Dive Sites of Bunaken Island, Manado, Sulawesi

Bunaken, the diving spot which highly compulsory for you to visit as a diver. Its beauty has been known to the world . Cluster of coral reef which lined up along the dive site has its own characteristics, and it's because the region of Sulawesi Sea is a marine areas that separate from the continental shelf in Indonesia. in this article we serve some of the information for diving sites in Bunaken, which we summarized from several sources.

Reef Basics

Great for: Small animals, wall dives, underwater photography, drift diving, reef life and health, dive value-for-money and advanced divers
Not so great for: Wrecks and non-diving activities
Depth: 5 - >40m
Visibility: 20 - 35m
Currents: Usually gentle but can be strong
Surface Conditions: Calm
Water Temperature: 27 - 30°C
Experience Level: Beginner - advanced
Number of dive sites: ~25
Distance: ~18 km north of Manado Bay (40 mins)
Access: Manado diving resorts
Recommended length of stay: 7 - 10 days

Descriptions:

Mike Point
Many large and massive corals, black corals, sponges, big gorgonians and ascidians. Angelfishes, tilefish, large jacks, eagle rays, white-tip reef sharks and with luck big silvertip sharks.

Raymond Point
This wall with good hard, soft and whip corals growth very nice and is a home for many lobsters, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, big emperors, groupers, tunas, red snappers, sea snakes and stingrays. Sometimes the current horizontal and vertical.

Tengah
With sometimes a strong current, the reef offers yellow tail fusiliers, parrotfish, batfishes, jacks, and wrasse also white-and black-tip sharks

Mandolin Point
In the deeper parts small caves, very beautiful reef top with many different hard and soft corals. Fishes like banner fishes, large angelfishes, fusiliers, damselfishes, butterfly fishes, big sweet lips, groupers, napoleon wrasse, turtles, sea snakes and barracudas.

Alung Banua
A nice reef top with many completely covered foliose and hard corals, also a very good topography with canyons and many small caves. Fishes like in Fukui Point. Ideal for night dives.

Fukui Point
Also called "Stingray Point", has a stepped profile, the reef top is at 3 meters and then slopes down with several shorts, but steep, drops. Well know for its rays, turtles, big barracudas, jacks, sweet lips, triggerfish, black snappers, spadefish, and napoleon wrasse, also bump head parrotfish.

Celah Celah
In the crook of the reef along the south site, the soft and hard corals growth good, many fishes like butterfly fishes, surgeonfish, parrotfish and also Napoleon wrasses.

Likuan I and II
Many canyons and cracks in the vertical walls. Here your chances are very good to see banner fishes, damselfishes, pyramid butterfly fishes, sea snakes, large emperor fishes, groupers, lionfish and scorpion fishes, Napoleon wrasse, turtles and sometimes white-tip reef sharks. The reef is filled with feather stars, gorgonians, black corals, giant sponges and ascidians.

Likuan III
Vertical walls with sandy slopes, many different hard corals. White-tip and black-tip reef sharks, barracudas, turtles and sometimes mantas.

Kampung
Slope is growth very nice. A lot of soft corals and sea fang, but often very strong current.


Pangalisan and Bunaken Timur
Very good reefs. Many hard and soft corals. Fishes like: emperor fishes, parrotfish, jacks, dogtooth tunas, butterfly fishes, angelfishes, sea snakes, blue-tip stingrays, white-tip reef sharks and sometimes gray sharks and hammerhead sharks.

Sachiko Point
Big fishes prowl this steep wall included large tunas, turtles, banner fishes, damselfishes, large angelfishes, sweet lips and large emperors. White and black-tipped sharks resting in caves in the deeper parts.



Source :
http://www.divetheworldindonesia.com
http://www.larascasseresort.com