Meeting time in Smiling Seahorse Dive Shop at 12.00 p.m., where we will have time to try equipment before proceeding to our boat MV Smiling Seahorse (replacing MV Thai Sea in November 2018). Just before departure the Thai immigration officers will come on board and stamp us out of Thailand. Then the boat will take us to Kawthaung where we will get our visa for Myanmar. Once all formalities settled, we leave the harbour to the islands and our first dive site High Rock. Dinner will be served under the stars...
Our first dive for today will be at High Rock which is a great Macro spots. Here we can find all the special marine life, like Pipefish, ghost pipe fish, Pineapple Fish, Frogfish, Sea Horses and many different species Nudibranchs. Move on, and our next will be dive at Stewart Island where 3 tunnels cross the islands from one side to another. Afternoon and night dive at Tower Rock which can be a very special experience if timing is right... Here comes opportunity to see Grey Reef shark, Nurse Shark (and they are big…) and a lots of small things like Sea Horses, Frogfish, Ghost Pipefish and spanish dancers in the evening.
Today four dives will take place around the very special Shark Cave, one of our favorite spots. In the afternoon we will find a bounty beach where we can get some sand between our toes and might also pass by a local fishermen village. Chance to see Eagle Ray, Grey Reef Shark, Nurse Shark sleeping in their cave, blotched sting rays, frog fishes, leaf fish, Spearing Mantis Shrimp and many more. Beautiful coral makes it a very colorful dive site.
After an overnight trip, we will reach Black Rock, a small rock perking out in open sea. Here we are going for big stuff, like Sharks and Rays and whatever else is passing… This is a very special dive site, as sometimes we can be blessed with witnessing a "Manta Festival" with Manta rays coming in dozens from everywhere during the whole dives... in this condition, it is quite difficult to focus on the coral side and find the small stuff but it is also very rich in Macro Life. Probably the best dive site in Myanmar but also located quite far from civilization which has it's advantage - very few divers have been there.
We stay offshore with North Twin and its pinnacle where there is another good chance to cross Manta rays and sometimes eagle rays and even mobulas. Because there are many patches of sand between the boulders (a particular feature of this dive site), we might also see Leopard sharks sleeping here quite regularly. Giant seafans are also often hiding around, so stay careful!
We will visit Seafan Forest in the morning, its name says it all, with many boulders and many seafans attract various kinds of fish. You will often see schools of barracudas or batfish on top of the site as well as tuna hunting schools of fusiliers. In the afternoon we will go around Western Rocky for 2 more dives there.
4 todays' dives will be around Western Rocky which is one of the most famous dive sites in Burma. Don't worry though, as most likely we still won’t need to share it with others! One of the highlights is a cave tunnel at 20 meters depth that goes all the way through the island. You will see lobsters hiding in dark corners as well as sleeper lobster and many types of crabs (sponge crab, spider crab, anemone crab...). If lucky, you can also spot Bowmouth Guitar Fish, Whale Shark, Various shark species Harlequin Shrimp, Frogfish and Sea Horses…
The last dive goes into a volcano where a group of black tip sharks likes to hang around… this is also a special space to find seahorse and rare tropical fish like the comet long fin, the shaded batfish or the pinneaple fish... open your eyes!
After the last dive we will head back toward Kawthaung where there will be opportunity for some souvenir shopping and a fresh local beer. Once we got our passports back from the Myanmar immigration authorities, we will either head back to Ranong, or stay in town if you have onward trip plans into mainland Myanmar. End of services
