Boileau andDebe Campbell
Note: The authors would like to thank PADI Dive instructor Vimal Lekhraj of Dive Masters, Jakarta for his invaluable help in preparing this section.
BINTAN
Good, Shallow Diving Close to Singapore
Who says that there's no decent diving near Singapore? How about this, folks: four nurse sharks taking an afternoon siesta, indecently close together, under boulders with several peek-holes; seahorses on two successive dives, tails tightly wrapped around staghorn coral branches; a crocodile fish lying without the slightest twitch, waiting for lunch to come within leaping-range; an absolutely huge banded sea snake, slithering around rocks and sand; a most unusual fish, the comet, showing us its rear end, impersonating an aggressive white-spotted moray; a fat, meter-plus mottled grouper, resting under a ledge.
This was in north Bintan island, forty-five minutes' ferry ride from Singapore's Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. Visability and the underwater structure here is nothing to brag about, but there's certainly plenty to see.
Our general assessment of diving off Bintan is quite positive in spite of the restricted visibility which ranged from a close to awful 3 meters (but still a lot better than Singapore) to a passable 7 meters. The water clarity was disturbed by fine sediment, and we are not sure if it is just a seasonal aberration. Currents are just about non-existent and the bottom is shallow, a perfect area for beginners.
There is plenty to keep the attention of more advanced divers. Nudibranchs and flatworms—unusual and colorful— are abundant, and we counted at least three dozen species, all competing for the prize in the "small-is beautiful" category.
We saw Tridacna clams—with their hallucinogenic patterns and colors—in the 25-60 centimeter range. Anemones and their spunky clownfish guests (at least three species) enliven most locations. We encountered two species of jellyfish—a large pinkish one, and a smaller-belled, cream-colored one with long, graceful tentacles. Both pulsated beautifully. A fine group of fishes—big, medium and small— also riveted our attention. Hard corals are abundant, in many areas in surprisingly good shape.
Night dives are particularly rewarding here, in fact the variety of life is excellent. Sea urchins of several species, including a couple of exuberantly colorful ones, teach careful underwater movements. Gaudy shrimp and crabs come out of their lairs to scavenge; some bright red, and others imaginatively camouflaged.
| AT A GLANCE | |
| Bintan | |
| Reef type: | Shallow fringing reefs |
| Access: | 15 min-1 hr by boat, depending on location |
| Visibility: | Poor, 3-7 meters |
| Current: | Almost none |
| Coral: | In places, quite good |
| Fish: | Good varieties and numbers |
| Highlights: | Nudibranchs by day; crustaceans by night |
Exploring Bintan
An old Mexican saying goes: "So far from God, but so close to the United States" and divers thinking about Bintan could well be forgiven for giving this their own spin: "So far from eastern Indonesia (scuba heaven), but so close to Singapore (lousy diving)." But being close to Singapore gives distinct advantages to Bintan (we're not sure about Mexico): funds for infrastructure, including resort development, and developing professionally run diving programs.
One of these resorts, the Mana-Mana Beach Club, a water sports complex, offers—among many other aquatic activities— scuba diving under the professional supervision of a well-qualified, personable instructor, Jonathan Ho.
Just before the October 1994 opening of the Mana-Mana resort, Jon conducted a last-minute survey of dive sites around north Bintan. We dove off the Singapore-based power cruiser and dive live-aboard, the Seri Delima, owned and operated by Capt. Tan.
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