AO PHANG-NGA BAY
Known as Phang-Nga Bay, this broad and somewhat shallow expanse of water a little south and east of the Phuket resort area is home to some of the country’s most famous and colorful dives. Visibility here isn’t always that great, but the nutrient-rich waters feed the corals and invertebrate life, providing a superb variety of marine creatures from the shallows to the depths.
Everything from whale sharks to tiny pipefish have been reported here, and its convenient location in relation to the major resorts keeps people visiting these sites time after time. Day trips usually consist of two or three dives, getting one back to the land after a good day’s diving between 1:30pm and 4:30pm – leaving plenty of time to shower and have a cool one while watching the sun go down from one of the Phuket beaches.
Most dive boats leave from the popular jetty at Chalong Bay, where elongated golf carts resembling safari vehicles run divers out to board. This is a good place to grab a morning coffee and any snacks or drinks you might require. The street leading down to the pier is a kind of ‘diver’s row’ with numerous dive shops and equipment outlets located thereabouts. A few small hotels and pubs here can also be handy, if your goal is to dive the Phang-Nga and Racha Islands all week.
CORAL ISLAND (KO HI)
Close proximity to the Ao Chalong pier area and shallow depths here make this spot a favorite for intro dives, instruction and novice divers. The generally calm waters and sheltered site area make it a sure thing.
Both beach and boat dives are done here. Visibility can be low, with a good day being 30 to 40ft. Local guides know their way around, so listen well to briefings and follow along to see good hard coral growth which holds plenty of hiding spots for invertebrates. Look also for Christmas tree worms on the corals and small eels hiding in some holes.
As it is a popular spot, the usual Thai boat traffic presents a hazard – follow your guide and surface at the moorings if at all possible. Snorkelers should wear bright suits and fins, and all divers entering from the beach should exit the same way to avoid boat traffic.
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KO DOK MAI
Often a first dive stop coming from Phuket, or a second or third dive heading back, this site is usually done as a drift, although there are protected areas to shelter and look at the smaller marine life. Also on offer are some areas with sheer walls – a feature not found at other area hotspots. This site, Shark Point, Anemone Reef and King Cruiser are all part of the ‘no fishing, no collecting’ zone of the Hin Mu Sang Fisheries Reserve and this protection shows in the great variety of marine life on offer here.
You’ll be blown away from the start, with most entry points on the island offering a rather sheer wall and lots of fish to swim through. Clouds of fusiliers and glassfish can be found through the dive, and they often attract various jacks, mackerel and the occasional tuna when they swirl about in the water column.
But the real treat here is along the walls, extended ridges and sea floor. While the site isn’t thick with marine growth, there’s just enough to make it extremely diverse and colorful. Big barrel sponges house feather stars and make homes for chromis and basslets, while gorgonian sea fans, black coral and various forms of Dendronephthya soft corals add variety and color. Some ridges and walls have thick patches of these soft tree corals, so bring a light on this dive, as the colors can be stunning when illuminated. Look closely also at the various fan corals here, as ghost pipefish and tiger tail seahorses have been seen.
ANEMONE REEF (HIM JOM)
Anemone Reef is part of what could be dubbed the ‘Scuba Triangle’, along with King Cruiser and Shark Point. Located within close proximity of one another, three great dives can be made in one day out at this area, from either Phuket or Ko Phi Phi.
The reef is a series of submerged limestone pinnacles with the highest point 12 to 15ft below the surface, depending on the tide. It drops down to a sandy bottom around 80ft on most sides and 100ft further out.
The deeper reaches produce the occasional resting leopard shark, so it’s worth gliding down to see if there are any of these beautiful creatures on the sand. These sharks normally like some semblance of a current and it can be anywhere from mild to strong out here. However, there is also enough protection in the form of terrain rises and smaller pinnacles that currents rarely pose a problem.
Around the many alcoves there are numerous types of anemones and anemone fish, along with nudibranchs, white-eyed morays, spotted groupers and baitfish. Large blue-ring angels and lionfish can also be seen here.
There are a couple of small caves, but as the bottom and top are both very silty, a diver’s fins or bubbles can make these dangerous – penetration is not a safe move. While many divers drift quickly along the wall, it really pays to take your time if you want to see all that this site has to offer.
Look for lots of fish in and around the reef. Groupers roam the rocks and plenty of baitfish hover in crevices for protection. Lionfish are also here in big numbers, so it should be easy to get a nice photo of one of these hovering predators.
Giving the site its name, the top of the reef features carpets of flowing and blowing sea anemones, along with their respective clownfish. Most are magnificent anemones that hold percula ‘Nemo’-type clownfish or the pink (or one-stripe) clownfish. Look also for the red saddleback anemone fish in some spots. Their bubble tip anemones will be a bit different. Many anemones here have brilliant purple undersides, while some are forest green. They’re especially pretty when they close up, which can happen later in the afternoon.
This is a busy site, so surface with a safety sausage inflated or at the buoy. All of the ‘Scuba Triangle’ sites are open to wind and waves, so seas can be rough at certain times of the year. While this stirs things up a bit and reduces visibility, these sites are rich enough to be rewarding dives even in low visibility.
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SHARK POINT (HIN MU SANG)
One of the sites within the Hin Mu Sang Fisheries Reserve, this is one of Thailand’s best little dives with lots of beautiful anemones, clouds of small fish and color, color, color. One can easily spend the entire day here and not come away feeling as if you’ve seen it all.
The site is marked by moorings, a rock that breaks the surface and a marker on the rock itself. Down below, there are three different and distinct reef sites, but being so close together they are collectively called Shark Point. All three can be experienced in one dive with a bit of finning, or done as separate dives for more leisurely exploration of each rocky reef site.
The bottom falls off to no more than 80ft and currents are normally present, which is good as this accounts for the rich marine life. The leopard sharks (also called zebra sharks) which gave the site its name prefer the deeper portion of the reef, where the current flows over their bodies as they rest. Look for them on the rubble-strewn and sandy bottom, as well as wandering mantis shrimps.
When approaching leopard sharks move slowly and do not get too close, to avoid startling them and making them move off. With care they can be observed at close distance for a long time, with the added possibility of seeing remoras move around their bodies and perhaps even a cleaner going over them. These beautiful sharks are not aggressive and eat invertebrates like crabs, lobsters and other crustaceans. Please do not try to touch them, pet them or pull their tails.
During a spell which saw an influx of colder water, some lucky divers saw a shovelnose ray (also called a guitar shark) here, and whale sharks have been seen on rare occasions.
Most of the reef is littered with spiny black urchins, so watch where you settle down to both avoid the spines and protect the marine life.
From the deepest part of the reef work your way up. Normally the current is not too bad, but if it’s particularly strong, one can shelter behind the boulders and observe fish, beautiful sea fans and soft corals here.
The reef tops are stunning, with clouds of baitfish that include copper sweepers, glassfish and juvenile barracudas. This means the rest of the food chain is usually there as well. On the reef, look for scorpionfish, lionfish and spotted groupers lying in wait, while in the water column, jacks and snappers slash through the masses of fish.
Soft coral and numerous sea anemones in the shallower areas make this place vividly colorful; the purple underskirts of anemones combine with the oranges of one-stripe and percula clownfish make this site really come alive. Take plenty of time to enjoy this site; while visibility isn’t always great the reef is so rich that there is plenty to see regardless of water clarity.
As it is a popular site, take care when surfacing; it’s likely many boats will be in the area. Use a safety signal sausage or, if it isn’t surgy, come up very close to the rocks.
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KING CRUISER
Phuket area divers can experience a wreck specialty by heading out to the King Cruiser wreck and exploring the fish life and remains of this formerly well-used ferry. Originally a Japanese vessel, it was renamed (bad luck in marine lore) and doing its daily run when it went way off-course and hit the rocks of Anemone Reef in broad daylight in May 1997. All crew and passengers, some 561 people, were rescued, but the ship was too badly damaged to save. It sank upright – a bit of good luck for divers – and quickly became the region’s premier wreck site.
Old timers talk of entering the wreck after it first sank and seeing navigation charts laid out on the bridge, along with various other items still in perfect place,despite the 100ft plummet to the sea floor. This situation has changed considerably as a decade of currents, divers and boats using it as a mooring have weakened the ship considerably, causing the forward bridge area to collapse and leaving the rest of the ship somewhat shaky in terms of penetration.
Frequent currents and an open bottom where it was holed have made it a fish magnet. Moorings are on the bow and stern, and divers can descend the lines down to the ship. There are some barnacles and marine growth on these, so take care and don’t grip too hard.
These days, briefings suggest that a multi-level overswim is the best way to enjoy this wreck. If currents allow, start deep and move up. The car deck area is overgrown with some small encrusting sponges and tubastrea corals, and this type of growth covers most of the ship’s outer area as well. Being a wreck, there are jagged metal pieces and sharp shell growth as well, so move slowly to avoid getting cut when exploring.
Moving up to the passenger deck area at roughly 60ft, the masses of fish life become apparent. The aft area also shows some signs of collapse, but the stern can be entered for a brief penetration amid a wall of snappers and cardinal fish. At the portside of the stern near the mooring line there are some toilets still intact.
Fish life is the wreck’s most remarkable feature. Look for jacks and dogtooth tuna in the blue water, and there’s also a resident school of chevron barracuda to be seen. On deck, look for lionfish on the prowl. A keen-eyed divemaster may also find an occasional frogfish masquerading as sponge on the wreck. Check also for cleverly disguised scorpionfish laying in ambush. The side railings are mostly intact and have some coral and other growth.
Full-blown whale shark experiences, with divers spending up to half an hour with a friendly and curious shark, have been reported here. This is rare but it can happen, so glance into the blue every once in a while to see what’s there – it might be your lucky day.
The majority of the wreck is now between 45ft and 60ft. Watch your bottom time and ascend slowly for your safety stop. Currents seem to be stronger on the wreck than in the 15ft to 20ft level, so you may not have to hold the line while doing your deco stop, but it is a high traffic boat area.
Make sure your head is well below propeller range and that you’re ascending to your boat.
Whale Sharks
Thailand has become known as a good place to find whale sharks. Over-fishing in recent years has decreased the population of this creature, which is both the largest shark and largest fish on the planet. While Thailand doesn’t allow fishing for whale sharks in its waters, most surrounding nations still fish for them, with many even having dedicated whale shark fisheries, despite coming under political fire from environmental groups.
Whale sharks have a broad range, so the threat of further depletion of their numbers worldwide remains. Seeing one of these big fish is a special experience, but the likelihood of increasing encounters can only occur when other nations cease hunting them.
Whale sharks are filter feeders and are considered harmless to divers. They use their huge mouths to eat planktonic creatures including masses of tiny crustaceans, and may also suck in other creatures, such as squid, sardines, jacks and tuna.
They have attained lengths of 45ft (14m) and weigh up to 20 tons. Older ones tend to be more single-minded and concentrate on feeding, and so in an encounter may swim
right on by. Younger whale sharks have a tendency to be more curious and are usually the ones divers have longer encounters with.
Whale sharks are threatened by over fishing partly because it takes them so long to sexually mature. This does not occur until they reach about 30ft (9 meters) in length, meaning they have to live to about 30 years old to do so, with a natural lifespan of 60 to 100 years. Known as pups, whale shark babies are two-feet long at birth.
Found worldwide in most tropical and even temperate seas, some Thai dive operators say there is a definite season between February and May in their waters. However they can be seen pretty much year ‘round – there is no real predictability. Enjoy your encounter and try to promote the conservation of these amazing fish.
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