The world has gotten small, and when you are searching for a new location that offers great diving, along with atmosphere and amenities to keep a non-diving family happy, it's even smaller. So when I challenged my favorite travel agent, Jim Harlan with Uncommon Adventures, to find us such a rare location, he had to do a bit of head scratching, particularly since we had already visited nearly all the Caribbean locations that fit the bill, and had previously taken a trip to the hands-down winner for diver/non-diver travel, Fiji.
We considered Wakitobi, in Indonesia, but that was vetoed by the family (they hold a permanent majority in our household) because of the possible risk transiting Bali, so the next choice offered was Palau.
With a little research I determined that Palau would certainly fill the "superb diving" requirement, and since a good beach is non-negotiable with the ladies, there was really only one choice for lodging, the Palau Pacific Resort.
With the main destination chosen, now it was time to build a trip.
At present, Continental airlines hold the keys to Palau travel, and although there are a few variants, the route to Palau primarily goes through Tokyo and Guam, and the route home goes through Guam and Honolulu. Having in the past squinted through severe jet lag for the first few days at distant destinations, I now make an effort to incorporate a stop-off on the front end of the trip to reset the body clock. From Washington DC we stopped at Houston, Tokyo, and Guam. Tokyo was an intriguing stop-off possibility, but we had stretched the wallet pretty thin to fund this trip and it just wouldn't stand a stopover in one of the most expensive places on the planet. Plus, there are not much in the way of diving opportunities for warm water wimps there.
I knew nothing about Guam, so it was time to hit the books.
Guam looked immediately promising. Good hotels, safe, nice beaches, and on top of that an American territory. And, what do you know, a thriving but little known diving scene. So we booked 5 nights in Guam and shortly afterward I hit the jackpot for local knowledge of the diving, in the person of Chris Bangs, an experienced underwater photographer who just happened to live on Guam and is a manager of the Micronesia Divers Association. Chris posts on a couple message boards and some friendly folks on the boards got us connected. He bent over backward to help me plan the diving (and eating) portion of our trip and I am most grateful to him.
I don't have much experience with Continental Airlines, but I must say our flights were relatively painless and the customer service was far above normal. We were able to book bulkhead seats on all three of the very long legs by calling 24 hours before the departure of our first leg, and all my phone experiences with them were pleasant. They also let our slightly overweight bags slide, which was another big plus.
Our brief layover in Tokyo was interesting, particularly visiting the shops in Narita airport. We were able to lay in a vacation supply of Salted Squid Guts, and the toilets had a remote control bottom cleaning feature that has leapfrogged our current toilet technology to the point that I doubt we will ever catch up. More on that later.
GUAM
We hit Guam late at night, and after negotiating a van for transport as to avoid paying a second cab for our copious luggage, we arrived at the Guam Hyatt Regency, checked in, stumbled to our room, and passed out. The whole check in process was much like my first colonoscopy, surprisingly painless and soon forgotten. We all awoke pleasantly surprised. First, we weren't on a plane. Second, the room was unusually nice. Third, there was a lovely, spacious veranda and a terrific view. Well-kept gardens with a mini-water park, white sand beach, calm blue ocean, and an unlimited coastline vista. Not too darn bad for a stopover.
The Hyatt, and Guam in general, is a vacation hotspot for Japanese tourists. I estimate that over 90 percent of non-natives we encountered were Japanese, and the island economy reflects those numbers. Driving along the island streets is a journey through a mixed culture, combining the influence of the American military bases, the pervasive Japanese tourist trade, and the Guam locals.
The Hyatt is located in on Tumon Bay, at the epicenter of island shopping opportunities. A large upscale mall, A Hard Rock Cafe, TGIF, and McDonalds for those who just can't shake the addiction to American fast food, and countless knick-knack, local foods, convenience stores, Japanese noodle shops, along with strip joints and other adult fare are within an easy walk. Of note, the numerous ABC (brand, not booze) stores turned out to have a little of literally everything and very reasonable prices. We bought snacks, beer, and even souvenirs there.
The hotel itself has the amenities you would expect from a Hyatt, along with the prices. The restaurants served good food, and there was always a buffet available, but you can manage quite nicely with the more moderate priced food options an easy walk away. Internet is a princely $20 a day in the rooms, but free high-speed wireless is available in the lobby, along with a very elegant daily afternoon tea.
The plusses of the Hyatt are its terrific ocean views from the spacious verandas, a nicely kept man-made beach with flat blue water, and a lush, well kept garden area with multiple pools, water slides, and hot-tubs. The small ocean-side water park is a great diversion for non-divers. At the far end of the beach is located a fairytale-book wedding chapel, serving a market of well-to-do Japanese tourists who want to marry by the shore. I'm told a catered day at the chapel runs $30-40K. That this is a Christian church and that few Japanese are of the faith seems a mere quibble.
One downside of the resort to be aware of is the fact that the beach in front of the hotel is a public, rather than private beach. All those comfortable chaise lounges and umbrellas and water toys are only available for steep daily rent. And first thing in the morning, all the water toys are floated in the ocean forming an unsightly plastic armada.
The Wedding Chapel
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The first day was spent napping, eating, orienting, renting a car, and napping some more. We drove up the coastal highway to the opposite end of the island to locate the shop and finalize my diving arrangements. Guam resident Chris Bangs was at the MDA shop to greet me and show me around, and I have to say it's a pretty darned impressive operation. MDA is the Micronesia distributor for many familiar brands of scuba gear, and a fill and nitrox blending station for several other shops. Its shelves are well stocked, and prices are reasonable for an island location. And they are busy.
Chris connected me with the local dive association, which offers a great deal for traveling divers, 6 unguided boat dives for $75 including air and weights. When compared to three $25 breakfast buffets at the Hyatt, is a helluva deal. Guided dives are also available for an extra $75 a day, so I planned to just follow the crowd and pretend I know where I'm going. I am very familiar with this strategy; it is how I go through life.
If you are diving air, you just show up at the dock, if diving Nitrox you need to stop by the shop en route to the dock and throw your tanks in your car. $10 a fill, solid 32% and consistent 3400 PSI fills. Oh, I forgot to mention that MDA uses neutral AL80's, which can be filled to 3400 and are neutral when empty. Extra air and less weight, what a great idea!
MDA boats are contracted by local guides, which is why "guides" are an extra cost.
On the first day there were 24 Japanese divers, 2 Japanese DMs, three boat crew, and me. The boats are comfortable albeit a bit crowded, and the crew was most accommodating.
As we arrived in Guam we just missed a typhoon, which later moved on and badly pounded Japan. Although our first full day was sunny and comfortable, the seas were still very rough the next day on the dive boat. Guam has a very large, protected harbor which contains several good dive sites, but the best diving Guam has to offer lies outside the bay. The first dive of the first day we scooted outside for a dive at Amphitheater, a so-so site that started out with great vis, which dropped to 40 feet by the end of the dive. After that dive, we were not able to get outside of the harbor for the rest of the trip. The remaining 5 dives included 2 on a sunken American Tanker, which lies against a massive artificial sea wall built during WW2, 2 reef dives, and another wreck dive.
Blue Clam
Crown Toby Pufferfish
Pink Anenomefish
Orange Finned Anemonefish
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The second wreck dive was on the SMS Cormoran and the Tokai Maru. The former went down during WW I in 1917 and the latter 1944 during WW II. This is the only location in the world where a WW1 and WW2 wreck lie together touching each other. At a depth of 100 feet you can touch both wrecks at once, which I did. No proof, though, because there were no hands left to operate the camera. I'm really not much of a wreck nut, but the Cormoran had plenty of coral and fish life to keep me entertained for a dive, and you can just tell it would be a spectacular night dive.
Well-populated window rails of the Cormoran
Colony of life on the mast
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Another fun dive was on a reef that is visited daily by the local Atlantis tourist submarine. There are several fish feeding stations on the reef to ensure a good show for the tourists, and between the feedings and the eerie sights and sounds of a large electric sub humming around the reef, this dive was a unique experience. The vis was only about 40 feet, so often you could distinctly hear the electric motors of the sub while not being able to see it at all. Then it would appear out of the gloom, and drift by with the passengers waving out of the row of windows on the side.
.After I finished my last dive I stopped by MDA to thank Chris again and stock up on some scuba knick-knacks and Chris presented me with my favorite souvenir of the whole trip, a clear Coke bottle, circa 1945, that he brought up from the sand near the American Tanker. I'm telling everybody I found it myself, so exnay, OK?
I couldn't fairly assess the diving on Guam because of the weather, but I can say that MDA is a good, professional, and safe dive op, that the dives I did do were pretty darn good for bad-weather protected sites, and that I feel confident that if there wasn't so much other chart-topping diving in the vicinity Guam could make for quite a nice diving vacation. I certainly want to go back and see the outer reefs.
Our afternoons on Guam were mostly spent lounging at the beach and pool at the hotel, with a daily excursion for shopping and supper. Chris supplied us with a list of his favorite restaurants, so we just worked our way down the list. Here are the ones we visited and would further recommend: Jamaican Grill, For Thai: Marianas Trench, Indian: The Curry Kabob, For local food: Chamorro Village Night Market, and our very favorite, A Korean buffet at the Pia Marine
condo. Authentic Korean food, all you can eat, delicious, $13 per person.
So, all in all Guam proved to be a delicious, filling, and tantalizing appetizer, but now it was time to move on to the main course, Palau.
PALAU
The flight to Palau is refreshingly short. An hour hop to Yap, then a quick stop, and 45 minutes on to Palau. We were staying at the Palau Pacific, and they had a driver waiting for us at the airport, our luggage was taken care of, and before we knew it we were in the lobby, and walking through the rainy evening to our room. And walking. And walking. It's a pretty sprawling resort, but our man-with-the-plan Jim definitely steered us right by booking us in the farthest building in an upstairs room. The Ocean View wing of the resort actually is on a small peninsula with the balconies overlooking the tranquil sea, and the front door facing a large tidal lagoon. Water on three sides, perfect. And the upstairs rooms were marvelously quiet and spacious, well appointed, comfortable, and included another of those NASA-esque toilets. There were over 700 possible combinations of spray, mist, direction, intensity, temperature, and forced air flow to satisfactorily clean, dry, and deodorize even the most discriminating naughty bits. I must say that in my decades of dive travel, I have never felt fresher. And the girls wrote down the brand and model and, I believe, are already planning a Christmas campaign.
Toilet Command and Control Center
Boat view of the back of our room
View out our front door
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Prior to WW2 the Palau Pacific was a Japanese military amphibious aircraft base, and the massive concrete ramp up onto the beach remains intact, now adjoined by equally substantial but more modern pier. Because of the unusually large equatorial tides of nearly 6 feet, the end of this and most piers is floating and hinged to allow boarding of watercraft during extreme tides. There is a dive/island tour/water-sports shop located beside the pier, but those in the know skip the resort shop and dive with Sam's Tours located a short boat ride down the coast.
The main hub of the resort is the lobby building, which houses the front desk, several nice shops, and the restaurant.Ê Free wireless internet is available in the lobby, and there is a small room with two computers offering paid access. The restaurant features mostly al fresco dining overlooking the beach and pool, but they do have a glassed in air-conditioned dining area for those extra-sultry nights. PP also offers a full spa service, but none of us are spa people so I can't tell you anything about it.
The "endless" pool overlooks the white sand beach, and is well kept with sparkling water, with a large Jacuzzi pool only a few steps away. The beach itself is large and beautiful, and it's appearance doesn't immediately tip you to the fact that it is man made. Just off the beach there is world-class snorkeling during high tide, and equally wonderful tidal pools filled with interesting things to explore during low tide. There is a nature trail that winds through the property and is worth a couple hours, and a very impressive salt water pond system filled with marine life including rays, remoras, parrot fish, sea turtles, and many other reef creatures is located behind the ocean front units.
Massage was offered on the beach
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Pan Pacific is rather isolated, with no nearby restaurants, but the on-site restaurant is quite good albeit expensive. There are buffets morning, noon, and night, with various themes including Japanese, Local, and Seafood. Do not miss Seafood night - all the grilled lobster you can eat. Evening buffets are around $30 per person (kids 12 and under 1/2 price) and breakfast and lunch buffets around $20. The resort does offer a reasonably priced shuttle into town, and a taxi trip is $6 each way, so you can travel into Koror to eat or shop if you desire. If you take the shuttle, be on time and watch the routes because there are two of them. We made the trip in for three meals, one at a Thai restaurant not worth mentioning, and two at one of the best Indian restaurants we've ever visited. In Palau? Well, we had read about it in several other trip reports, and all the reports were true! Be sure to go to the Taj. Order the Garlic Naan and Butter Chicken. Tell them Mike sent you.
Once a week a Manager's reception is offered on the beach, with free snacks, cocktails, and local entertainment. DonÕt miss it if you can, it's worth it.
After a local dance performance there were photo ops :-)
The three of us in imminent peril
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THE DIVING
The premier diving operation on Palau is called Sam's Tours. They have an excellent reputation for safety and great service, and for the most part they lived up to their reputation on my trip. The diving day begins at 7:30 with a pickup by boat at the Pan Pacific dock and a 5-minute scenic ride along the coast to Sam's docks. Not a bad way to start a day, I might add. Sam's has a modest dive shop, a nice, reasonably priced little cafe featuring the local brew on tap, a fill station and rental counter, and a large lockable container for gear storage. After the usual paperwork on the first morning, you are issued a water bottle and asked to choose lunch, always either a bento box (Japanese meal including sushi, meat, and rice) or a sandwich, fruit, and a brownie. There was always a cooler of soft drinks and fruit juice on board, and plenty of drinking water.
The boat leaves promptly at 8:00 each morning, depending on your definition of the word "promptly". Nitrox is the usual $10 a tank and you analyze both tanks before departing. Dependable 31 and 32%, and solid 3000 psi fills, although with the deeper profiles and reliable Palau current I sorely missed the extra gas I got used to with the neutral AL80's in Guam. The boats are covered, twin 200 hp fast, and relatively comfortable, and we experienced no overcrowding on our boat although I did notice a couple other Sam's craft that looked a little tight with divers. There are no camera storage tanks on board, so I used a wet towel, and the DM kindly provided a two gallon bottle of fresh water under my bench each morning so I could give my rig (and myself) a good dousing after each dive. Sam's does not provide towels, so bring your own.
And then, we're off.
Almost all of the most famous dive sites on Palau are 45 minutes or more from Sam's dock, and much of that travel time is spent weaving in and out of the gloriously beautiful Rock Islands. Normally I get antsy and bored on long boat rides, but never on Palau. I just sit mouth agape and marvel at the scenery. There is very little open ocean travel, and for us the seas were nearly calm the whole week so we could speed along full throttle. The boats typically had a crew of three, two DMs and a boat captain, and two of our crew remained the same through the week.
GERMAN CHANNEL
"Where are we going?" we asked every morning. "Diving" was the answer, every morning. And while the crew did recognize our requests, there was never any commitment because the tide, current, vis, and boat traffic largely dictated the choice of sites each day. Our first day we ended up at the mouth of German Channel, so named because it is a man made channel made during the German administration of Palau to allow shipping between Peleliu and the island capitol of Koror, now used by dive operators to get to and from the best dive sites. There is a cleaning station at about 60 feet, known to be frequented by Manta Rays and sharks, and even though the briefing alerted us to the possibility of sighting I took it with the usual grain of salt.
The first leap into Palau waters was a little worrying, because the vis was a paltry 30 feet, but the Palau magic was working and to my amazement, within 5 minutes we were watching two majestic Mantas circling around us, spookily slipping just in and out of visible range. Whoa Nelly! You mean that we were actually going to SEE things mentioned on the dive briefings? Not necessarily true, many times we would see much more, such as the cuttlefish hovering over a coral outcropping later in the dive and, oh yes, the sharks.
We did 11 dives, and saw sharks on 10 of them. And the 11th dive was a 10-foot deep Mandarinfish dive under the dock, so that doesn't count. Sharks, sharks, sharks. :-)
Cuttlefish
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Lunch and surface interval location varied each day, sometime we ate while moored, sometimes we beached or docked on some deserted island or an endless strip of white sand exposed temporarily by the tide. Lunch is taken at a leisurely pace, often exceeding 2 hours, and I have to say it was for me just a bit too much of a good thing. Between lollygagging at the dock and the extended lunch breaks, and the generous 60 minute dives, it was often approaching 4 PM when I arrived back at the resort, and frankly if I'm spending that much time on the water I want three dives. Three-dive trips are offered, but the third dive is always a local dive near the shop and the day ends after 5:00 PM. Nobody asked me, but if they did I would have voted for a little more strict schedule and getting back at 2:00 with enough time to get in some afternoon drinking. I mean touring. But when in Rome, slow down and enjoy the pizza, eh?
During our transit to the next dive site, a small mystery was solved. It seems like every native resident of Palau has one thing in common, poor dental hygiene habits. Terribly discolored and damaged teeth almost universally mar the warm smiles offered by the friendly locals. It turns out this is caused by a local habit of chewing Betelnuts for it's mild narcotic properties. While sitting with the boat captain, I watched him carefully prepare his treat. First, he would cut a Betelnut in half, and to add an extra "kick" to the recipe would break off a 1/2 inch piece of cigarette and put it in between the halves. Then he would produce a small plastic bottle of powdered lime and sprinkle on a generous amount. Finally this whole contraption was wrapped in a pepper leaf, and placed in the mouth, where it was chewed for about 2-3 hours, then replaced with a fresh batch. The red juice from the Betelnut permanently stains and damages the teeth and gums of the user. I was offered a chance to sample the concoction, but even if I didn't hate visiting dentists as much as I do, I'd still pass for fear of instant addiction to a product that is darned hard to find in Virginia.
The name of the second site was New Drop Off, one of the many sheer, beautiful wall dives of Palau. The briefing was always adequate and clear, always ending with the mantra of the trip, "Wall on the right, Sharks on the left". Or vice versa. In the Caribbean a diver will snicker at such folly during the briefing, in Palau though, it means Wall on the right, Sharks on the left or right or down or up. Or, you guessed it, vice versa.
NEW DROP OFF
On New Drop Off, the sharks started off being down, but I'm getting ahead of myself. The wall was superb, steep and beautiful, with stunning 150 foot vis and every exposed inch packed with life. Soft and hard corals, schooling fish, odd fellows, it had it all. But a few minutes into the dive on a sandy shelf at about 120 feet we could clearly see six or eight White Tips cruising and laying about and looking all sharky. I began to drift deeper to get a better shot, but I needn't have bothered because a few more were now swimming past me along the wall, distracting me from all the wonderful macro shots I was missing as the modest current pushed us along effortlessly. It was wonderful, just wonderful. And it was only my second dive.
90 minutes later we are back to the docks, and shortly thereafter the gear was rinsed and stowed and my hand was full of a fine draft Red Rooster Pale Ale which kept me company while the van ride back to the resort was sorted out. Because of the tides, you boat to the shop in the morning and van back in the afternoon. Or, well, you know, vice versa. Back home at the Palau Pacific I found a happy and content family who had spent the day swimming and exploring. We had a fine meal, watched the reliably stunning Palau sunset, and drifted to sleep with the sounds of night birds, a light lapping surf, and loud snoring. I can't personally testify that there was any snoring because I was always asleep when it allegedly took place.
BLUE CORNER
The next day it was time. Time for Blue Corner.
At the docks I canvassed the boat to see if everybody wanted to visit this world-renowned dive site because with the fickle currents I wanted to take zero chance of missing Blue Corner in my fleeting 5 days of diving. It was unanimous. And before long we were adrift over the wall and preparing to dive, and I wondered if this site could possibly live up to it's reputation. Soon we were at 70 feet and working our way down yet another superlative Palau wallscape, when the trickling current became a noticeable push from behind. Almost in unison we stopped finning and began riding the steadily increasing current. At about 10 minutes into the dive, the DM indicated that it was time to deploy our reef hooks, which had been issued to each diver during the briefing. The reef hook is a piece of nylon rope with a very large, dulled fishhook on one end and a wooden handle on the other. For the photographers in the group, the crew helped us remove the handle and showed us how to attach the rope directly to our BCs. As we rode the current we brought out the reef hooks and then, as we reached the famed Blue Corner, we all reversed directions and swam mightily into the current and down onto the bare and rocky reef. The technique is to attach the hook to a lifeless rock and carefully let the rope slide through your hand while keeping it taught to keep the hook in place, then inflating your BC to rise up off the reef where you can dangle in the stiff current like a tethered dirigible and watch the "show".
Blue Corner is, in fact, an actual underwater corner where two deep, sheer walls meet. It's geography and exposure to reliable tidal activity ensures stiff currents, and the constant upwelling of microscopic creatures and nutrients from the depths of the nearby ocean trenches provide a food chain extravaganza. From the tiniest to the largest of ocean fish, Blue Corner is the place to be at dinnertime. And it is this mixture of nearly unique conditions that make this site so extraordinary.
Sparing us needless anticipation, the sharks came immediately. As we floated above the reef we observed a parade of hungry White Tip sharks prowling among the vast numbers of schooling smaller fish, and the schools themselves following the smaller fish, and so on down the line. We were positioned nearly perfectly to observe the goings-on, and soon my only concern was trying to pick a lens, and a direction, and camera setting for the endless variety of animals posing for me, while at the same time compensating for the relentless current which tried to turn me about, and dislodge my mask, and re-adjust my strobe arms.
Off the wall we watched the White Tip, Black Tip, and Gray sharks cruise back and forth, waiting for an easy meal. Further out, the unmistakable profile of a stout Bluefin Tuna briefly appeared. Three-foot long Napoleon Wrasse bravely approached us. And directly below us was a macro wonderland, so vibrant that I briefly changed my camera settings to macro, which I recommend against. Holding a camera macro-steady on Blue Corner is like trying to fly a kite in a tornado. And when the DM signaled us to disconnect and finish the dive, we guessed the fun was over, but there was a lot of dive left. We headed down a wide-open sand channel, which turned out to be the Lazy Boy recliners for the sharks who had eaten their fill. More than 10 were lying about in the sand, and some allowed a pretty close approach before rising and swimming slowly, and thankfully, away.
Before we began our safety stop we marveled over two lovely schools of fish as they grazed the outside edges of Blue Corner. There were Barracudas and Snappers in the hundreds. It was at this point that I made up my mind: I like Blue Corner better than homemade mashed potatoes, and that's saying something.
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Schooling Jacks at the end of the Blue Hole dive
BIG DROP OFF
The next dive was Big Drop Off, and I must confess that I was so wound up by the Blue Hole dive that my memory of Big Drop Off is not as distinct as the other dives, but I do remember the wall being steep to the point of overhangs, and a concentration of soft coral that was noticeably more vibrant and lush than most of the other sites we visited.Ê I donÕt even know if itÕs worth mentioning during every dive description that we saw sharks, so from now on you can assume we did and be correct 100% of the time.
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Unidentified Nudibranch
ULONG CHANNEL
The next day put us on another well-known Palau site, Ulong Channel.Ê I recalled reading that Ulong can be a wild ride because of the fierce currents, so I was prepared for a roller coater.Ê During the briefing, though, we were told about a very large bait-ball that liked to hang around in the channel, which was often pursued by large predators.Ê As we entered the channel from the side, almost on cue the DM pointed enthusiastically to the right, and there was an enormous ball of silversides moving in graceful unison up-current along the channel, followed by two white tips and a grey reef shark, a large wrasse, and an enormous barracuda.Ê It was a sight I will never forget.Ê The parade soon disappeared past the 100-foot visibility limit, and we joined the current for a quite docile ride through the channel in the opposite direction, slipping along at comfortable 2 knots.Ê There were at least three nice photo ops that required vigorous finning against the current, but all were well worth the effort.Ê These included a beautiful giant anemone, her skirt blown up by the current to expose her outrageous purple knickers, and a stand of gigantic cabbage coral whose ÒleavesÓ were protecting hundreds of fish from the relentless current as well as enterprising predators.Ê At the end of the channel we were dumped into a huge, deep bowl with sheer walls, with lots of sharks cruising and waiting for easy meals.Ê I tried my best to look old, tough and gristly, and I narrowly escaped, and if I ever see my buddy again IÕll ask him how he managed.
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(Click here for brief video, interesting video of this fan thing)
BLUE CORNER AGAIN
On the second dive, the DM asked where we would like to go.Ê He neednÕt have.Ê How about Blue Corner again?Ê And shortly thereafter there we were, attached by reef hooks to our favorite place.Ê Only this time, we sat and waited, and nothing happened.Ê Five, then ten minutes went by, with nothing of note, and I began to wonder if we were just lucky the first time.Ê Nope.Ê Here came the sharks, only this time I was smarter and hooked closer to the edge of the wall where I could get a better vantage for photos, and stuck strictly to my zoom lens.Ê I also switched to manual focus because my auto-focus had a very difficult time locking in on sharks in the blue.Ê I had better success this time although I was still usually 12 or more feet away from them, out of strobe range. And why are those people behind me banging on their tanks?Ê Maybe because there is a school of Chevron Barracudas to my right that I hadnÕt noticed?Ê How far to my right?Ê FOUR FEET!!.
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I broke my previous record of 20 seconds for grabbing my wide angle lens out of my BC pocket and changing camera settings, and although by the time I got the camera ready the school had moved to about 10 feet away, I managed to snap away and get a keeper or two.Ê Then we released, moved back through the sand chute again, and were entertained by a tame and nosey bumphead wrasse who was most happy to pose for us.Ê Ah, Blue Corner.Ê Get ye there before ye die.
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ROCK ISLAND TOUR, JELLYFISH LAKE
The following day was easily the best non-diving day I have ever spent on a dive trip.Ê I booked a full day Rock Islands snorkeling/sightseeing trip for the three of us, and how the gods smiled upon us.Ê The weather was stunningly beautiful when the boat picked us up at 8:00 AM sharp.Ê The first news was that we were the only ones signed up for the tour that day, so we would have a boat and all three crew to ourselves!Ê We lathered up with sunscreen, and set sail for paradise.Ê There was no sail, but it sounds better.Ê
First stop was the Milky Way, a unique shallow cove whose bottom consists of a pure white clay that, when disturbed, seemed to turn the entire cove into a gigantic bowl of milk.Ê The DM dived down and brought up two enormous scoops of the clay and suggested we cover ourselves with the soothing goo, which of course, we did.Ê A quick dip to rinse off, and we all felt 10 years younger.Ê My daughter actually forgot how to talk well because 10 years younger made her only 2.
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I canÕt really overstate how beautiful the expanses between the hundreds of Palau islands are.Ê From the tiniest little atolls to large mountainous, forested islands, both inhabited and uninhabited, the endless stark blue seas and skies, the sheer cliffs and carved rock formations of the endless stretch of islands, the white beaches, the ever changing and ever beautiful cloud formations, it was truly awe-inspiring. ÊAlthough the SamÕs crew had an adventure-packed day in store for us, the cruising between the sights was as memorable as the sights themselves.
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Our next adventure was an hour of snorkeling in a shallow portion of German Channel.Ê Although still non-divers, the girls have a fair bit of snorkeling under their belts from following me all over creation, but I donÕt think they could have imagined what they were in for today.Ê This was a drift snorkel, with a guide in the water with us, and the boat following along as we drifted in the mild current.Ê The reefs were only a few feet below us, and beautiful beyond description.Ê Even as a diver I was captivated by the health and diversity we were seeing as we drifted lazily along.Ê Within minutes the guide spotted a three foot white tip shark passing by, and though the girls were at first terrified and happy to offer up dad as a human shield from these monsters, by the time we spotted the second and third shark the fear turned to fascination and curiosity, which was supremely entertaining for me to observe.Ê By the time the day ended, we had seen a total of seven sharks and three sea turtles while snorkeling.Ê I have been on MANY dive trips in the Caribbean where we didnÕt see that many sharks and turtles in a full week of scuba.Ê
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Green Sea Turtle
But the excitement was just beginning.Ê After a delicious boxed lunch on a deserted beach, we moved on to the world famous Jellyfish Lake.Ê Jellyfish Lake is a large salt-water inland lake, which has no biological connections to the ocean.Ê Only a few species survive on the lake, including a species of jellyfish that, because of the isolation and lack of predators, has evolved away any ability to sting.Ê The government of Palau manages and protects this unique location, and it costs $30 per person to visit and swim or snorkel in the lake.Ê After docking, you present your permit and begin a steep but short climb up a mountainside, then down the other side to a dock in the lake.Ê There is a safety rope to assist you on the climb, but wear good shoes; itÕs steep and sometimes slippery.
You enter the water, which is comfortably warm, and even though you know exactly what to expect, there is still no way to completely prepare for swimming with hundreds and thousands of creatures you have spent a lifetime learning to avoid at all costs.Ê Concentrations of the jellyfish vary as you paddle about, but regardless of where you are in the lake, they are there.Ê The park estimates that there are over 7 million of them.Ê I had no qualms reaching out and gently touching the creatures, but it took the ladies a few minutes and some last minute convincing to muster the courage.Ê Once the ice was broken, though, they had a wonderful time observing and playing with the little blobs.Ê We stayed for about a half hour, and then headed back to the boat to continue day in paradise.
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(Click here for brief video of Jellyfish Lake)
Off we headed to yet another snorkeling adventure, this time another first for us, snorkeling over a deep wall. ÊThe wall divers among us know the intense rush of swimming out over the edge of a steep wall, and it was only slightly less exhilarating to snorkel along the edge, hand in hand with family who until now had only heard my descriptions of wall diving.Ê More sharks, more turtles, parrotfish, anemone fish, a clown trigger, schools of smaller baitfish, healthy soft and hard corals, and wonderful Palau deep blue water and amazing visibility.
As if this wasnÕt enough excitement for one day, we had yet another stop on the itinerary, Clam City.Ê This is a current swept beach where the conditions are just right for PalauÕs giant clams to grow to be real giants.Ê At a depth ranging from 5 to about 12 feet, these gentle giants lay open in the sand, filtering out nutrients carried past them by the stiff current.Ê We paddled vigorously to keep our positions over the clams and watch the guide swim down and touch them on the mantle, triggering them to quickly close up for protection.Ê My daughter even got into the act, I mean after all, once she had swam with sharks and jellyfish, whatÕs there to fear from a clam?Ê We didnÕt spend much time here, the current was really moving and we were pretty tuckered out.
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(Click here for brief video of daughter defying the clutches of three vicious clams)
As we spent the final hour relaxing on the boat while having the various sights described to us as we rode alone.Ê To our left, the island Survivor was filmed on.Ê To our right, a WW2 gun emplacement with a rusting piece of artillery still guarding the entrance.Ê And everywhere, in every direction, more of the most beautiful ocean vistas we have ever experienced.Ê Supper that night tasted particularly good as we review the dayÕs adventures, and we slept long and soundly.
PELELIU
Our fourth day of diving was a special trip to the island of Peleliu, a trip I had been very excited about because of itÕs reputation for offering up even more extreme of high voltage currents and big animal encounters.Ê The trip is about an hour further away than the already distant sites we had been visiting, and requires at least four divers willing to pay a surcharge for the trip.Ê I began recruiting divers on the first day, and even though our DM repeatedly downplayed the diving at Peleliu, four of us decided to go.Ê Peleliu, along with being an A-list diving spot, is also the location one of the most bloody and brutal battles of World War 2.Ê IÕm afraid IÕm not a history buff, but when a guided tour of the island focusing on PeleiuÕs place in WW2 history was offered at an extra price, we all signed up.Ê And this trip unfortunately turned out to be the only black mark on SamÕs Tours otherwise sparking performance.
We arrived off Peleliu excited to see what diving that was potentially moreÊ intense than the sites we had already visited could be like.Ê Out first dive was a ho-hum drift dive on a sloping reef called Orange Beach.Ê We were completely under-whelmed, and frankly disappointed. For lunch, we motored less than two minutes to a sheltered harbor, had a quick meal, and then traveled from the dock another 5 minutes out to another dive site called Peleliu Wall which was a fine wall dive, but not noticeably different or better than the wall we had already visited.Ê Then, quickly back to the dock where we were met by a guide and a mini-bus for our land tour. Expectations were high for this tour, and were never remotely approached. The tour began with the guide asking us ÒWell, what would you all like to see?ÓÊ Of course, we didnÕt know what we wanted to see, thatÕs why we paid for a guided tour.Ê So our guide shuttled us around the island from place to place, describing sites in a voice so low it could only be heard by people in the front seat, then stopping, letting everyone out, and telling them to walk around and read the signs.
ÊWe made the best of the tour, and actually the ÒmuseumÓ was quite unusual and interesting.Ê The interesting part was the fact that all the artifacts were simply sitting on shelves, completely exposed and unprotected. You felt like you were looking at memorabilia in an attic rather than a museum, but here were photos and medals, weapons and cooking utensils, all in a hodge-podge of decay and disarray.Ê They are trying to raise money to improve the museum, and I wish them well.Ê ItÕs sad to see this historically important collection so poorly cared for.
The tour eventually became so monotonous that we all asked for the guide to just take us back to the boat.Ê She eagerly complied, even though we still officially had an hour to go.Ê I hope she wasnÕt planning anything important with that days tips. We then settled in for the 2-hour plus ride back to SamÕs, and IÕm sad to say that the sightseeing on the trip to and from Peleliu was the highlight of the trip.Ê To be perfectly frank, I believe our DM did not want to get home late, and took us to two dive sites near the starting point of the land tour in order to save time.Ê I did complain to management about the trip and they refunded my surcharge.
Later on at home I took the time to read up on Peleliu, and I realize now that a skilled guide could have made this tour fascinating to history buffs and laymen alike, but our tour was just awful. I would still highly recommend diving Peleliu if you visit Palau, and by all means take the land tour, but bone up on the story of the island siege before the tour so you can appreciate PeleiuÕs grim place in history.Ê And be specific about the sites you want to dive so there can be no misunderstanding.
SIAES TUNNEL
The trip was winding down now, and there was only one day of diving left. One always wishes for a memorable last day of diving to hold on to until the next trip, and sometimes wishes come true.Ê Our first dive of the last day was Siaes Tunnel. We were joined that day by a new couple, one experienced diver and his friend who was on her twelfth open water dive. We were all diving Nitrox 32%. The dive begins by dropping into a large vertical hole at about 30 feet, which exits through an opening onto the wall at 60 feet or so, then swimming left to the top of the opening to a massive cavern, the top of which lies at 90 feet. As you may have guessed, this is an advanced deep dive, and one where a flashlight is more than handy, as the huge chamber is protected from direct sunlight and as you transit the cavern some places are nearly dark.Ê Our DM led the group, pointing out a couple creatures that are rare but reliably found in Siaes Tunnel, including the several unusual fish breeds that swim up-side down all the time, a fire scallop species with animated moving colors they call the Disco Clam, and the shy and beautiful Purple Dartfish.
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ÒDiscoÓ fireclam
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Purple Dartfish
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The sandy bottom of the cavern begins at about 170 feet, and gradually becomes shallower as you proceed through, at its shallowest 110 feet.Ê There were sharks sleeping in the sand, and while I was focused on one of them our DM led the rest of the group to see something on the bottom behind me. I turned to join them, but as I was passing 120 feet I decided something at 130 wasnÕt worth seeing on 32% nitrox, so I went back to the shark.Ê Later, as we were finishing the dive at 30 feet on a shallow reef, the new diver ran completely out of air and had to rush back to her buddy to share air for an emergency ascent. IÕm not sure why someone with 12 dives was allowed to dive this site, and the briefing did not include any mention of the depths we would be diving. I guess the lesson here is to watch your own behind; you may be the only one doing it.
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New diver, very happy to be diving Seiss Tunnel
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New Diver, very unhappy about absence of air.
BLUE HOLES
Blue Holes lies just west of Blue Corner, and is yet another of PalauÕs signature dives.Ê The afternoon dive begins with a long, deep descent into a wide tunnel, and ending in a gigantic cavern where the light filters in through various openings in the reef, creating an eerie deep blue light show. We were preceded into the holes by a large group of Japanese divers, who stayed very close to each other and emitted large clouds of bubbles, which caught the light and shimmered like diamonds.Ê It was breathtakingly beautiful. And after 20 minutes of admiring this unique view, we exited the cavern and proceeded slowly along the wall, planning to finish the dive with a short stay on Blue Corner.Ê When we reached Blue Corner we realized there was going to be a bit of a problem, namely that the current was blowing exactly the opposite of usual, directly off the wall.Ê We all swam to the reef and grasped pieces of rock, and held on like flags in the wind while waiting for the DM to decided how to proceed. I knew I wasnÕt going to last long holding on, so I waved goodbye to the DM and released my grip, and was swept out into the blue water.Ê I worked my way up to 15 feet, did my safety stop, and surfaced only a few hundred feet from the boat, which picked me up promptly.Ê I was the first aboard, so I helped the captain locate and recover all the other divers, and then we moored back at Blue Holes for lunch.
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Twenty minutes into lunch, we heard an odd noise coming from the bow, sort of like a weak sighing, and we looked over to see a lone Japanese woman diver clinging desperately to our mooring rope, too weak to ever shout to us.Ê She had been separated from her group and swept away in the current, and found our mooring line.Ê We helped her aboard and got her gear off, and then, most oddly, the DM sat back down and finished his lunch. After lunch, we motored over to a couple other boats also on mooring, found her boat, and returned her.Ê A good ? hour had passed after she was helped onto our boat, and the boat that lost her wasnÕt even looking for her.Ê I saw no radio contact between the boats, but maybe this was a common occurrence and the DMÕs had a plan in place, but it wasnÕt what I would consider standard operating procedure for a lost diver.Ê
SAMÕS DOCK MANDARINFISH DIVE
The final dive of the trip was short, shallow, and sweet.Ê The seawall at SamÕs dock is known to be a habitat of the rare and gorgeously colored Mandarinfish. These elusive fish hide and forage in and around the rock wall during the day, and at dusk each evening begin courting rituals where they rise together and mate, during which time they are usually distracted enough to allow photographs.Ê I wasnÕt going to be able to stay at SamÕs until dark, but I was told that with patience I might find a single Mandarinfish out looking for food.
I strapped on a fresh tank and slipped off the dock into 5 foot deep water, and worked my way under the dive boats over to the wall, where I spent the next 20 minutes seeing lots of cool stuff, none of which was what I was looking for, but interesting muck creatures just the same.Ê Although the vis was poor, I spotted something moving erratically down at about 15 feet, and I moved over to spot the most unusual tiny brown fish with white spots, flamboyantly wiggling about like a tightly wound toy. I took a few shots and a little video of him, and later was told that I was looking at a juvenile Harlequin Sweetlips.Ê I wondered how such a brightly colored and active fish could keep from being eaten, and it turns out itÕs movements mimic a poisonous flatworm, which keeps predators at bay.
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Juvenile Harlequin Sweetlips
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(Click here for brief video of the wacky swimming Harlequin Sweetlips)
Back at the seawall, I redoubled my efforts to locate a Mandarin fish, and just as I was at my peak of stealth and concentration, I was shocked and startled by a loud ÒKerPlopÓ right over my head.Ê I looked up quickly and laughed as a full, green bottle of Heineken drifted slowly down to me. Seems my dive buddies thought I was working too hard and might have needed a refreshment.Ê I pocketed the beer for later, and went back to work.Ê Soon, sure enough, I spotted a flash of green and red and knew I had found my quarry.Ê Over the next 20 minutes, I settled into the muck and inched forward as the lovely fish became more comfortable with my presence, and eventually got close enough for a couple of full frame shots to necessary offset the murky water.Ê Success!Ê It really was a superb ending to a superb week of diving.
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We spent our last day relaxing around the pool, and attempting to catch naps when possible to prepare for the trip home. The flight home from Palau is the price you pay for the experience.Ê Most flights, including ours, depart at midnight, stop in Yap, then on to Guam for a plane change at the jolly old hour of 4 AM.Ê From there we flew to Honolulu, then to Houston, on to Washington DC, then a hotel shuttle back to our car, and then a two hour drive home.Ê There were no major travel disasters, we managed to score bulkhead seats for the long flights, and we all have long flight experience under our belts, so we hunkered down and slept as much as possible through the flight and managed just fine.Ê As you might expect, we were all zombies for the next couple of days, but the wonderful memories of the trip helped us cope with the jet lag and the "home again blues".
Even considering the grueling travel necessary to get there, we all agreed that our Micronesia adventure was the best overall trip of our lives.Ê The only thing that could have made the trip better for me would have been more diving, so Palau is now high on my list for a return trip, but this time on a live-aboard dive boat where I can give this unique underwater paradise the bottom time it truly deserves.ÊÊ
I leave you with a couple shots of the achingly beautiful Palau sunsets.
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