Amazing Grace (24m)
Some divers call it the most beautiful, definitely it is the most spectacular dive site. You follow the whole stretch of the west coast of Pulau Nyireh, the second biggest island of the Tenggol group. Soft and hard corals change here; sandy bottom in between, the southern and the northern ends are rock formations. You start in the south and go with the current to the north. Depending on the tide, you are either gently carried ahead or you are steered over the reef, looking for protection to make a stop to look around. Batfish are everywhere, schools of trevallies, turtles, lots of blue spotted stingrays and occasionally there is even the rare shovel nose shark seen.
The Edge (30 m)
So called because a peak in the coastline spreads the oncoming current either in the northern or southern direction. Make sure you enter the water at the right spot to meet the boat at the appointed place, as the current will certainly help you along! Despite the current, not a really strenuous dive as you always follow its course. At the southern end you can enjoy protection from the current behind some big rocks before you keep on moving further. Although it can be deeper, the enjoyable location about 10-15m depth.
Gua Rajawali
Generally a gentle drift dive, you drop in at the Northern end and drift over a carpet of soft coral with a few large hard coral structures which are the 'cleaning stations' for the resident reef fish. You are likely to meet right at the beginning a big resident barracuda. Nudibranch, blue spotted sting rays, while turtles and big hump head parrotfish at the southern end are the highlights here. Maximum depth: 22m.
Moonrackeri
This site is one of the most amazing sites around Tenggol Island. The formations of coral include hard coral structures 5-10 metres tall and an abundance of soft and leather corals. The site gets its name as halfway through the dive you go through a V-shaped gap, which brings you out to an open area that looks a bit like the moon. The dive finishes with a flat plateau at 12-14 metres which is home to a couple of resident turtles.
Tanjung Api (35m)
A special action dive, but not really for everyone! The theme of this dive is current! It starts smoothly, then the current takes you around, you go with it, against it, across it, all the time giant schools of beautiful trevallies keep crossing your path. You find yourself in a whirl where the current suddenly drops down, pulling your exhaled bubbles to the ground. It is pure fun, but requires a high level in diving experience to enjoy it.
Tanjung Gemuk (20 m)
Start south from Turtle Point and allow yourself to be gently carried by the current towards it. A relaxed dive site, with some current. Look carefully for details, you will be rewarded by some bright nudibranch, the odd turtle and there is a cave at the end of the site at 5 metres, perfect for the safety stop.
Tokong Burung and Tokong Talang (30 m)
a half circle with the current ending up at the southern side. Big rocks and boulders covered with hard corals and soft corals create an exciting underwater world with tunnels, caves and drop-offs. Teeming with marine life - batfish, yellowtails, trevallies and many more - it feels like you are swimming in a school of fish for most of the dive. There is also a chance of seeing large manta rays and turtles, along with the hump head parrotfish, Napoleon wrasse and barracudas, which can be seen around all of Tenggol's sites.
Tokong Laut
A very interesting site for the more advanced divers as it tends to have strong currents. Dropping in onto a wall down to 25 metres there are often a large school of batfish with the odd turtle and napoleon wrasse around on the northern side. There is a beautiful ridge with many soft corals and on the odd occasion you may be lucky enough to see the large pelagic on their way through this area, normally these come through at the beginning and end of the season here (March/April and September/October). On the southern side there are many caves and swim through, which can be done dependant on air remaining. This is truly a world-class dive site with beautiful coral and rock formations.
Tokong Timur (35 m)
Tokong Timur is a rocky outcrop in the sea on the south side of Tenggol Island. The dive starts at the southern side, which is often exposed to the wind, making entry and surface swim difficult. Underwater you are exposed to an amazing, changing and colourful world, hard corals are predominant at the sudden slope downwards, and the variety of fish life is simply unbelievable. You hit the bottom at about 28m, but it still extends deeper if you follow it over the sand. This journey will be rewarded at about 35m: there is an edge where it goes even deeper, and suddenly you are surrounded by hundreds of medium sized barracudas cruising around you. This is of course a dive for the very experienced diver, but beginners can stay at 18m and have a fantastic dive there, when the surface condition allows them to enter the water. It is also the best place to see whale sharks, manta rays and other large pelagic. At the end of the dive the current brings you around the western corner to the north side of the rock where there is more coral carpeting and a good place to look for nudibranch on the safety stop.
Turtle Point (18 m)
The perfect spot for beginners, students and divers who want to enhance their diving skills after a long break. The surface is always calm with hardly any current. Follow the bay line under water along a beautiful stretch of soft and hard corals. Look out for the resident big hump head parrotfish here and the turtles and nudibranch, which you regularly meet at any dive site.
Wreck Diving
There is a shipwreck just off the beach in the bay of the island, which lies at 18-20 metres. This is a very good first wreck dive for Open Water qualified divers as it is the right depth with blue spotted rays underneath a lot of fish life and a large staghorn coral reef for the end of the dive.
There is another site called 5 Sisters with five wrecks in a small area but they are deep at 35 meters max. This dive is for advanced divers only and we require that all divers have a dive computer for this site. |
