The sea appeared abnormally green at Barracuda Rock , Beruwala
For the first time we dive at the South Reef; a new dive site for us off the shores of Bentota.
The Valiant in a dry dock. May or may not be Admiralty Floating Dock 23
The H.M.S Valiant was damaged as a result of the sinking
The TRUG
Snapper Alley
A graceful Eagle Ray swims along the extent of the Cargo Wreck
Suddenly, there was fish everywhere!
We encounter King M at the Conch after 3 years!
The fish rain at Kiralagala!
Sri Lanka Sub Aqua Club
A Special General Meeting of the above Club will be held on Tuesday 20th November 2007 at the auditorium of The Organization of Professional Associations (OPA) of Sri Lanka , No 275/75, Prof Stanley Wijesundera MW, Off Bauddhaloka Mw, Colombo 07, Sri Lanka commencing at 6.30 p.m.
Agenda
Discuss future of the Club
Elect an Interim Committee
Schedule for AGM
All members past and present and any divers interested in joining are cordially invited to attend. Please pass this information on to anyone you think would be interested.
Secretary
Sri Lanka Sub Aqua Club
May - October 2007: Heavy rains & rough seas - diving is out but lots of other things to do!
Diving? Don't even think about it. The rain has been particularly severe and flooding the cities with a vengeance. Land bound wind has been responsible for rough seas & flash tides. The conditions are calmer now but its been a whole month since we've been able to dive. We suspect the wait is going to be long. Nothing doing but to stay put till November 07!
Fortunately there lots of other things to do in this small country. White water rafting, wind surfing, Hiking, Cycling, Trekking, Wild Life Safaris or just plain looking at stuff and chilling.
Just look at this great video to get a sense of what Sri Lanka has to offer.
Visit Sri Lanka today and take advantage of the great deals hotels here are now offering its clients!
Small Island. Big Trip.
Expedition to Great Basses, Kirinda
Finally, it is that time of the year when we are blessed with a small window of opportunity to dive at the Great Basses Light House! During the Sinhala & Tamil new year; while everyone was away lighting the traditional oil lamp & enjoying the festivities; we were below the surface at the Great Basses ridge exploring the fantastic natural terrain and prolific fish life! During two days of diving we explored considerable part of the reef and its surrounding area. Rough seas, strong swells & surge prevented us from getting too close. However we had a great time and bring you this report! We expect this to be our last dive for this season. It is indeed going to be a long wait till November 2007 when the West coast season begins again. :(
Eight miles away from shore, strong swells batter the reef.
Right under the reef, two morays snatch at fish swaying in the surge!
March Report: In the seas of plankton
Serendib Reef & Wreck - 4 dives
We conduct two dives each at the Cargo Wreck and Serendib Ridge. The conditions were great the fish life amazing.
Its Valentines for two Cuttlefish at Serendib Reef!
A Maldive Anemeonefish fluttering among a Baloon Tipped Anemeone
Blackhole leading to another world inside the Cargo Wreck
We hit the deepest depth of 32.6 meters under the huge propellar
Letter to the Japanese Ambassador - Stop the brutal murder of Dolphins
Dear Visitor, Please watch this video and sign this petition to stop this shocking mass carnage of gentle & intelligent creatures in Japan. Please mail this link to as many of your friends and ask them to spread the word. This is a shocking & disturbing video.
We have also lodged a formal protest at the Japanese Embassy of Sri Lanka about this disgrace to humanity.
Serendib Reef- By the shipping lanes
Just after full moon and a complete lunar eclipise, we dive at Serendib Reef amidst quite strong current and encounter large schools of Batfish, lots of Groupers a Sea Snake! Await updated account soon.
February Report: Splash! Splash! Splash!
Barracda Reef - Always a Barrastorm
A huge shoal of Pickhandle Barracuda greet us as we dive Barracuda Reef on a unbelievably calm day; a stark contrast to the yesterdays conditions at the Cargo Wreck (below)
Amidst fierce currents and choppy seas, we meet, Elvis, the giant Stingray who is the undisputed king of the Dehiwela Cargo Wreck! We do two dives and also encounter prolific fish life feeding in the strong currents.
The king at the Cargo Wreck!
Loads of fish swimming against the strong currents over the hull.
Finally, under the watchful eye of several Longfin Batfish, we explore the Dehiwela Cargo Wreck!
Special Report: Barracuda Reef
Nishan Perera reports on Barracuda Reef, an interesting Sandstone/Limestone reef colse to Colombo.
A Sea Snake accompanied by Pilotfish
Millions of Glassfish!
20KM away in the deep see off the coast of Colombo we visit the exotic sea bed at Taprobane - West and conduct two fantastic dives! Visibility is a near perfect 40M-50M!
A diver explores the sporadic coral domes at Taprobane - West
A beautiful Mobula Devil Ray swims over us
Deep at Galu Gala and shallow at Coral Gardens
We are the first to dive at Galu Gala Unawatuna, a solitary sea mount starting at 33M and extending down to 60M. We conduct a 47M deep deco dive, explore the deep sea bed and discover an intriguing anchor! The next day we chill for an hour at the shallow Coral Gardens, Hikkaduwa and focus on the small things in life such as beautiful Nudibranchs!
At 47 meters a diver explores Galu Gala
At 10 meters we photograph beautiful Nudibranchs at Coral Gardens.
What is easier? Diving in Sri Lanka or Driving in Sri Lanka? To find out, we drove all the way from Colombo for one single dive at the Black Coral Point Hikkaduwa! Our painstaking research very conclusively indicated that Diving was much easier than Driving as there were zero bats out of hell at the dive site in comparison to the road. (Pictorial proof given below) Therefore we encourage you to Dive in Sri Lanka rather than Drive in Sri Lanka. You will also live longer.
A diver hovers near a large growth of Black Coral (Black Coral Point)
Despite its name, you find lot more than Black Coral (Black Coral Point)
January Report: Wish you a great 2007 with fantastic diving!
We wish you great & safe diving this year!
It is news to many, even those who live in Sri Lanka, that just off Colombo exist some really good dive sites. Here is an account of our first dive to the Snapper Alley off Dehiwela. Await more information and pictures!
Beautiful soft coral adorn a rocky pillar at the Snapper Alley.
Works of man or works of nature? Mysterious stone structures
International Diving School wins the DRV Environmental Award for 2006!
R.K Somadasa (Somey) of the IDS has won the German Travel Association DRV Award for his efforts to preserve the Hikkaduwa marine park!
Conch & The Earl of Shaftsbury
On the 3rd of January we dive for the first time and explore two historic ship wrecks! The Conch and the Earl of Shaftesbury!
A diver explores the enclosed space within the Conch
The remnants of the Earl of Shaftesbury
Welcome to Sri Lanka! The best location in the Indian Ocean to Scuba Dive in the warm tropical seas and wonderful beaches. Sri Lanka offers some great Wreck Diving experiences such as the H.M.S Hermes, SS Rangoon, H.M.S Conch, The Earl Of Shaftsbury, H.M.S Diomede, and some Surat Silver Coin wrecks at the Great Basses & Little Basses Lighthouses off Kirinda and Yala. Sri Lanka offers many courses such as PADI Open Water, Advanced, Rescue, Dive Master but yet to offer NAUI, PSAI, TDI, SDI, Nitrox, Trimix, Heliox, Solo Diving Technical Dive Courses or Liveaboard Diving. Shore diving is a possibility. Sri Lanka also is famous for whale migration, dolphin watching and also shark sightings for Great White Shark, Blue Shark, Mako, Tiger Shark, Black Tip Reef Shark, White Tip Reef Shark, Manta Rays, Moray Eels, Puffer Fish (Fugu), giant turtle. Some dive sites are better than Maldives, Great Barrier Reef, Yap, Truck Lagoon. The H.M.S Hermes is a fantastic and exciting dive. The H.M.S Vampire which accompanied the H.M.S Hermes is yet to be found. Surat Silver Coin treasure was found by Sir Arthur C. Clarke and Mike Wilson at the Great Basses Ridge. The coins were minted by Aurenzeb, the son of Shah Jehan who built the Mumtas Mahal (Taj Mahal). There are also wrecks of Japanese Zeros in the China Bay and Marble Beach area. The statue of lord ganesh can be seen at the Swami Rock dive in Trincomalee. pigeon Island in Trincomalee is also famous for great diving and snorkeling.