The Waters around East Kalimantan

We just finished our week on board the Panunee live-aboard where we had a fabulous time and did some great diving. The boat was first class, with a crew that was both friendly and professional . The food was mostly Thai cuisine and although sometimes it was a little too flaming for our Western palates, it was tasty. Our first day was spent at Derawan Island where we found loads of macro life (nudibranches, pygmy seahorses, orangutan crabs, etc). We toured the island village at the end of our dive day and found it to be amazingly tidy and full of smiling children that greeted us with exuberant hellos and hands extended for a high five.

The next morning we pried ourselves out of bed at 4:00 A.M. to witness the Jawfish hatching that occurs a couple of nights after the full moon. We were each stationed just outside of the hole in the sand where the Jawfish would appear with its mouth full of eggs and proceed to spit them out into the current. After our early morning venture we headed to Sangalaki where we snorkeled with Mantas and were able to witness a huge green turtle digging a nest to lay her eggs. We also saw a baby turtle making its maiden voyage to the sea. We visited the ranger station on the island and were shown a rare albino baby turtle. The stars shown brilliantly in the clear night sky with no competition from the lights of civilization. The Milky Way and its constellations stood out as if we were looking at it through a telescope. The surf lapping on the shore was filled with the tiny glowing lights of phosphorescent plankton.

Our next stop was Maratua where the current is very strong but attracts lots of fish. It was there that we saw a swarm of schooling barracuda and large schools of Jacks. After Maratua we traced our way back stopping at Sangalaki and Derawan again and my favorite, Kakaban Island. I had been waiting a long time to experience snorkeling in the Jelly Fish Lake that is located in the center of the island. It is one of only two in the world. It was fascinating to immerse ourselves in warm clear water filled with millions of non-stinging jelly fish. They have been there for over 20,000 years and have adapted to become non-stinging due to the lack of natural predators. This was the highlight of the trip so far for me. After five days of great diving, we headed to our next adventure which was out of Samarinda to see some of the Dayak culture, local markets, and the former palace of the Sultan. Stay tuned for the next report on these landed-based excursions.