[SouthernSeas]

Honiara trip report, August 2007

I managed to get in 5 dives in before attending a conference I was in town for. Here’s the report:

If you like wrecks and/or you’re a tech diver, the Solomon’s is the place to be! The island of Guadalcanal, which is where Honiara is located, was the site of some of the fiercest naval battles of World War II. The shores around Honiara are littered with wrecks of all kinds – planes, supply ships etc.

I dived with Invader Charters, which is located in the Honiara Hotel. They run day shore dives pretty much on the asking – when ever you have time to go, they can pretty much arrange to take you out.

Over the five dives we did three different sites, all Japanese supply ships. Of the three, the best site was called “Bonegi I” on the ship of the Hirokawa Maru. – I liked it so much I asked to go back a second time (I also did it as my 5th dive because they were going back that day). The site goes from 2m to 60m, and there is plenty to see at any depth.

We started at 40m and worked our way up. Between 30 and 15m the ship is cracked in half, with half its hull standing pretty much vertical, and the rest spilled over into the sand. The fish and coral absolutely love it, supporting a diversity of species. Octopus and eels amongst the wreckage in the sand, coral plastered over towers of broken hull that jut out 10 – 15m from the main wreck – clownfish, puffers, tobies, surgeonfish, spadefish, schools of snapper, oriental sweetlips, fusiliers, and small tuna cruising around. Really nice.

Each time I dived this site, there was absolutely no current – it was so still it was almost surreal. You could stop dead in your tracks and float effortless in the same spot to check something out more closely. Apparently this isn’t always the case on at Bonegi I, so I was glad I got to experience it. The vis wasn’t perfect, but at least 15 – 20m. (On the third dive the vis was only 5 to 10m – possibly because of an earthquake we had a couple of days before)

My second favourite site was the Kiushu Maru. The max dept on this site is about 55m. We started the dive penetrating the wreck at 40m. The hull is mostly empty, but there is still plenty of unexploded ordinance lying around. Since the wreck is lying at a very steep angle up the beach, the swim through the hull is quite steep, rising to about 25m. Its covered the whole way through, and the way out is a small slit compared to the way in. Makes for some very cool light effects. There’s not too many fish in the hull, mostly hatchet fish and lionfish, but a heck of a lot of fun. There is much less sea life at this site compared to the Hirokawa Maru, but there is a nice little coral garden between 8 and 3m where you can do your safety stop.

As for the town of Hoinara itself, its not exactly a “holiday spot” – The Solomon’s are one of the least developed countries in the world, not politically stable, and does not offer much in terms of land activities (the tourism industry is not very developed). The hotels are quite basic (even the “high end” hotels) although you can get some good food.

So, I wouldn’t recommend Honiara as a land-based trip (I was there because of work). However, I understand that the liveboards can be great in the Solomon’s and also accommodate technical divers – as there are a lot of very deep wrecks.

Gizo, which is on an island northwest of Hoinara, was a “hot spot” in the Solomon’s for diving – but it was affected recently by a tsunami. While some of the facilities are yet to be rebuilt, I understand that the diving there now is actually pretty good, because the damage to the corals has attracted a lot of fish.