RED SEA DIVER

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IT’S BEEN SOME YEARS SINCECaroline and I spent any timediving out of Sharm el Sheikh, on

the southern tip of Egypt’s SinaiPeninsula. When we did, it would bepretty much typical to moor upalongside 10 to 15 other dive-boats,with numerous divers all trying to gettheir chance to examine what was onthe reef at the same time.

There were bubbles everywhere, andfor a photographer it was becomingincreasingly difficult to get a clean shot.It was not unusual to be lining up a shot of the reef when a dozen or sodivers would drift along beneath you,swathing you in an endless stream of bubbles.

That, however, was before thetroubles that destroyed the atmosphereof this buzzing, lively town, full oftourists and divers seeking guaranteedsun and beautiful diving. After tworevolutions and a terrorist attack on aRussian flight out of Sharm airport, thescene that now greets you on arrivaltells an entirely different story.

Na’ama Bay in Sharm is almost a

thanks to the wreck of the Lara. ThisCypriot cargo ship hit the reef in 1981and, despite being partially demolishedin 1996, the remains still sit on top of it.The propeller has fallen to 56m at thebottom of the reef pinnacle.

Some of the seafans we saw wereenormous, and on Gordon we had touse four underwater flashguns and twopowerful video lights to do anythinglike justice to the wall of half-a-dozenfans, each one of which was enormous.

There is no shortage of big animalseither, and we had several encounters,including with a small pod ofbottlenose dolphins shepherding ayoung one, and looking after a verypregnant female.

There were scalloped hammerheads,too, cruising just off the reef in thedistance, and the turtles present seemedtotally unperturbed by divers, evenwhen the two of us started sticking ouroversize camera-rigs in their faces.

This has to be the best bluewaterdiving that you can do within easy reachof Europe – and it really is still quiteeasy to get there.

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BACK TOSHARM

Why wouldn’t you? The Egyptian resort’sdive-sites are back to their best and there areplenty of routes in – how about a Europeancity-break on the way, for instance? NICK &CAROLINE ROBERTSON-BROWN report

ghost town, and while the UKGovernment plays politics with thelivelihoods of the people who live there,slowly the rest of Europe is making itsway back.

It is not all doom and gloom,fortunately, because a vast reduction of diver numbers on the many dive-sitesused by Sharm operators has given thesoft corals, sponges, seafans, shoals of fish and even the hard corals the time and opportunity to recover theirformer glory.

We recently spent 10 days in Sharm,hosted by Camel Dive Club & Hotel,and on every single venture under waterwe were blown away by the colour andlife that envelope the reefs.

Several reef systems are regularlyused, and the reefs of the Strait of Tiranare all pretty spectacular. The fourprincipal reefs were named after theBritish cartographers who originallymapped the area: Jackson, Woodhouse,Thomas and Gordon are all about anhour’s boat-ride out of Na’ama Bay.

You can spot this reef system fromsome distance off as you approach, �

Pictured: A diver exploresinside the wreck of theDunraven.

Right: Never had Nick &Caroline seen such hugesea fans – it took both ofthem to light this cluster.

Another of the dive locations easilyaccessible from Sharm is the nationalpark of Ras Mohammed. Diving there inwinter doesn’t afford the opportunity tosee the large aggregations of schoolingbohar snapper and barracuda, but thereis still plenty to see, and anyone who hasdived there before will surely haveexperienced Shark and Yolanda Reef.There are several ways to dive this

reef system, but many favour droppingin off the wall of Shark and, with thecurrent gently nudging you, makingyour way along the deep vertical walluntil you get to the saddle.

THE DEPTH SEEMS TO MAKE nodifference as you traverse the reef-

wall, because everywhere you look thesurface is covered by purple, pink andivory soft corals, all of which aresurrounded by darting orange and lilac anthias. Before you know it, you’re at the

porcelain-covered carnage that was thecargo of the Yolanda, after which thisdive-site is named. Both corals andmarine life have made the brokentoilets, sinks and bath-tubs their home,and it’s not unusual to see enormousNapoleon wrasse paying a visit too. One soft coral has made its home

inside one of the many toilets, and thisis a favourite spot for underwatersnappers to seize a Kodak moment. There are at least eight or nine other

famous dive-sites at Ras Mohammed,and on another visit to this reef systemwe dived Jackfish Alley and RasGhozlani. Jackfish Alley, like all thesereefs, appears to be fully recovered fromprevious overdiving, and apart from thehuge and colourful soft corals, some ofthe table corals are truly impressive. There are two cracks cut into the reef

and photographers can enter to be

Below: A Napoleon wrassejoins the divers on the wreckof the Yolanda.

Above left: Dolphins onJackson Reef keep theirdistance, possibly because ofthe youngster in the group.

Above : Glassfish hug a sea-fan on a local reef dive.

treated to sunlight streaming in throughthe gaps, and glassfish playing in theshadows.Leaving Shark and Yolanda, we set off

on the seven-mile journey to theDunraven. Much of the wreck hascollapsed, but what’s left is still enoughto make this one of the Red Sea’s mostpopular wreck-dives. It lies upside-down at a depth of 15-

30m, and because the cargo of timberand cotton was lost when the shipcaught fire, there are large cavernousareas where the light comes in throughgaps and holes, creating a superblyatmospheric, almost cave-like, area inwhich to dive.This is also a favourite haunt for large

grouper, the occasional barracuda andnumerous glassfish that move aroundthe wreck like a swarm of bees.

RED SEA DIVER

The other wreck that we dived whilethere was the Red Sea’s signature rust-dive, the Thistlegorm. One of the issues that used to put us

off diving this iconic wreck was the vastnumber of dive-boats, and hence divers,on the wreck at any one time. Now, however, is a really good time to

get out to Sharm and dive this wreck.We started our trek from the harbour at6am, and when we arrived at 9 there wasonly a single dive-boat moored up. As we set our lines, its divers were

just coming up from their first dive. �

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setting up our camera-rigs. Buteverything else was ideal – the food atthe in-house restaurant was excellent,and there are two bars upstairs, one onthe roof and one on the first floor forwhen the temperature is on the coolside, as it was during our January stay.And despite what you might think

since the UK’s airport ban, getting toSharm el Sheikh is not difficult. We simply flew from Heathrow to

Cairo with Egypt Air and caught adomestic onward flight. The baggagewent straight through to the finaldestination and the allowance was morethan enough for our dive gear, SLRcamera rigs and clothes for the week. There are, however, several other ways

to gain access via European cities, andprices are not that much higher than thecrazy package deals that were availablebefore the troubles. Ornella at Camelcan provide a host of alternative routes. We met one UK couple who had

flown to Milan and taken a short citybreak before jumping on a flight directlyto Sharm. Also, contrary to popularbelief, you can get insurance very easily. So if you want to see Sharm back at

its very best, with the reefs in gloriouslyhealthy condition and very few boatsand divers crowding the best sites, nowis a great time to go.

Right: The shallows on theStrait of Tiran are a beautifulplace to do a safety stop.

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We were heading down to theThistlegorm a minute after the finaldiver from the other boat climbed backaboard, and had this amazing wreck allto ourselves for at least an hour. As we came up the divers on the first

boat were getting in for their seconddive. It couldn’t have worked out better,especially with the zero current.There is plenty of local diving to be

had around Sharm too, as well as theshore-dive where you can walk straightinto the sea at Na’ama Bay. On all the local dive-sites such as

Near, Middle and Far Garden andTemple, for example, the story is thesame – the soft corals are thriving, andwherever you go you’re surrounded bycolourful corals, fish and critters. On Middle Garden, we were even

visited by a turtle that came along tocheck us out and see what we weredoing. The shore dive at Na’ama Bay isused by Camel for its night-dive, andthis is a very safe and easy place tonavigate your way around in the dark. There are, however, a fair number of

lionfish who like to follow you around inthe hope that your light will illuminate

some suitable prey, and colliding withone of these venomous creatures cancause you more than a little serious pain. We used the opportunity to try out

some black-light photography using twoultra-violet torches. Once you get youreye in, it’s a lot of fun seeing the coralsglow in the dark.

AT THE END OF OUR eight days’diving, we were sad as we started to

pack our dive-gear away in preparationfor the flight home. Camel Dive Club isan ideal place to stay, because everythinga diver needs is all around you. There is the famous rooftop bar

where you can sit and have a beer withthe other divers and dive-guides whileyou fill in your logbooks and discuss allthe stuff you’ve seen on the day’s dives.Arriving back at the hotel coincides

with happy hour at the bar, when all thebeers are two-for-one. The rooms arebig, and they all have a patio door outonto a balcony or the poolside. One criticism we photographers had

of the rooms was the lack of any brightlights above the table along the length ofthe room, making it quite gloomy when

Above left: TheThistlegorm from the stern,showing the anti-aircraftgun.

Above right: The cargoholds are a peek intohistory.

Right: The corals arehard for photographersto resist.

Below left: Happydivers up from theirsecond dive andeager for lunch.

Below right: Aturtle keeps an eyeon the divers whilehaving its ownlunch.

Inset: Crew and instructorsat the end of a great week of diving.

Below: Beautiful soft corals cling to every part of the reef.

RED SEA DIVER

FACTFILEGETTING THERE8Nick &Caroline flew with Egypt Air to Cairo and on to Sharm on a domestic flight. Alternativeoptions are available via Istanbulwith Turkish and PegasusAirlines, and there are also directflights via Brussels (TUIfly) andGerman (Germania & FTI) andItalian cities (Meridiana & Neos).For cover Camel recommendsWestfield Sub Aqua & MarineInsurance Services,divinginsuranceuk.com

DIVING & ACCOMMODATION8Camel Dive Club & Hotel,www.cameldive.com

WHEN TO GO8Year-round

CURRENCY8Egyptian pound.

PRICES8Flights with EgyptAirvia Cairo from around £300.Seven nights’ B&B at the 4* Camel Hotel with a 10-boat-dive package, transfers and free nitrox costs 311 euros (no single supplement).

VISITOR INFORMATION8www.egypt.travel