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Paradise in the Visayan Sea
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DESTInATIonbyScottDTauson
TheislandofCebuistheplacewhereMagellanfirstlandedinthePhilippines.Today,Cebuandnearbyislandsarefamousforsweetmangoesandstellardivesites.
MalapascuaIsland,justoffthenortherntipofCebuisworld-renownedforbeingtheonlyplaceontheplanetwhereyoucanreliablydivewithelusivethreshersharks.Moalboal,onthecentralwestcoastofCebu,isaregularstoponthePhilippinesdivingcircuitandisknownforamazingdropoffs.
Asidefromdiving,Cebuoffersagreatmixofculture,foodandentertainmenttokeepyoubusyduringsurfaceintervals.There’senoughvarietyinCebutooffersomethingforalllevelsofdivingandinterest—fromthreshersharkstopygmyseahorses,seasnakestowrecks.Infact,there’ssomuchthatyou’llnodoubtwanttomakemorethanonetriptothearea!
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MONAD SHOAL 18
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MONAD SHOAL
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MONAD SHOAL
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mantarays(Manta birostris)atmonadshoalcleaningstation
malapascuaisland
Athree-hourscenicdriveandatwenty-minuteboatridefromMactanCebuInternationalAirportputsyouononeofthemostscenicislandsinthePhilippines.Asidefromthegreatbeachandquaintatmosphere,Malapascuahassomethingreallyspecial—threshersharks.
In1997DikDeBoervisitedashoalcalledMonadandchanceduponathreshershark.Asitturnsout,MonadShoalisacleaningstationfortheelusivesharks,andsince2000,whenIfirstwroteanarticleaboutthethreshers,it’sbeenhardtobookaroomatDik’sresort.
AtypicaldivedayinMalapascuawouldbetogetupat4:00am,sortoutyourgearandcamera,getontheboatby5:00amandbeinthewateranhourlater.
ThisuniquedivingexperiencecanonlybedoneinMonadshoaljustoffMalapascuaIsland.Thetricktoasuccessfuldiveistobeearly,whichmeansgettingupat4:00am.
Oncedownatthecleaningstation,minimisemovementandbepreparedtowait.It’shighlyrecommendedtobeonNitroxsoyouhavemorebottomtime,andyoushouldplantobeatdepthsofbetween21and25metres.Onceathreshershowsup,it’soktostartinchingyourwayin,especiallyifyou’retakingphotos.
Diving with Threshers
Therearethreemaincleaningstationsontheshoal,andthebestwaytoseethesharksistocommittooneofthem.Withpatienceandabitofluck,they’llshowupandputonaspectacularshow.Thesharks’graceandeleganceisunrivalled.IusuallyplanfortwodivesatMonad—onebeforeotherboatsgetthere,andaseconddiveasotherboatsfinishtheirdives.
AfterMonad,Iheadbacktotheresort,grabsomebreakfast,andthenheadouttoGatoIsland—agreatplaceforbothmacroandwide-anglesubjects.Pygmyseahorses,frogfish,seasnakesandnudibranchsarejustsomeofthecritterstobefoundthere.Attherighttime,matingcuttlefishandbamboosharkscanalsobeseen.Softcoralcoversmost
ofthereef,makingitagreatplacetoshootwide-anglephotos.
Forthelastdiveonatypicalday,IeithergotothebackofMalapascuatoshootmandarinfishinfourmetresofwater,ortooneofmypersonalfavouriteareas—thehousereefofMalapascuaExoticDiveResort.
Thisisagemofareef,loadedwithfrogfish,flamboyantcuttlefish,bigfinreefsquid…justtonameafewoftheresidentcritters.Therearealsowrecksinthearea—oneWWIIboatjust10minutesfromtheisland,andapassengerferryboatabouttwohoursaway.EvenanentireweekinMalapascuawouldn’tbeenoughtotakeinallthesights.
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moalBoal
Two-and-a-halfhours’drivefromCebucityistheseasidetownofMoalboal,wheredivingisjustoffthebeach.Therearedropoffsandawidevarietyofmarinelife,buttheprimesiteisPescadorIsland,just20minutesawaybyboat.
Hereyou’llencountergiantfrogfish,shoalsofpelagicfishandfriendlylionfish.Thevisibilityisoftengood,makingthedropoffsespeciallyspectacular.Onthewallsarecolourfulandabundantseaanemones,aswellaspelagicsroamingoffintheblue.
OnarecentdivetherewithPhilippinePresidentGloriaMacapagal-Arroyo,wechancedupononeofthebiggestfrogfishI’veeverseen;thephotoIshotisinmybookBahura,forwhichshekindlywrotetheforeword.AllthedivesitesaroundPescadorIslandarenomorethanfiveminutesfromeachother.
Aboutanhour’sboatridefromPescadorisSunkenIsland,aseamountrisingupfromtheoceanfloorto25metres.Thisistheplacetoseepelagicslikebarracuda,trevalliesandwithabitofluck,whalesharksandhammerheadsharks.
shoalofgoldentrevally(Gnathanodon speciosus)information
longlureanglerfish(Antennarius multiocellatus)atgatoisland
Paintedfrogfish(Antennarius pictus)inmoalboal
Tigercardinalfish(Cheilodipterus macrodon)witheggsinsideitsmouth
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Painted frogfish (Antennarius pictus) waiting for prey at Sumilon Island
PSRT RESORTemail: [email protected]://www.sipadan-resort.comPULAU SIPADAN RESORT & TOURS SDN BHD (Co No 190571-V) Tel (6089) 765200. Fax (6089) 7635631st Floor, No 484, Block P, Bandar Sabindo,PO Box No 61120, 91021 Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia
No matter where we build our world-class dive resorts, we always emphasise Mother Nature’s needs, and that of our divers, first.
So, long before the decision was made to give Sipadan a breather by disallowing overnight visitors, we had already begun building other resorts where the interests of divers and conservation are unified.
For instance, at Lankayan, turtle hatchlings find a place of refuge, while at Kapalai, our low-touch approach means we ship everything in and out, trash and all, to minimise any impact on our splendid coral reefs.
LankayanKapalai
PSRT RESORTemail: [email protected]://www.sipadan-resort.comPULAU SIPADAN RESORT & TOURS SDN BHD (Co No 190571-V) Tel (6089) 765200. Fax (6089) 7635631st Floor, No 484, Block P, Bandar Sabindo,PO Box No 61120, 91021 Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia
No matter where we build our world-class dive resorts, we always emphasise Mother Nature’s needs, and that of our divers, first.
So, long before the decision was made to give Sipadan a breather by disallowing overnight visitors, we had already begun building other resorts where the interests of divers and conservation are unified.
For instance, at Lankayan, turtle hatchlings find a place of refuge, while at Kapalai, our low-touch approach means we ship everything in and out, trash and all, to minimise any impact on our splendid coral reefs.
LankayanKapalai
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FauziahlatiffCoralAmbassador-CoRalMalaysia
saYnotosharkfin
Allemployeesandshareholdersofhavechosen—weabstainfromconsumingsharkfin.
It’sawellknownfactthatourreefsareunderimmensepressurefromfishing.Sincemostdivespotsarelocatedinandaroundpopulatedcoastalcommunities,someresortsfeaturedivingontheirhousereefs.
Thesesmallpatchesofprotectedreef,usuallyinfrontofthehostresort,offersomeofthebestdivinginthearea.OnesuchreefislocatedinfrontoftheMalapascuaExoticDiveResort.It’shometosuchdiverseanimalsasdragonets,cuttlefish,frogfishandsquid.Ihighlyrecommendedthatyouspendatleastawholedayexploringallitshiddentreasures!
House Reef Diving
a. OnlyinthePhilippineswillyouseeabroadclubcuttlefish(Sepia latimanus)usingasunkenjeepneyasanartificialreef.
b.Fingereddragonet(dactylopus dactylopus)combingthesandforfood
c. mandarinfish(Synchiropus splendidus)seekingamateattheshallowrubblereefbehindmalapascuaisland
d.aresidentflamboyantcuttlefish(Metasepia pfefferi)onthemalapascuaexoticdiveresorthousereef
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d.
SilkAirfliestoCebufromSingapore.FromManila,PhilippineAirlines,CebuPacific,AsianSpiritandAirPhilippineshaveseveralflightstoCebueachday.TherearealsodirectflightstoCebufromHongKong,MalaysiaandSouthKorea.
Malapascuaisanotherthree-hourdrivefromCebuairport,andatwenty-minuteboatride.Moalboalisatwo-hourdrivefromtheCebuairport.ForSumilonIsland,it’sactuallyshortertoflytoDumaguetecityfromManila.Fromthere,it’s30minutesbyboat.
Tropicalclimate,withdivingallyearround.ThebestmonthsarebetweenFebruaryandNovember.Thewaterisgenerallywarm,butcangetabitchillyonlongdives.A3mmwetsuitshouldbesufficient.
Forvisitorsfrommostcountries,visasareissuedattheairportfor21daysatnocharge.There’sadeparturetaxof750pesosorUSD15forinternationalflights,and200pesosfordomesticflights.
DomesticGSMnetworkandinternationalroamingavailable,butthesmarterandcheaperwayistogetalocalSIMcard.Internetaccesswidelyavailable.
220V,60Hz
PhilippinePeso.USdollarsarealsoacceptedatmostresortsbutnotatsmallstoresorshops.Tippingiswidelyaccepted.
MostareasofthePhilippinesaremalaria-free,butthereareisolatedcasesofdenguefever.Mosquitorepellentishighlyadvisable.
GMT+7hrs.
PHIL
IPPI
NES Malapascua Island
Sumilon Island
MoalboalCebu City
Fact File
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sumilonisland
LocatedonthesouthwesttipofCebu,SumilonIslandwasthefirstmarineparkestablishedinthePhilippines.Theareasuffereddamagefromillegalfishingintheeighties,buthasmadearemarkablecomeback.Theislandissurroundedbyadropofflinedwithseafansandblackcoral,andthere’sagoodchanceofsightingpelagicstoo.
Cebuisabigisland,andtheareahasalotmoredivingthatwhatI’vedescribedhere!Ifyouhavetheluxuryoftime,it’sworthexploringthelesser-knownplaces.Andwhoknows?Youmaydiscoveryourownlittleparadise.
sPecialTHankstothefollowingpartiesfortheirassistanceinpreparingthisfeature:MalapascuaExoticDiveResort,DikandCoraDeBoerandmydiveguideTotong.
ScottD.Tauson
FrOmTHeauTHOrwww.imagequest3d.com“FromtheveryfirsttimeIwenttoMalapascuain2000,Iknewitwasaspecialplace.ThroughtheyearsIhavemademanyfriendsthereandhavereturnedtimeandtimeagaintoexperiencesomeofthebestdivinginthePhilippines,ifnotinSoutheastAsia.”
a. seramblenny(Salarias ceramensis)atmalapascuaislandb.matingbigfinreefsquid(Sepioteuthis lessoniana)c. Tubeanemoneatmalapascuaisland
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