2005 in Retrospect

The December and November Report

Rain! Rain! Go away!

December has been such a awful month! Rough seas, torrential downpours. It has been raining cats, dogs and donkeys! Looks like the season is delayed but there seem to
be a silver lining in the dark and foreboding clouds. We had reports from Yala that the sea looked absolutely fantastic. Looks like the good weather is creeping up from the
bottom and heading north. And it is the first anniversary of the Tsunami 9.0.

Diving in Unawattuna

We explore Unawatuna in the early November. Unfortunately the season is still not in full swing and the conditions (visibility) were not good enough for us to take good pictures
and apart from a preliminary report about the region we couldn't do much. Expect a more detailed report in January 2006.

Eco Club Cleanup

About twenty volunteers converged on the beaches of Hikkaduwa for a reef cleanup organized by theEco Club.

The October and September Report

The West Coast Season Starts!

The dive centers from Beruwala to Unawatuna are now open! We will bring you more information on the Unawatuna dive sites this season! On November 5th & 6th the Eco Club
we has organized a Reef Cleanup & Coral Study at Hikkaduwa Beach as well!

Return to the H.M.S Hermes

We return to the most intriguing wreck dive in Sri Lanka, the H.M.S Hermes, off the coast of Batticoloa, for some fantastic dives!

The August and July 2005 Report

Diving in Trincomalee

We continue to get reports from divers of excellent dive conditons in the east!

Updated Fish & Coral ID section.

We have re-engineered this section for better performance. Know your fish!

The June 2005 Report

Colors Beneath the Sea - Underwater Photography Exhibition

Visit the National Art Gallery for "Colors Beneath The Sea", another underwater photography exhibition by the eminent diver photographer Nisha Jinadasa.
See stunning visuals of rare marine fauna at this event which will be held from 16th - 18th of June 2005. Above: Nisha pouncing on a Marble Ray at the Third Reef, Negombo.
See this picture from Nishas eyes at the Art Gallery at Anandakumaraswamy Mawatha (Green Path), Colombo 7.

The May 2005 Report - East Coast in action!

The first ever PADI Instructor course in Sri Lanka
The Instructor Development Course (IDC), IDC Staff Instructor Course (IDCSI), Emergency First Response Instructor Course (EFRI/CFCI) and MSDT prep courses will be
offered for the first time in Sri Lanka late this year. The courses will also be available in local languages.

Batticaloa
H.M.S Hermes

We explore the H.M.S Hermes off the coast of Batticaloa on 14th May 05. Visibility is 50M+ and as a result not much fish life (Apart from the millions of Fusiliers and Snappers of
course). The wreck is as beautiful as ever and completely unaffected by the Tsunami. We explore the rear deck and the anti air craft gun. Click here to visit the worlds first purpose
built Air Craft carrier.

Trincomalee
As of 10th May 05, Scuba Sri Lanka has started operations in Trincomalee (East Coast) at the Garden Inn Hotel behind Nilaveli Beach Hotel. They report amazing visibility
isolated seas in pristine condition. Nilaveli Beach hotel will be reopened by August 05.

IUCN is planning a cleanup mission to Trinco to remove any debris from the reef. Initial reports indicate that there is no damage to the Coral Reef. We will have verified reports
soon. The cleanup will start Friday 13th to Monday 16th. Contact Marten Meynell +94 776 329230 (Mobile) Email: mcm@iucnsl.org if you wish to join this operation
(Marten requests divers with experience who are comfortable handling knives and maintaining buoyancy with additional baggage holding cleanup debris).

South West
Some Dive Centers in the south are still diving (International Dive School, Ypsylon Beruwala does a 8.30 AM Dive). Admittedly the conditions aren't that great in the South/West
now.

But sometimes dives in the off season are quite exciting with the variation of fish life if you are willing to brave slightly rough seas (like our dive in Beruwala last May).

The April 2005 Report

The end of a season in sight!
In the west coast, the great sea seems to be getting restless day by day.

The end of a season in the West Coast is beginning of fun on the East Coast! The Hotels in Trincomalee are back in Business.
We will return to the beautiful East Coast once the diving starts in May this year.

Unfortunately we will not be doing a trip to the Great Basses this year. Next year? Definitely!

Fish & Coral Identification
New and updated Fish & Coral Identification pages! Now, try and identify the fish you see faster!

The Mar 2005 Report

PADI Sri Lanka Members Forum

The first ever PADI Members Forum was held in Hotel Eden Benota (05-Mar-05) at the culmination of a coastal tour by Johnny Chew, Regional Manager PADI Asia Pacific and
Paul S Morral, Director, Sales and Field Services PADI Asia Pacific. The objective of their trip was to evaluate the damage to the dive centers, reconstruction progress and
educate members on how PADI
could assist in providing members support in terms of providing membership, material and other member services.

The Last Frontier: Third Reef Negombo

Twenty Kilometers away from land, we visited the Third Reef of Negombo! Click here for pictures

 
         

Third Reef: White-spine Surgeonfish
 
Bubbles and Batfish: Absolutely crystal clear blue water.
 
The Feb 2005 Report: After the Tsunami

Most hotels and Dive Centers are now open! Click Here for more information.

The sands of Kalpitiya

An amazing journey to Kalpitya in the post Tsunami era.


Trevally Pass - Kalpitiya.

Review the 2004 updates to the home page.

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