Bangka - North Sulawesi
This Bangka Archipelago is a group of islands off the coast of north Sulawesi and include Bangka,
the largest, as well as Gangga, Talisei, Kinabohutan, Tindila and the little island just offshore the mainland Tamperong.
There are four villages on Bangka Island, but there is no road. Best way to visit one of the villages is by boat or, for the more adventurous people, go hiking
through the forest.
There are a couple of resorts on the island of Bangka, but they are all more or less secluded from each other. The island has sandy bays and rich tangles of tropical vegetation which frequently give way to mangrove areas and then to the ocean itself.
You can go directly from the airport to the resort on Bangka island, but most people start their holiday diving in the Bunaken Marine Park.
From Manado are 2 ways to reach the island of Bangka, one is by boat from the resort (4 hours) or by car following a scenic road
to the remote village of Likupang (2 hours).
We recommend the Bangka Resort situated at the South point of Bangka island in a beautiful enclosed bay and an amazing house reef.
From the mainland it is a 20 minute boat trip to this small resort. Since most of the dive sites are so close you will have your rest in between dives
at this tropical paradise.
General dive conditions:
The Bangka Archipelago offers steep drop-offs, slopes and sharp Coral pinnacles covered in beautiful soft
Corals and some magnificent soft Coral gardens.
The islands are quite exposed and often get strong currents and the surface condition can be rough.
Especially between July and September there can be strong currents and surges with high waves, with a negative affect
on the visibility. The water temperature is around 27°C.
Best time to dive is between March - June and between October - December when visibility can be up to 35 metres. The dive sites, which are around
the islands and along the mainland coast, offer a great diversity like pinnacles, rocks, slopes, a few walls, and caves.
Fixed fauna is impressive with very nice colourful soft Corals and Sea Fans. The almost undamaged marine life includes all kinds of Scorpionfishes,
Frogfishes, Pipefishes, Triggerfishes, Eels, Seahorses and Nudibranchs and more.
Then you may encounter the bigger marine life like Trevally, Tuna, Rays, Sharks, Turtles and Napoleon Wrasses.
House reef Murex Bangka resort - [1]
This bay is covered in hard and soft Coral with lots of Anemones and inhabitants. The flat reef continues in a sloping bottom, with Coral outcrops, down to a depth of 35 metres.
Currents pick up when you go out of the seclusion of the bay
and vary with the tide and weather conditions.
Take a good look around and you will find Jawfishes, Scorpionfishes, Ghost and Ringed Pipefishes
and much more.
In the bay you will find an abundance of hard and soft Corals with a variety of colours and lots of Anemones with their inhabitants.
Great for night diving and snorkeling.
Batu Sahaung - [2]
Only 10 minutes by boat this site consists of a series of large underwater pinnacles that break the
surface.
The current can be strong and visibility is around 15 metres.
The depth is between 5 and 40 metres. There is so much marine life
and an abundance of soft Corals; you will need to dive this site more then once. Sahuang has it all, from big to small. The pinnacles
are surrounded by Snappers, Surgeon fishes, Fusiliers, Batfishes, Angelfishes and red-tooth Triggerfishes. Small White tip reef Sharks might be
hiding under the table Corals. Take a good look at the Coral covered pinnacles and you may see Moray Eels, Frogfishes and Pygmy Seahorses
in the Fans.
Lagoon Sahaung - [3]
Here you will find a beautiful soft Coral garden which slopes down to 30m. There are small walls covered in all kind of coloured Corals. You will see all kinds of small reef fish and there is a good possibility to spot the Mandarin fish.
Tanjung Toto - [4]
On the surface there are two small rocky pinnacles rising up from the sea. The bottom is full with Coral
covered rock slabs and patches of hard Coral on a white sandy bottom. The depth is around 20 to 35 metres and currents vary.
Again lots of marine life like Trevallies, Scorpionfishes and Moray Eels, just to name a few. Just circle around the pinnacles and you can find amazing stuff.
We are not sure, but this might be the spot were we saw this huge yellow Nudibranch, called Banana Nudi by the diveguide.
Lucky for us we have a picture taken by Jeroen AKA "Topper" from the Netherlands.
Batu Gosoh - [5]
The wall drops of to 45m with vertical cracks, caves and pinnacles rising up from the bottom. Currents can be strong with a visibility between 20 and 30 metres. Here you can see schools of Batfish, Bannerfish, Butterfly fish, Sweetlips and red-tooth Triggerfish. Look out in the blue and you might spot White tip reef Sharks, Mackerels and dogtooth Tunas.
Other dive sites around Bangka Island are Batu Kapal, the Airplane Wreck and, next to the Bangka resort house reef, Tanjung Usi.
The Talise island dive sites:
Tanjung Arus - [9]
This is the most northern part of the island (45 minute by boat from the resort) and may be an advanced
site dependent on the current.
The site, with a variety of soft and hard Corals that drops off to 30m and more, has an amazing cave.
Small fish like Scorpion leaf fish, and bigger animals like Napoleon Wrasses, Bumphead Parrotfish, Tunas even Sharks are regular visitors
here.
Talise Pinnacle - [10]
Just around the corner you will find this site with a beautiful Coral garden. The maximum depth is 30m.
Currents vary from mild to strong and the visibility is around 20 metres.
Lots of different Nudibranch species around here and the
occasional sea Snake may swim by.
Air Banua - [11]
This is a wall covered in soft Coral and beautiful Gorgonians and drops down to 30m and more. Variation of marine life from the big Napoleon Wrasses to the smaller animals like the Ghost Pipefish.
Lehaga islands - [12]
This is a garden full with soft and hard Corals which slopes down to 25m.
Currents depend on tide and weather condition and can be strong. There are many different Anemones with their inhabitants and, when you dive early in the morning
or at sunset, you may see the Mandarin fish.
Search the bottom for the burrow of a Mantis shrimp and you might get lucky. Other animals to see here are Leaf Scorpionfishes, Bunphead Parrotfishes, Ribbon and Moray Eels.
Gangga islands - [13]
This is a volcanic slope covered with soft and hard Corals and big Sponges. An abundance of small reef fish and special Pipefishes live around here.
Opposite the resort, around 20 minute by boat, on the mainland are many dive sites. We will describe a few :
Pulisan - [14]
Beautiful house reef that consists of rocks peaking out on the surface and a sloping white sandy bottom covered in patches of Corals and Sponges. The bottom slopes down to 25 metres with a visibility of 20m. There is an enormous variety of reef fish, Nudibranchs, Crustaceans and other marine organisms.
Batu Mandi - [15]
Great pinnacle dive with a sloping wall covered with soft Coral, Sponges and Sea Fans. The depth is between 5 and 30 metres with a visibility around 15 metres. Here you can find an abundance of macro life. Nudibranchs, Spanish dancers, giant Frogfishes, Cuttlefishes, and Blue ringed Octopuses are regular inhabitants.
Paradise jetty - [16]
This site, around the jetty, has a white sandy bottom which gradually slopes to a depth of 15m. Here you
will find a variety of animals common for a 'muck dive'.
You can see Frogfishes, Seahorses, leaf Scorpionfishes, Shrimps, various kinds of Moray Eels, Snake Eels, and with luck a Mimic Octopus.
Around the corner to the South, direction Lembeh strait, there are more dive sites like Batu Pendeta, Poteng and Batu Putih...