crew and other routines have not been tampered with
and follow the proven, dependable, fun concepts of the "old"
Taka. http://diversionOZ.com/en/taka.htm
Papua New Guinea
Star
Dancer - why did I leave it so long?
Sat 13 September
2003 - It had been almost 2 years since my last visit to PNG, so now
it was time to check out Star Dancer on a 7 night Excursion from/to Walindi
Plantation Resort, Kimbe Bay, New Britain
Sat 20 September 2003 - Why did I wait 2 years to come back to
PNG ???
The Diving
The
trip itinerary saw 2 dive days off the beautiful and remote Witu Islands
group, 1 day at Fathers Reef, both in the Bismark Sea off the island of
New Britain then 2.5 dive days in Kimbe Bay, 7 nights on board in total.
The diving in this area really is excellent...the best soft coral growth
I've come across anywhere. All the reefs were unspoilt with very little
sign of bleaching. This is a protected area with no commercial fishing,
hence an abundance of marine life.
Most of the dive sites are similar in topography...i.e. underwater volcanoes/sea
mounts rising from the bottom to about 5 metres below the surface. However,
each site definitely has its own characteristics...swim throughs, currents,
heaps of pelagic activity in places, excellent macro life and giant gorgonian
fans the size of a London bus
(and far less elusive !)
Amongst the many highlights were Crack-a-fat Reef & The Arches at
the Witu's & sensational pelagic activity at Killibob's, Fathers Reef.
In Kimbe Bay, thousands of years of protection from exposed ocean activity
has resulted in a unique "sub-culture" of soft coral species
developing in this bay. This area really is all it's cracked up to be..
Inglis Shoals, Susan's Reef, South Emma & Otto's Reef are just a few
of the sites that are testimony to the fact.
The Vessel
The
vessel itself was everything I expected from a quality live-aboard and
more. Eight spacious comfortable cabins accommodate 16 guests with loads
of areas to hang out including a large sun deck complete with 2 hammocks.
A huge, well designed dive deck with large camera tables makes gearing
up quick & easy. Nitrox fills are available.
The Crew
The 11 crew members on board, (9 of them PNG Nationals), creates a great
atmosphere onboard. They are efficient, helpful and extremely friendly
at all times. The dive guides are both enthusiastic and knowledgeable
- they are always unearthing a multitude a unique critters and coral species.
The Food
Above the waterline, it would have been impossible for anyone to have
gone hungry on this trip. Chef Andrew saw to that with his culinary delights
and his high entertainment value ! With Eggs Benedict to order, my breakfast
expectation level has risen to new heights.
I thoroughly
enjoyed this trip and would not hesitate to recommend it for all the right
reasons !
http://diversionOZ.com/en/stardancerpng.htm
Micronesia
New to Palau: introducing OCEAN HUNTER II
Liked
the original ? How about the sequel now offering extended departures ?
There are now longer trips, 12 to 16 days, in addition to the old 7 day
trips. The crew is still as fabulous as ever with their bright smiles.
Ocean Hunter II is almost ready and will be available with capacity for
10 divers from April/May 2004. It was originally a research vessel and
is very seaworthy. It has been used in the marine biology department of
the University of Sydney. The boat is 75 feet long and has 5 spacious
cabins with a toilet and shower in each. The Ocean Hunter II will support
T.V. and film productions, as well as Nitrox, Trimix and rebreathers.
Pictures and more detailed descriptions will appear on our webpage as
soon as they come to hand. http://diversionOZ.com/en/oceanhunter2.htm
Other topics
Diversion
gift voucher
This
was actually your idea. In the lead up to Christmas so many people asked
us for gift vouchers for dive trips, that we formalised this to a nice
product. So when you want to give something real special, dive holidays
are priceless! for more information please see http://diversionOZ.com/en/giftvoucher.htm
Strengthening
Australian Airport Safety
Australian Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson has announced that the
Government will require all airports that handle scheduled jet operations,
to screen all passengers and their carry-on baggage. These measures will
also apply at additional locations if an airport operator or airline requests
these security measures. Additionally, the Government will require 100%
checked bag screening for all international flights by 31 December 2004
and will require the operators of Australia's major domestic terminals
to introduce checked bag screening for domestic services on the same timetable.
Specials
Please bookmark the following link for all the latest and greatest specials.
http://diversionOZ.com/en/specials.htm
You are welcome to forward this newsletter to a friend or dive buddy.
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