Misool Scuba Diving… The second king – Misool, the large, remote, and sparsely populated island that is the second biggest of Raja Ampat’s “four kings”. It is said that the name Raja Ampat derives from the local folklore story of a woman who finds seven eggs. Four of which hatched and the hatchlings grew to become the kings of those four islands – Waigeo, Misool, Sulawati and Batanta. Located some 150kms from the main regional city of Sorong. It’s a 5-hour journey by fast boat if you are one of the lucky ones staying on the island. Or an overnight sail if you are one of the lucky ones visiting on a liveaboard. Either way you are …
Raja Ampat
Cape Kri – The World’s Best House Reef?
World's Best House Reef... Google Earth is a great place to start if you want to understand why the island of Kri has such a stellar reputation for incredible diving. Viewed from above, the long, slender island is the first major landmass in the path of the Indonesian Throughflow as it streams through the Dampier Strait. Rich with nutrients swept up from the deep basins to the north, Those waters arc around Cape Kri on the north-eastern tip of the island. Almost force-feeding the reef systems that bloom there. Dived on the right tide it is truly one of the wonders of the Dampier Strait, Raja Ampat’s marine biodiversity …
Diving the Dampier Strait
Dampier Strait Diving ... It really is incredible that in just over 20 years Raja Ampat has gone from a little known, remote outpost of the huge Indonesian archipelago. To one of the world’s must-do diving locations. Google “Raja Ampat diving” and you will be bombarded with dozens of options. Ranging across the full spectrum of liveaboard vessels: Huge and luxurious, spa-suite behemoths through to the floating equivalent of backpacker hostels. Plus, on land the options now range from beautiful resorts to village homestays, with everything in between! The huge wave of tourism that has washed over Raja Ampat changed many things for the …
Understanding the Indonesian Archipelago
Understanding the Indonesian Archipelago... It is often said that if the 16,000+ islands of the vast Indonesian archipelago did not exist, we would only have 23 hours in our day… To put that rather bold statement into perspective requires a basic understanding of the Indonesian Throughflow. Which, at the most fundamental level, is simply the largest volume of moving water in the world. It is however an incredibly complex natural phenomena. The Readers Digest version of which is that as the Earth rotates around its polar axis, huge amounts of seawater accumulate in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Producing a disparity of some …
Raja Ampat Pioneers – Ricard Buxo
Raja Ampat Pioneer Ricard Buxo... Undeniably one of the world's extraordinary destinations. Raja Ampat blends breathtaking above-water landscapes with a staggering abundance of marine biodiversity, into a remarkable combination that draws divers from all corners of the globe. My introduction to this incredible region traces back to 1999. When I stumbled upon a post on an online underwater photography bulletin board (anybody remember them?). The author of which was trying to assemble a group of like-minded divers for a trip to a newly established 'eco beach camp' on Kri Island. Providing an opportunity to explore the recently …
Raja Ampat Pioneers – Max Ammer
Max Ammer... It really is quite incredible that in just over 20 years Raja Ampat has gone from a little known, remote outpost of the huge Indonesian archipelago to one of the must-do diving locations globally. Google “Raja Ampat diving” and you will be bombarded with dozens of options. Ranging across the full spectrum of liveaboard vessels. Huge and luxurious, spa-suite behemoths through to the floating equivalent of backpacker hostels. Plus, on land the options range from beautiful resorts to village homestays. With everything in between! The huge wave of tourism that has washed over Raja Ampat changed many things for the better. …
Raja Ampat Pioneers – Edi Frommenwiler
Edi Frommenwiler and Pindito - I have a theory… Completely unproven of course, but very logical (well, to me at least). And it’s that true adventurers have seven genotypes, rather than six like the rest of us. Let’s just call it the AA++ genotype and those individuals with one have inherited an intense desire to explore the world and can never accept a nine-to-five existence. They tend to embark upon their first big adventures in any way they can, as soon as they can. And, in the case of Edi Frommenwiler his chance came by driving trucks in his native Switzerland. But we are not talking about delivering stuff to supermarkets or …
Resort Based Diving in Raja Ampat
Resort based diving in Raja Ampat - is it a real option or is a liveaboard the way to go? Raja Ampat is one of the top dive locations globally. Certainly it is the most popular diving region in Indonesia. Deservedly so because there is some spectacular diving to be had there! Come the start of the main dive season in mid-October, liveaboards start to arrive in Sorong in droves. Where just ten years ago you could count the number of those boats on the fingers of both hands and still have a few digits left. But these days, there at least 50 boats operating during the season... So popular has Raja Ampat become that there are now …