TULAMBEN BALI DIVING

February 28, 2011 gus_aik

Tulamben has become one of Bali’s most famous diving area’s. Tulamben Bay, like the rest of Bali, is situated in the richest marine biogeographic zone in the world. Being on the northeast coast, the bay receives plankton rich waters from the major ocean currents that move from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean. This, coupled with the fact that the three main dive sites provide totally different physical environments, means that Tulamben contains a stunningly diverse underwater ecosystem.

The black sand of Tulamban does not provide the reflective properties of white limestone sand and, combined with the amount of plankton in the water, accounts for the relatively low visibility. It does however provide a dramatic contrast, which brings out the colours of the corals, gorgonians, fish and other marine life.

Day-trippers travelling from Sanur to the east Bali dive locations of Tulamben and Amed will get a look at our traditional Bali. The drive is approx. 3 hours. Diving in Tulamben is normally done from shore, where entry can be challenging.

Many people prefer to stay overnight in Tulamben rather than day trip here. The local people are very friendly and Bagus Marine Dive both support and know the local community. We have been diving in this area before it became developed as a popular dive destination. By diving in Tulamben you are also supporting the local community. Only in Tulamben will you see young and old women alike carrying diving equipment on their heads, to the dive entry points, to earn their living

Location: Tulamben bay
Visibility: 5-30m
Depths: 6-40 m (20-130ft)
Travel time to site: 3 hours by mini-bus

Diving Conditions: At 30 m the current normally flows south. The currents attract lots of fish, which you will see in the open water as you swim along the wall.

Underwater Topography: Above the wall itself divers begin at the south end of Tulamben bay where you can walk in and swim along the black sand slope, then head out east to the corner where rocks poke out of the water just off the point. After a short swim, the sheer wall of the drop-off comes into view and sea life blooms.

The wall itself is a seascape of colorful sponge life and coral growth.

Marine life: Hawkfish, spot a tiny, rare pygmy seahorse, whale sharks (very rare) manta rays, sharks and dogteeth tuna, octopus, the occasional hammerhead shark.

They are all attracted to the plankton swept by the current from the Tulamben Slopes.

this activity operated by Bali BZH Diving company

The American ship wreck USAT Liberty Glo (aka USS Liberty shipwreck) in Tulamben is Bali’s most famous and accessible dive. This is one of the safest wreck dives in the world. This large war victim is just meters from the shore. The armed cargo ship was built in 1918 and served as a supply ship during World War II. It was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-166 in 1942 while in the strait approx. 10 nautical miles south-west of Lombok (she was carrying railway parts and rubber for the war effort). The ship was rescued and towed towards Bali by a Dutch destroyer the HNLMS Van Ghent. The damage done to the ship was so great that the attempt to reach Singaraja failed, the crew was evacuated and the ship was beached in Tulamben.

The intact ship sat beached on this beautiful coast until Bali’ s volcano Gunung Agung erupted in 1963. The Liberty crashed beneath the water during its violent eruption. It now sits on a black sand shelf that slopes from about 6-30m.

USAT Liberty underwater photoThe USAT Liberty shipwreck is vast: originally 120m (394ft) long and 16m (54ft) beam and 6211 tons when bound from Australia to the Philippines.

The Wreck lies parallel to the beach with her bow pointing north. The Liberty has become one of Indonesia most beautiful artificial reefs.Dive operators commonly misname the wreck as the “USS Liberty”, and it has been incorrectly referred to as a Liberty Ship.
Diving Conditions: Running currents by the wreck bring lots of Nutrients.
Underwater Topography: Large concentration of huge corals, sponges, gentle slopes.

Marine life: Turtles and reef sharks have been seen here along with the Mola mola. Big eye jacks, a variety of large angelfish, batfish, sweetlips, parrothfish, invertebrates including brilliant nudibranchs and flatworms. Night divers enjoy schooling flash light fish – the fireflies of the sea.

The area of coral is located before the main hotels in Tulamben and is quite young, about fifteen years old. It is not very deep but it is one of the richest areas of Tulamben. Here you can meet many fish leaves, ribbon eels, reef fish, oriental gatrins, ludgians, triggerfish, shrimp, comatula, nudibranchs.This magnificent coral reef offers you different varieties of clown fish hiding in the anemones (white, green blue). It is accessible to all levels of divers wearing masks and snorkels.

In Seraya Secret you enter the macro paradise for the amateurs. You’ll find a very small number of corals, but each sponge, gorgon, comatula or parcel of sand is home to a multitude of nudibranchs, shrimps (including the famous harlequin shrimp), porcelain crabs, scorpion fish, lion fish, stone fish, frogfish, ghost fish ….