Pacific Diving-Where to Go?

[chace_nicole]

wow!! had to google "toxins in jellyfish lake"

Comparable to cyanide!!!!!
bad stuff, glad I wasn't the one to discover this factoid!

[gibson1525]

Originally Posted by Travelnsj

I think you were lucky in Yap....most people I talk to go down to to 80' blow bubbles and see a couple of Mantas go by including me....LOL. Yours is the first story (other than the local DM) that has seen them on a constant basis...Sounds like a great photo opportunity.....hope you had your camera.

So you enjoyed Palau?

yea, we might just have been lucky but our experience was great. they talked us into doing a regular reef dive away from all the cleaning stations. what a waste, they bragged about their corals but i wasn't impressed, especially when you have herds of mantas 20 min. away!

we did have a camera but that was back in the days of film. i haven't even started the process of putting them on my computer yet. i'll try and post some as soon as i get that started.

palau was great also. we had some crappy weather, out of 10 days we had 2 without rain. the seas were choppy so we were restricted in our dive site selection. the DMs complained about how bad the diving was but it was still the best diving i've ever done. we went to blue corner and there was hardly any current, in fact, i didn't even use my reef hook that is normally mandatory to stay on the corner. the DMs said that was the worst dive they've had at blue corner but at one point i counted about 20 sharks in my field of view. i can't wait to go back and do it on a good day!

mandarin fish lake was also very neat

[Travelnsj]

Palau is hard to beat. I have found other destinations better for specific things but it is the best overall. Sorry you had crappy Weather. August and part of September are usually bad.....I go in March and usually the weather is great. I may go to Palau next fall. Most likely late Oct....I hear that is a good window......glad you had a good time just wish the weather had been better for ya.

[bversteegh]

Have you considered Indonesia or Papua New Guinea? North Sulawesi is excellent - the Lembeh Straits provide some of the most unique diving in the world, and Bangka Island on the North end has fabulous soft coral.

Fak Fak is the newly discovered hot spot - it is on the Indonesian side of the island of Papua.

Raja Ampat and Misool are fabulous for biodiversity, healthiest reefs I have ever seen.

Follow the link to my pictures on Flickr - you will see pictures from Raja Ampat and Lembeh.

Only disclaimer - you won't see a ton of pelagics in Indonesia; Raja Ampat has wobbegong sharks, turtles, and mantas (plus some large school fish like jacks, bumphead wrass, barracuda), plus occasional reef sharks. Also saw some porpoise, although never dove with them.

[robjoubert]

If you REALLY want to do something different, look at this site: Map of scuba dive sites in South Africa and Mozambique

It lists all the dive sites in Southern Africa and although I cannot personally recommend any of the dive sites (I am just now getting certified), I can recommend the Hluhluwe Game Park, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town!!

Cheers

[bubble-head]

I lived on Guam for 2 years and really loved the diving. Much of it can be done from shore. There are some other more popular destinations close by like Palau and Truk Lagoon but if you are staying on the island for any length of time, Guam does offer some great diving.

[abunai671]

cant wait to go back home to dive. ive only been able to snorkel in the micronesias and i know there's some good WWII wrecks to check out.

[indatexas]

If you can, hit up the Marshall Islands...I was lucky enough to visit Kwajalein last year.

[Travelnsj]

Originally Posted by indatexas

If you can, hit up the Marshall Islands...I was lucky enough to visit Kwajalein last year.

What was the diving like? I've heard it is a lot like Hawaii?

[indatexas]

Originally Posted by Travelnsj

What was the diving like? I've heard it is a lot like Hawaii?

Was great, warm water and crystal clear water-could see for miles underwater...similar to hawaii, less touristy.