Divespot: Bumphead Sands

We ride to this divespot mostly early in the morning. The ride from Nangerhale takes about 30 minutes. At morning time, the current in not as strong as in the afternoon, at this time we can see the hunters at work.

We enter the coral bank, here we have some 3 to 7 meters of water under the boat, depending on whether we have high or low tide. One can enter the water here how it suits them best.

From the coral bank we dive over the slope to a depth of about 20 m. We'll give ourselves hardly any time for the beauty of this slope, our goal is to reach the drop-off. The sand and coral surfaces at this depth are very bare, the corals have been mostly destroyed in the last years by the dynamite fishers.

The arrival at the drop off becomes a stunning spectacle. We imagine ourselves to be in an aquarium with millions of fishes of different sizes and species. Here the rule of eat or be eaten applies. The biggest predators in the area are the hammerhead sharks, black and white tip reef sharks, as well as tuna and mackerels. With some luck, we'll see barracudas lurking under the surface, they must not wait long for their prey.

Since our time is limited, we'll dive from here slowly upward, ascending to about 15 m depth over a coral bank. On the other side we eventually find the sandbanks where large groups of bumpheads live. These animal are very shy and keep a moderate distance from us. It's difficult to get close enough to take suitable photos.

A peculiar movement prompts us to take a closer look. We discover a sand perch hidden in the sand which we almost overlooked. It will dig itself deeper and wait there for his prey.

The sandbanks are bordered by steep faces, which reach up to the coral banks at a height of about 6 m. Here we find, next to soft and hard corals, countless different types of sea fans and begonia. Many little fish, having been caught up in the chase, have fled to this place to survive.

This dive spot offers too many attractions to count. The name of the game here is simple: submerge, and enjoy yourself drifting along with the gentle current.