Dive 3 – Kandooma Thila South Male – the dive which did not go to plan

This dive did not go to plan but no one was complaining when we got back on the Dhoni.

The Thila is large – about 300m long and some 15 metres below the surface. Strong currents usually exist in the area and so the plan was to do a rapid negative descent to the left of the bottom of the thila (down to about 27m) trying to get below the overhands to give some current protection, go with the current along the thila, use reef hooks occasionally to hang around to watch the fish or to rest, eventually reaching the top of the thila at around 20m, reverse quietly into the strong current, watch any sharks which might be in the area and then fin across the current onto the top of the thila and head out into the open ocean for pickup hopefully before we drifted to Sri Lanka some 36 hours away! Because of the strong currents, hard and soft corals abound and many large fish live there because there is a lot of small fish for food.

In the event, the currents were not strong at all at the start of the dive and were going the wrong way in any case so we dropped off at the top of the thila and negatively descended very fast into a shoal of White Tips waiting to welcome us.

As well as White Tips, there were Reef Sharks and Nurse Sharks

(above a number can be seen some distance out) both young and old. They seemed quite interested in us and circled the whole group of divers for around 20 minutes.

Visibility was poor (no better than 10m) because of the current and the amount of life in the area but the sharks were clearly

identifiable although back scatter makes photographs poor. For Sam, here is a video of the first shark we saw. The picture is not too good because the viz was not that good.

Numerous Eagle Rays went past (look hard into the above and one can just be seen). Large fish abounded including

and also some very large Unicorn Fish (above), large Tuna and shoals of medium sized Barracuda. Although murky, the water was so full of large life it was difficult to know where to look next.

By the time we got to the Thila top, the current had reversed

and was gaining in strength so it was time to use a reef hook to attach to the nearest bit of dead looking coral (or convenient if none was dead). Used carefully, they do

 

not cause damage and are an essential piece of equipment if you are in a strong current and want to hang around. The technique is to sink down to the coral (or approach it if on a wall) and look for a hard coral place to which to attach the hook. It has a blunt end and therefore hooks on rather than digs in. Then (Unless you are attached to a wall) you inflate your BCD slightly to rise up into the current which then holds you firmly in place (although you sway in the surge and therefore do not want to be too close to the next hooked diver). When you want to unhook, you deflate your SMB, unhook and reel in the dive hook rather than leave it dangling (because it could accidently catch on something), re-inflate slightly and proceed. If you forget to deflate before unhooking you will immediately rise towards the surface and have to dump etc. The current was estimate to be 3 knots by the dive guides.

 

The reef contained numerous corals and other life such as this Sea Star,

and this rather elegant hard coral.

Dive 2 – Kuda Giri Wreck – South Male

Kuda Giri Wreck is a deliberate wreck just off a small atoll. Since the ship was sunk it has become covered with coral and is also the home to numerous types of fish. The Atoll has a number of caves and swim throughs and is home to some Black Coral (which of course Kiwis would have you believe only grows in around New Zealand).

The plan is to exit the Dhoni above the wreck, explore the wreck and then fin left (reef on right shoulder) rising up to 15 m, explore the overhangs and swim throughs before surfacing at around 50 bar.

The wreck has significant hard and soft coral growth on it

and appears as soon as you are in the water

The coral is very pretty

and well established

and also the home to numerous fish such as

these Banner Fish

The caves inside the overhangs are home to Black Coral

 

which actually is white

 

and the reef wall has a number of thriving Sea Cucumber

which are well camouflaged as in the picture above

or obvious as in the picture above and following

Crops of beautiful coral abound

 

some are very delicate such as

this Curve-branched Hydroid

here we have White Stinging Sea Fern

and some sponges are just perfect.

By the end of the dive, the weather has changed – the view of the island has changed from that before the dive

to

The only differences the rain makes is that when there is heavy rain, less sunlight gets into the water and visibility on the surface is reduced – the can become an issue if you are drift diving and expecting to be spotted and picked up at the end of the dive. Hence flashing beacons and SMB usage becomes important for afternoon dives when heavy rain seems to be the norm.

Check Dive at Karumba House Reef – North Male

In order to check that all of our gear is working ok and to get our weighting correct as well as to prove that we still know how to dive (the theory being that we may have forgotten since the last time), the first dive of any live aboard is known as the Check Dive and usually takes place at a calm dive spot with little to distract you other than the sandy bottom.

When you are on a liveaboard, ideally the check dive takes place close enough to a dive shop so that if something is seriously broken and has to be replaced, you can nip ashore and flex your credit card. The most common faults are with regulators although it is not unknown for someone to unpack their gear and find they have left something crucial behind and then have to replace it.

Normally all of the dive guides also join in the check dive, not because they need the practice but because it gives them a chance to observe you, your techniques and your confidence. Also, if it has been more than six months since your last dive, they may want to see you demonstrate some of the key safety techniques (flooded mask, changing to the octopus, cramp etc).

The Karumba House Reef lies just off an atoll which has a hotel on it as well as mooring for boats. The Dhoni takes us

there and we are given a somewhat rudimentary dive plan

which essentially says that this is a slow drift dive (reef on the left shoulder) with the best things between 15m and 10m on the reef wall. Water temperature is 29c and so there is no need to wear my 5mm, just a Rash Vest. Other divers choose anything from the same as me through to a 7mm, depending on what they have brought with them.

As we giant stride into the sea, I again get the tremendous nervous excitement feeling of the first dive after a period of rest. I initially guess a weight of 8kg but because I am diving with 15ltr aluminium tanks, I expect to find that this will make me too heavy and it is no surprise to find that I am over weighted and so I reduce to 6 kg and expect to go lower to 5kg during the week as I regain technique. Had I been wearing my 5mm suit, then I would probably have needed the extra 2 kg to negate the additional buoyancy.

The reef is unremarkable but it is interesting to see numerous

Red Toothed Trigger fish who have the habit of hiding in a nearby crevice when they sense you coming – the problem for them is that they

always leave their tails hanging out and therefore are not as invisible as they might want.

 

Other fish include numerous Wrasse (such as the above) and the Long Nosed Butterfly Fish, so called for obvious

reasons. The reef seems quite young in that the coral is not large

This Terrace Coral is about 50cm across but shows some lovely lines

This coral (Above and below) has some Feather Stars

 

living on it – these feed of plankton in the water which is caught by the “fronds” and then “conveyed” down to their mouths.

 

and the Meandering Coral looks clean and healthy.

After 50 minutes, my buddy runs out of air (actually he has reached the lower safety limit of 50 bar) and so it is time to

surface, put up our SMBs (again good to practice), do our 5metre safety stop and clamber on to the Dhoni – breakfast awaits.

Arrival in Male

Contrary to my expectations which had been set by many of the on-line reviews, the SriLankan Airways flight out was very good in terms of comfort and time keeping – we left on time and arrived a little early and the plane was only one quarter full which meant there were enough seats to create a bed if you wanted one. The last 30 minutes of the flight took us over some of the Northern Atols and unsurprisingly, they looked just like they were supposed to do.

Male Airport does not seem to be busy and after a 50 metre ride in a bus from the aircraft to immigration, it took only a few minutes to collect another passport stamp and get through Customs. All luggage is X-Rayed on arrival to check for contraband which here includes Alcohol and “Idols for Worship” as well as the usual drugs and pornography. Surprisingly, alcohol is readily available in the hotels and on the boats so I suspect the ban is more to do with economics rather than principles.

The airport takes up a whole island. The capital (below)

is on another island and takes up the whole island. After a very easy arrival, it was a short walk to the airport quayside

and then straight on to the MV Orion’s Dhoni

for the 30 minute trip to the MV Orion. The Dhoni is a sort of general purpose boat which we will be using this week as our dive platform and also our ferry around a atoll once the Orion has got us there.

First impressions of the boat (which has had a repaint from the picture on its web site) are that it does not quite live up to the luxury portrayed on the web but time will tell. It is very different to a Red Sea Liveaboard in that there is no dive deck (you dive from the Dhoni), it is longer and some of the bedrooms are said to be luxurious.

Because this trip’s divers were arriving on three different flights, there was no diving on the first day – not even a check dive much to everyone’s disappointment. This time of year (late May) is the period between the two Monsoons (South Western and North Eastern) and hence there is quite a lot of rain, as this

approaching tropical rain cloud evidences. When it rains, it absolutely pours and having just come from droughty

England it is the first time that we have not seen any real rain for months.

The temperature is 31C and the humidity is very high – something we all find difficult to cope with but experience tells us that within a few days we will have acclimatised.

The actual dive plan for the week seems to be to do three dives a day and two on the last day (17 dives) and to try to find Whale Sharks and Mantas as a priority although both are said to be in short supply and somewhat illusive at the moment.

Diving in the Maldives

Over the past few years I have been on four liveaboards in the Red Sea but this year I am going on a liveaboard booked through Tony Backhurst Scuba Travel, one of the most reliable agencies specialising in trips for divers I have travelled with.

Situated off the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, the Maldives is an archipelago consisting of a

 

group of 1190 coral islands in 26 Atolls which emerge from the Indian Ocean. Stretching over 820km from north to south and reaching 128km at its widest point, the Maldives has around 90 resorts, 200 inhabited and 900 uninhabited islands. Apart from being famous for the fact that the highest point on any of the atolls is only a metre or so above sea level (and therefore the whole country is at risk from the effects of global warming), they are also famous of the quality and variety of the sub sea level life.

In May, the air temperature and water temperature are both said to be around 28C and it might be around the end of the dry season.

 

Tides (and therefore current flow, something for which Male is notorious) are strongest at the full moon but I am going there about 7 days after a full moon so I am hoping not to have to use my reef hook too often.

The official Tony Backhurst “Best of the Maldives” itinerary (offering around 18 dives) for the week concentrates on the middle section of the Maldives and is described as:

Day 1
After arriving in Male, you will transferring to your liveaboard for the week. Set up the kit and complete the necessary pre dive paperwork. The check dive is made at Maagiri and then the boat sets sail.
Day 2
Is made for Thila diving with stops at Bathalaa Maagaakan Thila, Hafushia Thila and a night dive on Maaya Thila. This is a must do night dive with loads to see.
Day 3
Carry on in South Male atol with dives at Dhnkalo Thila before a wreck stop at Fesdu, The day finishes at Meru Fanfushi.
Day 4
Carry on the week with some classic dives at some of the Maldives' most famous dive sites. Splash in at Fish Head, followed by Emas Thila and Dega Thila.
Day 5
Dives at Madivaru which is famous for the possible shark encounters you can have. The boat will then spend some time in a great area for finding whale sharks. If found, there will be a chance to snorkel with them. The final dive of the day is at Dhigurah Arches.
Day 6
The boat will move off to South Male atoll. Here you can dive so many places but Kandhoo Maa Thila, the Kudagiri Wreck or Vadoo Caves. There is a great range of drift dives and pinnacles to explore here.
Day 7
The final day offers 3 dives in and around North Male and will visit sites such as Mariu Faru, Banana Giri or Paradise.
Day 8
Return transfers to Male airport are made on the final day.

The airline I am flying with to Male is SriLankan Airlines which is not known as one of the worlds great airlines and also has a variable reputation for punctuality – never the less one hopes that my two flights with them will be different to the norm. Their often erratic time keeping record means that I am having to drive to Heathrow because if the return flight were to be late, I would miss the last train home and have to spend a night on the airport floor.

Divers always travel with heavy bags despite the fact that they need few clothes during the week. My dive gear weighs in at about 22 kg and my clothes a massive further 3 kg! Helpfully Scuba Travel have negotiated a free increased weight allowance for their divers (to a maximum of 37kg) and so exceeding it when I check in at the SriLankan Airlines desk at Heathrow is not a worry since I cannot physically carry 37kg !

My boat for the week is the MV Orion which makes a lot of claims about its luxury, its facilities and comfort. How true

this is will emerge during the coming week. Outside of the experience of the dive guide and the quality of the dive briefings, the attentiveness of the deck crew before, during and after a dive and a good buddy, my priorities are usually restricted to reasonable food, an air conditioned cabin, fresh showers, a comfortable bed and the occasional beer.

To find out how much of this will be delivered – read on!