30th April – Boarding Labuan Bajo, Flores
1st May – Nusa Kode, Horseshoe Bay
2nd May – Langkoi & Lehok Sera
4th May – Gili Lawa Darat & Gili Lawa Laut
5th May – Current City & Wainilu
6th May – Current City & Rinca Island
Labuan Bajo Harbour, Flores
9.00 – 20.00
Guests arrive safely on board The Komodo Dancer in Labuan Bajo harbour. After a cabin orientation and gear set up session, we listened to the vessel orientation, safety and dive operations briefings.
In the meanwhile we took of towards Nusa Kode, South Komodo and enjoyed a delicious dinner on the outdoor table.
Generals:
The weather in Labuan Bajo was sunny all day long and it was pretty hot in the harbor. So we have been quite happy to start the cruise, so we could enjoy a slight breeze from the ocean. While cruising, we could spot some dolphins playing in the current close to the boat.
Nusa Kode, Horseshoe Bay (Rinca Island south)
07.30: Pelican Head – Check out dive
Seen: Nudibranchs, sea cucumbers every where, sea apple, ribbon eel, pigmy seahorse, sea star, blue spotted stingray, mobula ray, scorpion fish, zebra crab, ….
Conditions:27-24C water temperature, medium visibility (~15m), none to a light current and a bit of a swell
It was a nice and calm check out dive.
11.00: Canibal Rock
Seen: White tip reef shark, blue spotted stingray, giant porcupine fish (really a big guy), coral shrimp, black giant frog fish, schools of fusiliers and snappers, juvenile yellow box fish, nudibranchs and and and …
Conditions:26-24C water temperature, medium visibility (~10m), very mild current
14.30:Boulders
Seen:White tip reef shark sleeping, blue spotted stingray, nudibranchs, crocodile fish, juvenile sweetlip, ribbon eel, … and as well very beautiful, covered in soft and hard coral, boulders.
Conditions:25C water temperature, medium visibility (~10m), medium to no current
18.30: Torpedo Alley
Seen: Side gill slug (mating), torpedo ray, indian walkman, dwarf lionfish, cowries, lots off different kinds of shrimps and crabs like: coral, spider, decorator, hermit and so on → great black sand critter dive
Conditions:27C water temperature, no to strong current
General:
Between the dives we took the chance and moved close to the beach from Rinca to see the Komodo Dragons in the wild. Some boats used to feed them so as soon as they see speedboats, they come to the beach. Of course we didn’t feed the dragons but we could see them walking on the beach and some of the them also came in to the water to swim to the tenders. It was very impressive to see this animals moving! Good time for photos!
Weather and sea state:
The day started cloudy and stayed cloudy. It was a bit chilly when we just came back from the dives. After lunch the sky sent us as well some raindrops, but not enough (luckily) to call it raining. The rest of the day it stayed dry. The sea in the bay was very calm.
Langkoi & Lehok Sera (Komodo Island south)
07.30: Manta Alley (west)
Seen: Mantaaaasss!! Mantas get cleaned by the little butterfly fishes and feed on plankton, they also like to play in currency.
Turtles, schooling butterfly fishes & snappers, crabs, …
Conditions:28C water temperature, good visibility (up to 20m), no current, medium swell
10.30:Manta Alley (east & channel)
Seen:Yes, mantas again! A big and a juvenile white tip reef shark, lots of different kind of reef fishes: snappers, butterfly fishes, red tooth triggers and many more.
The mantas played this time mainly in the current of the channel.
Conditions:27C water temperature, good visibility, medium current and a bit swell
14.30:Manta Alley (channel and east)
Seen:Also on the 3rd dive we have been lucky: mantas where dancing in the current and some of us spotted a big reef octopus as well.
Conditions:28C water temperature, medium visibility (~15m), mild current, medium swell
18.30:Phinisi Wreck, Lehok Serah
Seen:Banded pipe fishes, lion fishes, Up-side-down jellyfish, decorator crab, banded sea snake, shrimps, nudibranchs, crocodile fish, … and a over and over with corals covered ship wreck
Conditions:25C water temperature, no current, very calm sea
Weather and sea state:
Today the weather was good. The sun was shining all day long and only a view clouds could be spotted. The sea was calm with a bit swell only.
Gili Lawa Darat & Gili Lawa Laut
7.30: Light House Reef (east)
Seen: Hawksbill turtle, 3 big stingrays, schooling bannerfish and red tooth trigger fish, scorpion fish, flatworm, nudibranchs,
Conditions:28C water temperature, visibility, (~ 10m), medium current
10.30:Crystal Rock
Seen:White tip reef sharks, butterfly bannerfish, surgeons, blue spotted stingray, big grouper, trevallys, tunas, …
Conditions:28-26C water temperature, medium visibility (10m), strong current
14.30:Golden Passage
Seen:White tip reef sharks, hawksbill turtle, sweetlips, bumphead parrot fish, schooling barracudas, leaf fish, cuttlefish, …
Conditions:28C water temperature, medium to murky visibility (20 -10m), strong current
17.00:Late afternoon was the time for the Three Humps Hill Climb on Gili Lawa Darat
After being already a couple of days on board, it was time to stretch our legs. So some of us decided to walk up the hill on Gili Lawa Darat. The view on top is stunning and definitely worth that we sweated a bit while climbing!
18.30:Gili Lawa Darat Slope
Seen:Bobtail squid, nudibranchs, spanish dancer, lots of crabs and shrimps, ….
Conditions:27C water temperature, no current, very calm sea
Weather and sea state:
A sunny day in paradise again with a little breeze. And the sea welcomed us with a good current but no waives and only a little swell in the morning.
Gili Lawa Darat & Gili Lawa Laut
7.15: Shotgun
Seen: Mobula ray, manta, giant trevally, white tip reef sharks, moray eel, giant sweetlip and grouper, lots of schooling fishes, …
Conditions:30-27C water temperature, visibility, (20 – 5m), medium to strong current, the water was split in thermo clines and different visibilities as well → weird conditions
10.30:Castle Rock
Seen:White and black tip reef sharks, giant barracudas, schools of trevallys, surgeonfish and fusiliers, tunas, batfish, lionfish, puffers, groupers
Conditions:30C water temperature, good visibility (20+m), no current
14.30:Light House Reef (north)
Seen:Nurse shark, eagle ray, hawksbill turtle, flatworm, nudibranchs, …
Conditions:30C water temperature, good visibility (~20m), mild current
18.30:Gili Lawa Darat Bay
Seen:Solar power- and other nudibranchs, crocodile fish, snake eel, octopus, spider crab, decorator crabs (with sea star and up-side down jellyfish on top), hermit crabs and more creatures
Conditions:30C water temperature, no current, very calm sea
General:
We already spent more than half of the trip together on Komodo Dancer and we all learned a lot about the different cultures from each other. Its very interesting to have the exchange between Hong Kong citizens and Europeans and it causes a lots of laughs. ☺
Weather and sea state:
And again, we are super lucky with the weather and the sea conditions: sun all day long, slight breeze and only a little swell.
Current City (Central Komodo) & Wainilu
07.30: Batu Bolong, south side
Seen: Hawksbill turtle, anthias, napoleon wrasse, .rainbow runners, fusiliers, giant trevallys, surgeonfish, map puffer fish, lionfish, scorpion fish, schooling soldiers and damselfishes, very colorful reef..
Conditions:27C water temperature, good visibility (~20m), medium current but we dived on the lee side
10.30:Karang makassar or Manta Point
Seen:Mantaaaaas! Again! They where playing around in the cleaning station, where they getting cleaned by the little butterfly fishes; we also saw some unicorn surgeon fish, a marbled ray, puffer and trigger fishes, octopus, …
Conditions:27C water temperature, medium current, visibility (~5-10m)
15.00:Tetawa besar
Seen:Beautiful coral reef slope, puffer-, bat-, surgeon-, sweetlips fishes, snapper, groupers, fusiliers passing by and some of us have been lucky to spot a manta again.
Conditions:28C water temperature, medium visibility (~10-20m), mild current
18.30:Wainilu
Seen:Frogfish, robust ghost pipe fish, squid, pigmy cuttlefish, zebra crab, snake eel, nudibranchs, banded sole, flounders, spiny devil fish, soft coral nudibranchs, hermit crabs, shrimps, squid, …
Conditions:27C water temperature, mild current
Weather and sea state:
As already usual, we had a sunny day with no clouds on the sky. A steady breeze from west made the day less hot and the sea was calm as well.
Current City, Rinca Island & Labuan Bajo (Flores)
7.30: Siaba kecil
Seen: Tunas, white tip reef shark, lots of hawksbill turtles, schooling snappers, redtooth trigger fishes, big eye fishes and divers making “selfies” ☺
Conditions:27-30C water temperature, good visibility (~20m), strong current, but we dived at the lee side.
10.30:Tetawa kecil
Seen:Bumphead parrot fishes, octopus, schooling batfish, fusiliers, surgeon fishes and a very beautiful scenery with overhang, wide ledge and coral slope
Conditions:29C water temperature, excellent visibility (+25m), medium to strong current
14.00: Rinca, Loh Buaya – Ranger Station – Dragon Walk
We did a nice but warm walk for about 1.5 hours to see the dragons and we also find some. One was sitting in the mans toilet, how funny is that! And another one decided to walk to the kitchen from the ranger station, so we could follow him and see this impressive animals moving. We also have been lucky to see monkeys and a water buffalo. As we came back from this land trip, we found The Komodo Dancer under full sail gliding into the sunset posing for our cameras.
Weather and sea state:
The day started sunny, with a good breeze. The sea was very calm again.
General:
After a the dragon walk we cruised to Labuan Bajo harbor in west Flores where we enjoyed the last delicious dinner and the last night on board.
Finally I would like to say, in the name of all crew members from Komodo Dancer, thank you to join with us and made this trip amazing. We had a lot of fun, good conversations and amazing dives! It was just unforgettable. Thank you for sailing with us!
