Below are descriptions of some of the many dive sites visited by the Pelagian. Each cruise is different because
seasons, weather conditions, currents, visibility, water temperatures all determine what dive areas and dive
sites we visit. We also vary the type of dive sites based on the experience level of the diving group and
interest in specific types of marine life. It's all very flexible to allow for the best possible cruise for
each group.
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Inner Pinnacle
Formed by two distinct tops linked by a saddle. Main top as at 6m (18f), the saddle at 18m (50f)and the
smaller pinnacle has the top at 11m (33f). This complex has steep wall on one side with big black corals and fan
corals, schooling butfish and lots of reef fish, the other side is more slopy, sandy, with huge pink fan corals.
There is a large school of chevron barracudas and 2 smaller schools of Pickhandle B. and Forsters B.
Bottom depth around the pinnacles is about 70m (200f).
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Pinnacle |
Advanced |
**** | **** | 10-25 m |
map
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Terrace Gardens:
This is a sandy circular slope that starts at 5m with a coral garden, ends gently at 20m (60f) on a drop off and
is framed on the sides by reef walls. In the center there are some beautiful bommies and latrge table corals.
It harbors schooling fusiliers, sweetlips, lots off anemones and fan corals. The dive can continue along the
wall on both sides.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Sandy Slope |
Beginner |
* | **** | 5-20 m |
map
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North wall:
A huge coral reef wall that separates from Hoga island through a lagoon. We are diving on the outside.
The reef is steep, deep (100m (300f), very rich in corals, colourful, and has some nice overhangs. It offers
schooling red snappers and reef fish, occasionally pygmy seahorses, tuna and sometimes barracudas.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Wall |
Beginner |
* | **** | 5-30+ m |
map
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Hoga buoy #5
A night or dusk dive that features a short wall from 5-25m (15-75f), which presents a labytinth of huge overhangs
and caves covered on the ceilings with orange cup corals, hanging soft corals, colored fan corals. It is not only
interesting for the night critters, such as crustaceans, nudibranchs and fish, but also for the amazing colours
it brings out with the torchlight.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Wall |
Beginner |
* | **** | 5-30+ m |
map
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Batu Turo North
This dive site is located on the Southeastern tip of Buton island. It is a steep wall, carved in the side at
about 15-20m depth by a beautiful long and continuous overhang, 3-4m high bottom to ceiling. On the bottom and
the sides there are black corals and whip corals, nudibranchs, jawfish, mantis shrimps and other critters,
while looking into the blue on the open side there are occasionally eagle rays, tunas, big groupers, barracudas,
jacks and whitetip sharks. The external wall is covered by thousands of juvenile Redtooth Triggerfish (which are
blue) and orange Anthias, creating marvelous color games. There is a mild to medium current and we generally dive
it with reef on the right hand side.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Wall/Overhangs |
Intermediate |
*** | **** | 5-20 m |
map
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Gone With The Wind
The name is appropriate since current here is almost always quite lively and sweeps the divers for a long drift.
This place is just at the end of "Escape", where the wall ends and turns into a coral garden (5-25m/15-75f depth)
and continues deeper into a sandy plateau (30-35m/100-120f depth). Along this plateau, when currents are not too
strong, it's possible to linger and sight eagle rays, white tips, schooling giant tunas, barracudas and jacks.
After leaving the plateau the dive goes on first with the coral garden where lobsters, nudies, sea snakes,
scorpionfish and lots more can be found, then with a less colourful wall that features turtles, schooling bumphead
parrotfish and other fish. A great action dive.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Wall/Overhangs |
Intermediate |
*** | **** | 5-20 m |
map
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Cheeky Beach
Located in front of a local village, Pasar Wajo, this site is called cheeky beach on account of all the
local children who crowd the surface holding onto anything keeping them afloat, as they "cheekily"
observe the divers with noisy curiosity. This is a site that you can dive repetitively - each dive is
different and critters come out depending on the time of day and lunar calender. It is a shrimp
breeding ground with the most rare and special shrimps found here in abundance, all in one area.
Harlequin shrimp, Coleman shrimp, halimeda crabs to name a few of the impressive ones. Mostly
a steep slope of round weathered stone and rock, moving mats of sea urchins creep steadily over
the sand. Any coral outcrop is crawling with critters trying to stay out of site by day. There are
frogfish and sea horses, invisible amongst the trash and broken bits of the villagers above water.
Wonderpuss hunts warily, aware that while seeking prey it can become someones meal in an
instant.Night dives bring out the bizarre - snake eels, spider crabs and goliath mantis shrimp and
should never be missed. This is a 10 out of 10 muck dive!
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| sand/rubble slope |
Beginner |
*****! | * | 15-20m |
map
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Asphalt Pier
This site is located at the base of an old asphalt production plant. The surface is a mangle of
rusting shacks and sacks of junk. It’s not pretty, but as you descend the rewards lie in wait. A
sandy slope descends form four concrete pylons of the jetty and it is littered with large tyres,
barrels and abandoned fishing traps between 9 and 15m. Tucked in the nooks and crannies
are ornate ghost pipe fish, garden eels, nudibranchs and pegasus moth fish. The special photo
opportunities here are the gold-specs jawfish incubating large egg masses in their mouths, and
if you are lucky you can observe them briefly spit them out to aerate them and then quickly suck
them back to safety. If not busy reproducing, the jawfish must keep house, darting in and out of
their burrows with mouthfuls of sand. Other rare sightings include the wonderpuss and a burrow
with four yellow-nose shrimp gobies and a single shrimp!
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Pier/Manmade Structure |
Beginner |
*****! | * | 0-40 m |
map
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Bianca 2
This dive is a sandy slope extending from 5m to 20m with large patches of reef. The dive again
extends from a jetty to the small wreck of what appears to be a fishing vessel. Scattered around
the mostly intact boat are barrels and other bits of wreckage, and coral is beginning to grow
bringing fish and colour with it. Interestingly, at the time of diving, local divers were attempting to
salvage parts of the wreck and he was as interested in us with all our technical dive gear and large
camera rigs, as we were in him, diving in his clothes, some sneakers on his feet and a hosepipe
feeding air into the nose area of an old plastic mask.
There is a resident school of jacks who patrol around the wreck. A giant frogfish was usually found
in the deeper water, and the reef patches hid juvenile devil lionfish and shrimp among the feather
stars. The sandy patches were good to explore for more jawfish, blue ribbon eels and shrimp
gobies.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Sandy Slope |
Beginner |
***** | * | 5-20 m |
map
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Dessert
A shallow muck dive, the sand and sea grass slopes very gently from 5m to 15m. As always a few
bits of rubbish here and there shelter critters and any small coral or rock was a concentration of
small fish. The sea grass is shallow and the hunt is on for nudibranchs and sea horses. A bright
yellow frog fish was found clinging to the green blades. Anemones jut out from the sand with
aggressive clown fish guarding the open water above them. But most interesting, were the squid
hunting the shallows in groups, jetting away from every turn of the camera. An interesting dive, but
conditions can be tricky as it is very close to the beach. If the tide is low, the sea grass can be too
shallow at 2-3m and surge is impossible if the wind is blowing onshore reducing visibility to 3-5m
at most. Usually if conditions are poor, Pelagian will choose another location in its stead.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Sand/Grassy Slope |
Beginner |
***** | * | 5-15 m |
map
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Tanjung Batutoro
An exploratory dive hit paydirt off the small island of Tanjung Batutoro, below a sheer cliff with
caves and known as a fishing spot for the locals. The site was incredible, an unusual combination
of superb macro and wide angle opportunity. Excellent visibility and blue water extend from the
wall, which has large house sized ledges and overhangs at around 20m. Schools of king fish hang
in the distance and turtles swim by. The ledges are sandy bottomed and exploring reveals macro
treasures such as shrimp gobies, jawfish and peacock mantis shrimp. The overhangs are covered
in tubastrea, sponges, green tree corals and colourful soft corals, all crawling with cleaner shrimp
of every kind waiting for reef fish to pause. Ornate ghost pipe fish and long nose hawkfish hide in
the branches of the large black coral bushes. Large lobster peer out of dark crevices. Take care to
dive the site in the afternoon when the sun lights the wall as it can be dark in the morning.
| Type | Skill Level |
Critter Rating | Scenery Rating |
Depth Range |
| Wall/Slope |
Itermediate |
**** | **** | 10-25 m |
map
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