Sharks, turtles, and turnover

Sharks, turtles, and turnover

When I least wrote, I was about to leave on a Sipadan diving/Mabul home stay combo. It didn't quite work out as planned. Sunday evening, I met the guy who was actually running the diving. I expected to be informed of when and where to catch the boat in the morning.

What I found was that he wanted to, no, insisted on changing the deal. 5 days/4 nights with 2 Sipadan and 1 Mabuil/Kapali dive each day was out. The new deal was 3 days/3 nights and only 2 Sipadan dives in total. Needless to say, I was not amused. As the price structure strongly favored long stays, I meant I would pay much more per dive and the change in dive locations meant that I would get lesser dives. Excuses were made that all his divers were coming out on Thursday morning but ultimately it was clear that he did not want to do the deal I had signed up for and was uninteresting in even trying to come up with something workable.

Next day, instead of getting on a boat to go diving, I was retrieving what I had paid and struggling to come up with a new plan. After checking the bank account and crunching some numbers, I determined that there was enough slack to do 3 nights with Borneo Divers, albeit the margin was not terribly large. The estimation was greatly simplified by the observation I was almost exactly half way through the trip. I booked 2 nights with Borneo Divers with an option on a third. Moments later, I got a message from Arung Hayat that another customer had arrived who wanted to do 5 nights. It would be solid since there were 2 people if I joined. Arrangements would be made o Tuesday with, presumably, departure on Wednesday. I declined

By backpacker standards, Borneo Divers' Sipadan resort is quite posh. In suite bathrooms with air-con, the premises are constantly being swept to keep them clear of sand. Food and drinks are good, served buffet style, all included, all you can eat. It is so far removed from the way I normally travel this it stands out as almost a holiday *from* the trip. Of course, at over US$100/day, it cannot be sustained.

Above the water, the island is nothing special. Just a small tropical island surrounded by beach. On the first day, I walked around the perimeter. It took me all of 20 minutes.

Below the water is another story. The island is surrounded by coral, with most of the diving activity associated with the "wall". A 300-meter drop that surrounds the island. The sea is filled with small reef sharks and green and hawksbill turtles. In 7 dives, we never failed to see at least 3 turtles. Most of the time, we just stopped counting. After a while, sharks and turtles were scarcely worth pointing out. Still, staring eye to eye with a green sea turtle on a collision course is an awesome experience.

Smaller stuff was around too, but harder to find. We say several lion and scorpion fish, one nudibrae, and a moray eel. Visibility varied between passable and terrible. That probably contributed to my not seeing any barracudas though other groups had seen them recently. On the last dive yesterday, we ascended through a shoal of jacks with at least several hundred if not thousands of members.

It came to decision time: stay another day or go. If money were no object, then I would definitely have stayed. But at US$100/day, money has to be an objected. And, ultimately, I determined that I was near the point of diminishing returns. I had experienced the biggest draws and simply lacked the funds to explore the site exhaustively. There would be other diving later. Best to save my diving budget for new opportunities.

After one last dive with dreadful visibility, I returned to Semporna. Tomorrow morning, I return to Sanderkan, hopefully to be reunited with my camera and resume my pursuit of those creatures who do not spend all their lives in the water. A new beginning, right in the middle.