Paradise in the Visayan Sea

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DESTInATIonbyScottDTauson

TheislandofCebuistheplacewhereMagellanfirstlandedinthePhilippines.Today,Cebuandnearbyislandsarefamousforsweetmangoesandstellardivesites.

MalapascuaIsland,justoffthenortherntipofCebuisworld-renownedforbeingtheonlyplaceontheplanetwhereyoucanreliablydivewithelusivethreshersharks.Moalboal,onthecentralwestcoastofCebu,isaregularstoponthePhilippinesdivingcircuitandisknownforamazingdropoffs.

Asidefromdiving,Cebuoffersagreatmixofculture,foodandentertainmenttokeepyoubusyduringsurfaceintervals.There’senoughvarietyinCebutooffersomethingforalllevelsofdivingandinterest—fromthreshersharkstopygmyseahorses,seasnakestowrecks.Infact,there’ssomuchthatyou’llnodoubtwanttomakemorethanonetriptothearea!

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MONAD SHOAL 18

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MONAD SHOAL

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mantarays(Manta birostris)atmonadshoalcleaningstation

malapascuaisland

Athree-hourscenicdriveandatwenty-minuteboatridefromMactanCebuInternationalAirportputsyouononeofthemostscenicislandsinthePhilippines.Asidefromthegreatbeachandquaintatmosphere,Malapascuahassomethingreallyspecial—threshersharks.

In1997DikDeBoervisitedashoalcalledMonadandchanceduponathreshershark.Asitturnsout,MonadShoalisacleaningstationfortheelusivesharks,andsince2000,whenIfirstwroteanarticleaboutthethreshers,it’sbeenhardtobookaroomatDik’sresort.

AtypicaldivedayinMalapascuawouldbetogetupat4:00am,sortoutyourgearandcamera,getontheboatby5:00amandbeinthewateranhourlater.

ThisuniquedivingexperiencecanonlybedoneinMonadshoaljustoffMalapascuaIsland.Thetricktoasuccessfuldiveistobeearly,whichmeansgettingupat4:00am.

Oncedownatthecleaningstation,minimisemovementandbepreparedtowait.It’shighlyrecommendedtobeonNitroxsoyouhavemorebottomtime,andyoushouldplantobeatdepthsofbetween21and25metres.Onceathreshershowsup,it’soktostartinchingyourwayin,especiallyifyou’retakingphotos.

Diving with Threshers

Therearethreemaincleaningstationsontheshoal,andthebestwaytoseethesharksistocommittooneofthem.Withpatienceandabitofluck,they’llshowupandputonaspectacularshow.Thesharks’graceandeleganceisunrivalled.IusuallyplanfortwodivesatMonad—onebeforeotherboatsgetthere,andaseconddiveasotherboatsfinishtheirdives.

AfterMonad,Iheadbacktotheresort,grabsomebreakfast,andthenheadouttoGatoIsland—agreatplaceforbothmacroandwide-anglesubjects.Pygmyseahorses,frogfish,seasnakesandnudibranchsarejustsomeofthecritterstobefoundthere.Attherighttime,matingcuttlefishandbamboosharkscanalsobeseen.Softcoralcoversmost

ofthereef,makingitagreatplacetoshootwide-anglephotos.

Forthelastdiveonatypicalday,IeithergotothebackofMalapascuatoshootmandarinfishinfourmetresofwater,ortooneofmypersonalfavouriteareas—thehousereefofMalapascuaExoticDiveResort.

Thisisagemofareef,loadedwithfrogfish,flamboyantcuttlefish,bigfinreefsquid…justtonameafewoftheresidentcritters.Therearealsowrecksinthearea—oneWWIIboatjust10minutesfromtheisland,andapassengerferryboatabouttwohoursaway.EvenanentireweekinMalapascuawouldn’tbeenoughtotakeinallthesights.

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moalBoal

Two-and-a-halfhours’drivefromCebucityistheseasidetownofMoalboal,wheredivingisjustoffthebeach.Therearedropoffsandawidevarietyofmarinelife,buttheprimesiteisPescadorIsland,just20minutesawaybyboat.

Hereyou’llencountergiantfrogfish,shoalsofpelagicfishandfriendlylionfish.Thevisibilityisoftengood,makingthedropoffsespeciallyspectacular.Onthewallsarecolourfulandabundantseaanemones,aswellaspelagicsroamingoffintheblue.

OnarecentdivetherewithPhilippinePresidentGloriaMacapagal-Arroyo,wechancedupononeofthebiggestfrogfishI’veeverseen;thephotoIshotisinmybookBahura,forwhichshekindlywrotetheforeword.AllthedivesitesaroundPescadorIslandarenomorethanfiveminutesfromeachother.

Aboutanhour’sboatridefromPescadorisSunkenIsland,aseamountrisingupfromtheoceanfloorto25metres.Thisistheplacetoseepelagicslikebarracuda,trevalliesandwithabitofluck,whalesharksandhammerheadsharks.

shoalofgoldentrevally(Gnathanodon speciosus)information

longlureanglerfish(Antennarius multiocellatus)atgatoisland

Paintedfrogfish(Antennarius pictus)inmoalboal

Tigercardinalfish(Cheilodipterus macrodon)witheggsinsideitsmouth

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Painted frogfish (Antennarius pictus) waiting for prey at Sumilon Island

PSRT RESORTemail: psrt@po.jaring.myhttp://www.sipadan-resort.comPULAU SIPADAN RESORT & TOURS SDN BHD (Co No 190571-V) Tel (6089) 765200. Fax (6089) 7635631st Floor, No 484, Block P, Bandar Sabindo,PO Box No 61120, 91021 Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia

No matter where we build our world-class dive resorts, we always emphasise Mother Nature’s needs, and that of our divers, first.

So, long before the decision was made to give Sipadan a breather by disallowing overnight visitors, we had already begun building other resorts where the interests of divers and conservation are unified.

For instance, at Lankayan, turtle hatchlings find a place of refuge, while at Kapalai, our low-touch approach means we ship everything in and out, trash and all, to minimise any impact on our splendid coral reefs.

LankayanKapalai

PSRT RESORTemail: psrt@po.jaring.myhttp://www.sipadan-resort.comPULAU SIPADAN RESORT & TOURS SDN BHD (Co No 190571-V) Tel (6089) 765200. Fax (6089) 7635631st Floor, No 484, Block P, Bandar Sabindo,PO Box No 61120, 91021 Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia

No matter where we build our world-class dive resorts, we always emphasise Mother Nature’s needs, and that of our divers, first.

So, long before the decision was made to give Sipadan a breather by disallowing overnight visitors, we had already begun building other resorts where the interests of divers and conservation are unified.

For instance, at Lankayan, turtle hatchlings find a place of refuge, while at Kapalai, our low-touch approach means we ship everything in and out, trash and all, to minimise any impact on our splendid coral reefs.

LankayanKapalai

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FauziahlatiffCoralAmbassador-CoRalMalaysia

saYnotosharkfin

Allemployeesandshareholdersofhavechosen—weabstainfromconsumingsharkfin.

It’sawellknownfactthatourreefsareunderimmensepressurefromfishing.Sincemostdivespotsarelocatedinandaroundpopulatedcoastalcommunities,someresortsfeaturedivingontheirhousereefs.

Thesesmallpatchesofprotectedreef,usuallyinfrontofthehostresort,offersomeofthebestdivinginthearea.OnesuchreefislocatedinfrontoftheMalapascuaExoticDiveResort.It’shometosuchdiverseanimalsasdragonets,cuttlefish,frogfishandsquid.Ihighlyrecommendedthatyouspendatleastawholedayexploringallitshiddentreasures!

House Reef Diving

a. OnlyinthePhilippineswillyouseeabroadclubcuttlefish(Sepia latimanus)usingasunkenjeepneyasanartificialreef.

b.Fingereddragonet(dactylopus dactylopus)combingthesandforfood

c. mandarinfish(Synchiropus splendidus)seekingamateattheshallowrubblereefbehindmalapascuaisland

d.aresidentflamboyantcuttlefish(Metasepia pfefferi)onthemalapascuaexoticdiveresorthousereef

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SilkAirfliestoCebufromSingapore.FromManila,PhilippineAirlines,CebuPacific,AsianSpiritandAirPhilippineshaveseveralflightstoCebueachday.TherearealsodirectflightstoCebufromHongKong,MalaysiaandSouthKorea.

Malapascuaisanotherthree-hourdrivefromCebuairport,andatwenty-minuteboatride.Moalboalisatwo-hourdrivefromtheCebuairport.ForSumilonIsland,it’sactuallyshortertoflytoDumaguetecityfromManila.Fromthere,it’s30minutesbyboat.

Tropicalclimate,withdivingallyearround.ThebestmonthsarebetweenFebruaryandNovember.Thewaterisgenerallywarm,butcangetabitchillyonlongdives.A3mmwetsuitshouldbesufficient.

Forvisitorsfrommostcountries,visasareissuedattheairportfor21daysatnocharge.There’sadeparturetaxof750pesosorUSD15forinternationalflights,and200pesosfordomesticflights.

DomesticGSMnetworkandinternationalroamingavailable,butthesmarterandcheaperwayistogetalocalSIMcard.Internetaccesswidelyavailable.

220V,60Hz

PhilippinePeso.USdollarsarealsoacceptedatmostresortsbutnotatsmallstoresorshops.Tippingiswidelyaccepted.

MostareasofthePhilippinesaremalaria-free,butthereareisolatedcasesofdenguefever.Mosquitorepellentishighlyadvisable.

GMT+7hrs.

PHIL

IPPI

NES Malapascua Island

Sumilon Island

MoalboalCebu City

Fact File

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sumilonisland

LocatedonthesouthwesttipofCebu,SumilonIslandwasthefirstmarineparkestablishedinthePhilippines.Theareasuffereddamagefromillegalfishingintheeighties,buthasmadearemarkablecomeback.Theislandissurroundedbyadropofflinedwithseafansandblackcoral,andthere’sagoodchanceofsightingpelagicstoo.

Cebuisabigisland,andtheareahasalotmoredivingthatwhatI’vedescribedhere!Ifyouhavetheluxuryoftime,it’sworthexploringthelesser-knownplaces.Andwhoknows?Youmaydiscoveryourownlittleparadise.

sPecialTHankstothefollowingpartiesfortheirassistanceinpreparingthisfeature:MalapascuaExoticDiveResort,DikandCoraDeBoerandmydiveguideTotong.

ScottD.Tauson

FrOmTHeauTHOrwww.imagequest3d.com“FromtheveryfirsttimeIwenttoMalapascuain2000,Iknewitwasaspecialplace.ThroughtheyearsIhavemademanyfriendsthereandhavereturnedtimeandtimeagaintoexperiencesomeofthebestdivinginthePhilippines,ifnotinSoutheastAsia.”

a. seramblenny(Salarias ceramensis)atmalapascuaislandb.matingbigfinreefsquid(Sepioteuthis lessoniana)c. Tubeanemoneatmalapascuaisland

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