Asia and Indian Ocean – Page 2 – PADI IDC Exam Revision and Theory

World’s Best Cave, Cavern and Grotto Dive Sites

Asia and Indian Ocean, Australia and Pacific, Caribbean And Atlantic, Central America, Rebreathers, Scuba_News, standards, Teach First Aid/CPR, Tec, Tec Diving, Technology, TecRec, TecRec IT Crossover, Top 100, United States And Canada, UW Photography, Wrecks / Scuba Admin

Why do the Top 100 Readers Choice Awards, now in their 23rd year, still matter to divers? Because these are your picks, based on thousands of votes from the most experienced dive travelers on the planet. Why do they matter to us? Because every month you hear from our editors on what we think matters in the world of dive travel. For the January/February issue of Scuba Diving we get to listen to you, and we’re taking notes.

Here, we proudly present the No. 1 ranking destinations in the Best Cave/Cavern/Grotto Diving category of the awards. The full list of winning destinations is below.

Caribbean and Atlantic

1 MEXICO

An explosion in eco-adventure tourism has made the Mayan frontier an attractive destination for avid cave divers. Caverns as measureless as the imagination offer unique opportunities for novices, and miles of fresh exploration line present new adventures for seasoned explorers. Glass factories of intricate calcite ornaments fill passages with eye candy. Massive speleothems are stacked like wedding cakes left melting in the tropical heat. Swimming through nature’s time capsule, you’ll spot the exploration-line arrows of diving legends, and perhaps a few artifacts of cultures lost. Refreshing water and endless tunnels present hours of soak time every day. Accessible adventure, extraordinary beauty and a warm culture of colorful hospitality make Mexico the top of the list for cave divers. — Jill Heinerth

Go Now: visitmexico.com

Pacific and Indian Oceans

1 PALAU

Adventurous (and properly trained) divers know that Palau harbors dark secrets ripe for exploration. Over the eons, salt-water erosion carved caverns, tunnels and other exciting structures into the Micronesian archipelago’s limestone geography. At such world-famous sites as Chandelier Cave, Siaes Tunnel and Blue Holes, those brave enough to enter will find thrills and mysteries galore.
— Eric Michael

Go Now: pristineparadisepalau.com

North America

1 FLORIDA

With crystal-clear water, Florida’s springs offer alluring portals that beckon divers into labyrinthine museums of natural history. Cathedral-size galleries, pristine fossilized remains and a playground of the natural variety make Florida’s caves a seductive attraction for cave divers. The freshening flow, tepid water and easy dive access make a return visit mandatory.
— Jill Heinerth

Go Now: visitflorida.com

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The World’s Best Destinations for Wreck Diving

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Here, we proudly present the No. 1 ranking destinations in the Best Wreck Diving category of the awards. The full list of winning destinations is below.

Pacific and Indian Oceans

1) CHUUCK

Many places boast a few shipwrecks as gee-whiz alternatives to biological reefs, but there’s only one Chuuk, also known as Truk. More than 50 Japanese ships, planes, subs and all manner of machinery, weaponry and fascinating (and sobering) wartime history are on display, the result of America’s deadly aerial barrage on the Japanese fleet in February 1944. This warm, calm lagoon in Micronesia holds a World War II mari- time museum without equal. The 433-foot-long Fujikawa Maru is superb, both for military and marine-life attractions — Zero fighter planes in the hold, deck guns draped in soft corals — and is shallow enough for novices. Tec divers descend 175 feet onto the phenomenal San Francisco to see tanks, trucks and bombs. Shinkoku offers bright invertebrates and school- ing fish; inside, a soldier’s bones rest in sick bay. Chuuk is also a mass grave, a testament to the tragedy of war. — Brandon Cole

Go Now: visittruk.com

North America

1) NORTH CAROLINA

Diving North Carolina’s wrecks doesn’t force you to choose between swimming the top deck alongside sand tiger sharks or penetrating. At a handful of sites, including the USS Indra and the tanker Atlas, drop inside tight quarters to navigate alongside these big fish. — Brooke Morton

Go Now: visitnc.com

2) Florida and Florida Springs

3) Washington

4) California

5) Great Lakes

Caribbean and Atlantic

1) BAHAMAS

You might expect that a nation of 700 islands would boast a massive collection of downed ships — and it does. Your favorite might change to whichever one you dived last, be it the shallow and marine-life-rich SS Sapona cargo steamer off Bimini or Edward Williams off New Providence, where you’ll likely come face to face with Caribbean reef sharks and goliath grouper. — Brooke Morton

Go Now: bahamas.com

2) Cayman Islands

3) Bay Islands

4) Curacao

5) Bonaire

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NEW Sri Lanka Aggressor Introductory Rate

Aggressor Fleet & Dancer Fleet, Asia and Indian Ocean, Dive Deals, Rebreathers, Scuba_News, standards, Teach First Aid/CPR, Tec, Tec Diving, Technology, TecRec, TecRec IT Crossover, UW Photography, Wrecks / Scuba Admin

Aggressor Fleet & Dancer Fleet

Dive Sri Lanka Itinerary in 2016!

Take advantage of the introductory rate of $2500 per person for deluxe or master accommodations on the new Sri Lanka Aggressor. Launch date: Sept. 3, 2…

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NEW FOR 2016: Sri Lanka Aggressor Announced by Aggressor Fleet & Dancer Fleet

Aggressor Fleet & Dancer Fleet, Asia and Indian Ocean, Rebreathers, scuba diving news, Scuba_News, standards, Teach First Aid/CPR, Tec, Tec Diving, Technology, TecRec, TecRec IT Crossover, UW Photography, Wrecks / Scuba Admin

The Aggressor Fleet & Dancer Fleet are expanding their worldwide fleet of scuba diving liveaboards to Sri Lanka. The luxurious 145-foot yacht will take 26 passengers and offer three diversified itineraries starting September 2016: choose Whale & Dolphin Snorkel weeks, Tech Wreck weeks or diving East Colombo and Northeast Kalpitiya.

“I couldn’t imagine a better way to celebrate our 32nd anniversary than by offering our guests this exciting destination! One of the most important parts of our business is to seek out and explore new areas of the world,” says Chairman and CEO, Wayne B. Brown.

During the Whale and Dolphin weeks, guests will have the opportunity to snorkel with up to 13 species of whales and eight species of dolphin. Sri Lanka is unique in that many of these whales reside around the island of Sri Lanka, including blue whales, sperm whales, humpback whales, beaked whales, melon headed whales, pilot whales, and false killer whales.

The diving itinerary, East Colombo and Northeast Kalpitiya, departs from Colombo to explore beautiful wrecks and reefs. Half the week is spent exploring the wrecks and the other half venturing north for drift diving along lush coral reefs teeming with fish. The wreck dives will include the Thermopylae Sierra, Chief Dragon, Taprobane, and Trug.

The Tech Wreck itinerary departs from Tricomalee and explores world-class wrecks such as the HMS Hermes aircraft carrier, HMS Hollyhock and RFA Athelstane. With over 200 wrecks in Sri Lanka, 50 are identified as world-class dives. The HMS Hermes was the first-ever British aircraft carrier built. The 600-meter wreck is residing at a depth of 54 meters along with 3 other support ships in 20 to 40 meter depths. The Sri Lanka Aggressor is fitted with 3 x 600 HP compressors, nitrox compressor, full tri-mix system and rebreather system.

The Sri Lanka Aggressor operates seven-night charters out of Colombo Harbor for six months of the year and from Trincomalee for four-and-a-half months of the year.

Aggressor Fleet and Dancer Fleet have 28 dive destinations: Alor, Bahamas, Banda Sea, Belize (2 yachts), Cáno Island (2 yachts), Cayman Islands, Cenderawasih Bay, Cocos Island, Costa Rica (2 yachts), Dominican Republic, Fiji, Galapagos, Hawaii, Komodo, Maldives, Palau (2 yachts), Raja Ampat, Thailand, Tiger Beach, Turks and Caicos, Raja Ampat, Red Sea, Wakatobi and now Sri Lanka. Reservations can be made online at www.aggressor.com, or by calling 800-348-2628 or +1-706-993-2531.

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Diving with Schools of Barracuda

Asia and Indian Ocean, Marine Life, Rebreathers, Scuba_News, standards, Teach First Aid/CPR, Tec, Tec Diving, Technology, TecRec, TecRec IT Crossover, UW Photography, Wrecks / Scuba Admin

One of the most recognizable fish that divers encounter throughout the world’s oceans is the barracuda. Its pike-shaped body and gaping, toothy mouth give it away immediately. The fish can prove surprisingly docile despite its appearance, often hovering casually in the shade of a dive boat or alongside a coral head.

There are actually more than two dozen species of barracuda, and they range widely in size. The great barracuda — a common sight in the Caribbean — can grow to nearly 6 feet long. In the Indo-Pacifc, the yellowtail barracuda tops out at only 2 feet.

Most commonly, divers spot barracuda swimming alone or in small groups of five or six, but some species can form vast schools, especially when they’re still young, because schooling provides protection from larger predators. Few underwater encounters are more thrill- ing and sought after than swimming into a spiraling vortex of barracuda.

Barracuda schools can happen all over the world, especially in deepwater destinations like the sea- mounts of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula or the mid-Atlantic Azores islands. But the reliable barracuda tornadoes that captivate underwater photographers usually happen among a specific species: the chevron barracuda (Sphyraena genie — also called blacktail barracuda), which ranges across the Indo-Pacifc.

Chevron barracuda are easy to recognize, thanks to the pattern of V-shaped black bars that adorns the sides of their bodies. And while it’s possible to see these fish form their massive schools in spots from Ras Mohammed National Park in Egypt’s Red Sea to the seamounts of Papua New Guinea’s Kimbe Bay, there’s one place that is universally renowned for encounters with thousands-strong schools of barracuda: Sipadan Island of the Malaysian side of Borneo.
The Sipadan site called Barracuda Point starts along a sheer wall where gray reef sharks and bumphead parrotfish make regular appearances, eventually leading to an underwater plateau that is ground zero for huge shoals of barracuda in tornado-like formations. There are no guarantees in diving, but this site is frequently lauded for being a sure thing for divers seeking conglomerations of the barracuda kind.

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