Asian Diver — October 2017

47

WRECK DIVING
Divers are often surprised to learn that
they can get a glimpse into the world
of wreck diving at Puerto Galera’s
one larger wreck and its few smaller
ones. Instructors can teach the Wreck
Specialty course here, and true rust
fanatics can continue from Puerto
Galera to Coron Island, the wreck mecca
of Philippines.

St. Christopher can have moderate

to strong current during tidal changes;

it’s best to dive it at slack tide, and use

it as a starting point to explore the reef

in Small Laguna Beach.

SABANG WRECKS

A set of three small sunken vessels,

a small steel yacht and two wooden

boats, are a haven for macro diving and

photography, with eels, scorpionfish,

stonefish, lionfish, flounders, pipefish,

frogfish, ghost pipefish, ornate ghost

pipefish, and various nudibranchs.

Cruising along on top of the decaying

vessels presents a highly diversified

residence of marine life, where divers

can see dozens of species within metres.

The Coral Triangle is a habitat

for 76 percent of the known coral

species in the world, 52 percent

of Indo-Pacific reef fishes and

37 percent of the world’s known

reef fishes. As a result, the diving

here offers the opportunity to see

the highest diversity of coral reef

fishes in the world – more than

3,000 species! You can also find

six out of the seven species of

marine turtles!

During a recent six-week

expedition to Puerto Galera,

sponsored in part by Atlantis Dive

Resorts, Dr Terry Gosliner from

California Academy of Science

identified 200 new species of fish,

coral and critters. By choosing

responsible dive operators in the

Coral Triangle, divers can support

local communities, and can help

them build a sustainable income

that supports conservation.

THE FAMOUS CORAL TRIANGLE

“Bring a torch so that you can peer into

the crevices, and make sure your guide

knows what kinds of critters you’re

interested in seeing so that they can

find them for you!”

• Felix Cabuhal, Dive Guide,
  Atlantis Dive Resorts

TOP TIP: A MUST FOR RUST

“Bringing a pointer stick with you is

great for showing your buddy cool

finds, but also useful for helping

to steady yourself while doing no

damage to the reefs and wrecks.”

• Luke Spence, Resort Manager,
  Atlantis Dive Resorts

TOP TIP: ITS ALL ABOUT BALANCE

ST. CHRISTOPHER

Also known as “Anton’s Wreck”, this
18-metre-long wooden boat was sunk
by local dive operators in 1995 to create
an artificial reef at 20 to 24 metres deep.
Swim alongside large snappers, while
spotting juvenile and adult frogfish and
sergeant majors (a type of damselfish)
guarding their purple eggs. Diving the
St. Christopher at night, the wreck,
sponges and sandy bottom all crawl
with crabs and shrimp. Snappers, batfish
and frogfish are also regulars on this
dive site.

The Pinnacles at Verde

Island are a haven for

charismatic marine

life, like the banded

sea krait

ALMA JANE

Alma Jane is a 60-tonne, 32-metre

steel-hulled Filipino cargo vessel built

in 1966 in Japan. She was stripped of

dangerous objects and intentionally

sunk in 2003, as an initiative involving

a number of local dive operators,

including the Atlantis Resort. She sits

upright on the sandy bottom, well

within recreational diving limits, at just

20 to 30 metres deep, with its upper

deck at 22 metres.

She decayed rapidly, and looks older

than her 14 years underwater, mostly

due to the area’s warm water, which

stays at about 30 degrees Celsius

during the summertime.

On the upper deck, divers can get

a view of Alma Jane’s original timber

deck lines, which are now rotten.

The upper deck is a veritable bounty of

hard and soft corals, shrimps, crabs and

macro life.

Swimming through its wide beams

are colourful schools of fish, while light

rays entering from various skylights

create a beautiful vista. Moray eels

reside in the metal structure, while the

mast on the bow is now home to oyster

clams and hard corals. Diving on the

sandy bottom offers an excellent view

of the ship’s silhouette. You can expect

to meet snappers, sweetlips, batfish,

rabbitfish, scorpionfish, pufferfish,

lionfish, trumpetfish, frogfish, octopuses

and cuttlefish.

Ary Amarante