Maldives 2011

SQ361 

DIVE SITE

Trip Notes 10th - 23rd April

10-Apr-11 

Sunday 

dive 1

Coral Gardens

Very relaxing check dive with huge coral blocks full of smaller reef fish and bluestripe snappers, great barracuda, wave after wave of yellowback fusiliers, so many feather stars, lovely hard coral along the main reef

Hanimadhoo

Day 2

Monday 

dive 1

Hanimadhoo Thila

This is such a beautiful dive site and the whole site is covered in pink and blue soft coral, very interesting pinnacles with large shoals of humphead snappers and bluestripe snappers, very friendly bunch of juvenila batfish, great hard coral on the reef top

dive 2

Broken Rock

Big Current! Huge shoals of both Indian & bluestripe snappers, large female stingray being cleaned, shoaling golden travelly and bigeye jacks, layers of silversides along the north, batfish, large anemone shrimp, porcelain crabs, ornate ghost pipefish, whip corals with colonial anemones on them

dive 3

Nolhivaramu Reef

Gentle drift dive, huge shoal of bonefish being followed by Dolphins, wave after wave of fusiliers, huge shoal of humphead snappers and bluestripe snappers, turtle, white leafish, many different nudibrancs  peacock mantis, large shoals of redtail butterflyfish, large honeycomb moray

Nolhivaramu

We had a lovely Island tour followed by young coconut drinks, around our assistance Captain's house (Ahmeds) before having a slow walk back to the beach to watch a perfect Sunset

Day 3

Tuesday 

dive 1

Big Thila

A large eagle ray hanging around the cleaning station, many scorpion fish and lionfish, saron SP.8, marble shrimp, banded shrimps, different blennies, young napoleon kept coming to check us out, wave after wave of fusiliers

dive 2

Ursath Finolhu

Large friendly nurse shark swimming around, 2 ornate ghost-pipefish, huge shoals of blue stripe snappers and zillions of fusiliers, the whole site has a carpet of pick and peach soft coral and layers of basslets, the pinnacles themselves make an interesting dive and are covered in yellow and blue soft coral

dive 3

Ursath Finolhu Night Dive

Great critter dive, pair of ornate ghost-pipefish, much desired flabelinia, ungullate crab, squat lobsters, colonial shrimps, many reef fish darting for cover from our torch lights, whip corals covered in colonial anemones and the soft coral was puffed out to its full glory!

Huras Faru

Day 4

Wednesday 

dive 1

Christmas Tree Thila

What a stunning dive, fabulous visibility and very little current, so much fish life and WOW the coral is amazing! Interesting overhangs full of bluestripe snappers, found this stunning pink and red flatworm we've not seen before, couple of whitetip sharks stingrays, chevron barracuda, so many surgeonfish, rare sight of a pair of blackened butterfly fish

dive 2

Queen Rock

Wall of surgeonfish and rainbow runners, big-eye jacks, large grey reef shark, huge female stingray, batfish, so many teralobed anemones, spearing mantis, reef pipefish everywhere, lionfish, both Indian & bluestripe snappers

dive 3

Long ridge

We had large grey sharks cleaning at one end of the reef and a nursery of 11+ juveniles at the other! Huge shoal of fosters barracuda, eagle ray, octopus, fusiliers being charged at by giant travallies, crazy batfish, layer of basslets all along the reef and huge shoal of bannerfish

Long ridge

Amazing lightning show after Dinner!

Day 5

Thursday 

dive 1

Longridge

2 Large female grey sharks being closely followed by 15+ smaller males, eagleray feeding along the sand, turtle, octopus fighting with 2 small groupers, huge shoal of 200+ fosters barracuda, large shoal of bigeye jacks and juvenile golden jacks

dive 2

Longridge

Just the juvenile grey sharks on this dive but they are so cute and come in really close to check you out! Stingray, octopus, eagle ray, fosters barracuda, bigeye jacks, batfish

dive 3

Bodu Infaru Thila

Very pleasant dive along overhangs and pinnacles full of blue & pink soft coral and large sea fans, so many fusiliers, large shoal of midnight snappers, some nice pieces of rare pink hard coral, huge shoal of bannerfish and butterflyfish on the reef top

Hulhudhffaru

Day 6

Friday 

dive 1

Manta Reef

Mantasatic!!!! We had Manta Rays for the whole dive and I counted 13 different ones!  3 pairs of a male & female and 4 together at the end, they came so close to us...

dive 2

Manta reef

7 Manta Rays, 1 really big female! Turtles, huge shoal of midnight snappers, shoals and shoals of blue stripe snappers, hump head snappers and yellow goatfish along with groups of sweet lips and banner fish, whiptail ray 

dive 3

Ali Caves

Swift drift along the most amazing reef, the whole reef is covered in the most amazing burnt orange soft coral and the overhangs are a photographers dream, 15+ green turtles and hawksbills, large shoal of bigeyes, rainbow runners, the reef top has a great garden of healthy hard coral, along with layers of smaller reef fish

Ali fushi

Guest popped over to the local Island for a tour

Day 7

Saturday

dive 1

Ali Caves

Current was running the opposite way this morning but still a lovely dive and its the amount of fish that amazes me on this site!  The soft coral has got to be some of the best, if not the best I've ever seen in the Maldives!  Huge napoleons, large shoal of pyramid butterfly fish & wave after wave of fusiliers, 5 green turtles and 2 hawksbills

dive 2

Blue Wall

1 Female Manta Ray, 3 pairs of indian butterfly fish, 2 yellow & black notodoris, layers of glassfish along the wall and the whole face is covered in lovely blue soft coral, finished our dive drifting over the hard coral and layers of reef fish 

dive 3

Handi Kuda

WOW just like diving in fish soup with walls of fusiliers being charged by jobfish and bluefin travelly, 5 honeycomb moray, large shoal of both humphead and yellow spot snappers, turtle, large marble groupers, pair of porcelain crabs, large shoal of bigeye jacks & rainbow runners 

Huras Faru

Went for a sunset walk along a lovely beach on a local Island

Day 8

Sunday 

dive 1

Barrah Thila

Drift along a ledge full of blue & pink soft coral, huge shoal of big eye jacks, tuna, very hungry hawksbill, shoaling rainbow runners, freeway of yellow back fusiliers, honeycomb moray, huge shoal of 5 different types of snappers on the reef top along with yellow giant fish and redtail butterfly fish

dive 2

Barrah Thila

3 Juvenile grey sharks and 2 eagle rays, swirling masses of big eyes, 2 hawksbills and 1 juvenile green turtle, very active yellow edged ceratosoma nudi, we all went back to the reef top to swim amongst the snappers and at times you couldn't even see your buddy as their were so many fish!!  Wave after wave of yellowback fusiliers

dive 3

Barrah Corner

8 Green turtles and 2 hawksbills, large feather tail ray and a large male whip tail ray, nurse shark, huge shoal of 2 spot snappers and blue stripe snappers, lovely coral blocks full of smaller reef fish and glassfish, 2 huge giant travelly, 12 large bonefish swam by

Barrah

Day 9

Monday 

dive 1

Captain Pentalis Wreck

Fish Soup! Full of fish! 100’s pompano’s, huge shoals of hump head surgeonfish, 2 different types of sargean tfish, hump head snappers and yellow spot grunts, red tail butterfly fish, 2 whiptail rays, napoleons, huge shoal of red snappers lined up along the stern section, large marble grouper

dive 2

Aquarium

What a current! We flew along the reef with 2 very friendly napoleons, turtles, ribbon eels, mantis shrimps, tuna, shoals of humphead snappers and blue stripe snapper, very healthy hard coral along the reef top all covered in layers of small reef fish

dive 3

Seven Caves ( New Site )

Great find!!!!  7 caves and the last 5 were covered in lovely yellow & blue soft coral, blue fin charging along the reef, 2 stingrays cleaning, 1 large Manta Ray fly by, huge eagle ray at least 2m in length, sergeant pteraedidia, mosaic godivia, slender roboastra 

Thakandhoo

Day 10

Tuesday 

dive 1

F.S.S.P

Couple of grey sharks, 4 eaglerays, large shoal of bigeye jacks, golden travelly, shoals of bluestripe snappers, large female whitetip, crazy batfish, pair of much desired flabalina

dive 2

Thankan Ridge

4 large grey sharks, 1 eagle ray, stingray, nurse shark, 1 Manta Ray fly by, large shoal of bannerfish, bigeye jacks and midnight snappers, great barracuda, caramel hypselodoris

dive 3

Thakan Finholu

Gentle drift along overhangs and pinnacles, many anemone fish with their eggs, 6 long nose hawkfish, turtle, large shoals of blue stripe snappers and sweetlips, feather starts everywhere, good hard coral along the main reef and full of small reef fish

Hanimadhoo

Great Lightning Show!

Day 11

Wednesday 

dive 1

Heaven & Hell

Big current so hard work but wow...the soft coral in the overhangs were puffed out to their full glory and we even had a large Manta Ray swim by, huge shoal of 60+ bluefin tuna and a giant of a dog tooth tuna, 2 notodoris

dive 2

Bodu Maaya Thila ( New Site )

Nice critter dive with plenty of different shrimps and reef crabs, octopus, pipefish, large napoleon, stingray being cleaned, huge shoal of bannerfish, the whole reef top is covered in feather stars

dive 3

Magic Mushroom

Black ornate ghost-pipefish, many long nose hawkfish, large slender pipefish, many puffer fish, chevron barracuda, flatworm, glassfish, large shoal of pale surgeonfish

dive 4

Magic Mushroom Night dive

My first sighting of a bearded rockling, longnose hawk fish, so many different types of crabs and shrimps, nudi, all the Jewel anemones fully open under the overhangs making the overhangs themselves look bright orange, many little jellyfish while doing our stops  

Sand Bank

Day 12

Thursday 

dive 1

Finey Thila

Lovely drift dive along stunning overhangs full of bright soft coral, wave after wave of fusiliers, 4 notodoris, large shoals of jacks and midnight snappers, turtle, large shoals of bluestripe snappers

dive 2

Heaven & Hell Thila

All the guests wanted to dive this site again and yes, it was well worth going back!  Such a beautiful site and probably my favourite one up here in the North.  This time is was heaven with a gentle current allowing you to move around freely

dive 3

Mantavarri

We we did get a large female Manta Ray give us a fly by but the rest of the dive was a nice critter dive, found three pairs of squat lobsters then 1 starfish and the largest squat lobster I've ever seen, clouded moray, many lionfish & scorpionf ish, both spearing and peacock mantis, yellow & black notodoris, mobula, 3 turtles 

Sand Bank

Day 13

Friday 

Snorkel after our late breakfast before traveling back over to Hanimadhoo

Watched the trip DVD after lunch

Afternoon packing and relaxing