John flew to Sydney and I met him at the airport. We then flew to Manila from Sydney on Qantas and stayed overnight at a hotel across from Terminal 3 of the airport. You can walk there via a bridge from Level 3 of the terminal. It took us 15 minutes which is way quicker than it would if you went via a vehicle. We then went across the road to the casino building and had a couple of beers in a restaurant/bar (not the casino).

The next morning after a very early start and breakfast, we walked back and caught the Cebu Pacific 8:00 am flight to Dumagette. This arrived just after 9:00 am. We then were picked up by a small van we organised from our resort (1500 pesos - AU$39).

Our return from Dumagette arrived about lunch time and we had to hang around for a while till we could check in. Luckily it opened about four hours before the flight (7:00 pm or so) so we then went to the Qantas lounge (thanks to John!). The flight arrives back in Sydney about 6:30 am the next morning.

RESORT

We stayed at Liquid Resort. This is a 30 minute drive from the airport and located right on the water down a single lane track that has a few turns in it. It is not within walking distance of any other resort, either along the beach or via the roads. The only resorts I saw from the beach when I went for a couple of walks all appeared to be desolate or closed.

The resort is a small one, with about 12 cabins, a small bar and restaurant area. It has two swimming pools and a large undercover area with a pool table. The dive shop is within the resort. The cabins are a mixture of double and twin beds and I think some might have more than two beds. The cabins were small but comfortable, only problem there was no space to store clothes (I kept my bag under the bed and got clothes out from it as needed).

Our cabin at Liquid	The grass in front of our cabin

All rooms are air conditioned and have fans, although our fan was very noisy. There are small verandahs on each cabin. The shower and toilet were good.

The bar area was good with very reasonable prices. The food was also good with a lot of variety and again the pricing was reasonable (see later for total cost). The staff were very good, remembering our names and our breakfast and drink preferences. Breakfast is also included, although it was of limited variety unless you paid extra. I found it adequate.

The beach in front of the resort	John and I having pre-dinner drinks one night

The dive operation was very well run. There are a couple of dive master/guides. They were good spotters of small critters. Most diving was done from a smaller fibreglass boat (maybe 7.5 metres long) with a single 135 hp Yamaha 2-stroke engine. Most dive sites were within 10 minutes run. We generally went out, did the first dive, had morning tea (tea/coffee, great home-made cookie) during the surface interval and then moved to the second dive site. We only did two dives a day, but more are available.

Basically we did 70 minutes every dive as an average. I recommend Liquid Resort highly.

DAUIN DIVE SITES

I have not had time to write up full descriptions of the dive sites, so I will just attach my log book entries (with some massaging) as well as dive depths to them. All photographs shown after the sites were actually taken at that site. Water temperature was generally 29 to 30 degrees Celsius in October.

A diagram of the Dauin dive sites Liquid Dive Resort is at top where the logo is

Atlantis Home Reef

Moored at the north end of the marine enclosure north of Alantis Resort. Went south-east to a nice coral reef, then south. We did not go real deep, mostly above 18 metres. Camera would not work, turned out the zoom button on the camera broke. I think I have jerry-rigged it for rest of the trip, but no zooming at all. Nice fishlife but not a lot of special things, I found a medium sized many banded pipefish, a couple of ordinary nudibranchs. Went 30 mins south and then came back at 10 to 12 m. A few butterflyfish, pufferfish, some anemones and clownfish and of course garden eels. Near the turnaround a lot of yellow fish. A nice relaxing if somewhat average dive. Visibility very good.

Dived - 19 October 2024

Black Diamond

Located off a half-finished dive resort called Black Diamond. Similar dive to first one, but coral reef to north-east of mooring. A little bit dirtier, perhaps 12 metres viz. Went SW first and then back past mooring to reef and around that. More nudibranchs, an eel, some lionfish, two juvenile snapper, three cowries, and more. Anemones and clownfish too. There were five fish traps around the coral. Ended up back in shallows. Easy dive. Maximum depth 21 metres. Visibility good.

Dived - 13 October 2024

Leaf fish	Very cute shrimp in anemone
Clownfish in anemone	I saw a few of these anemone
Lots of these nudibranchs around	Porcelain crab

Bonnet Corner

This was the furthest south we had been so far when we dived here. Sand ridges to south-east and small pebbles in between. Zig-zagged around. Lots of very large garden eels, biggest I have seen I think. Three flamboyant cuttlefish and a small lemon one. Quite a few octopus, including a couple of small wonderpus. A snake eel, another eel, no nudibranchs, featherstar shrimp and squat lobster, a couple of anemones and clownfish, a strange crab trying to open a shell, some interesting other small fish. Ended up in shallows as normal. Very good dive. Visibility very good.

Second dive here but this time started on the north side and drifted south in a very slight current. The bottom here is a gentle slope, sand with small rocks and pebbles. Plenty of other divers, must have mostly been from shore as only one other boat. Saw wunderpus, blue-ringed octopus and algae octopus. Also saw about six snake eels, a weird crocodile eel and plenty of garden eels. These I got very close to and got some reasonable photos. A few different cuttlefish, one only 10 mm long. Also saw a free swimming lionfish and a few other small ones. At the end I found a shrimp on a sea pen, been looking every dive. A good dive again. Maximum depth 20 metres. Visibility very good.

Dived - 15 and 18 October 2024

Featherstar shrimp	Very cute small cuttlefish
Moray eel	Snake eel
Small turtle	Garden eels, on every dive and sometimes could get very close
Wonderpus octopus	Wonderpus octopus
Flamboyant cuttlefish	Small pipefish
Mantis shrimp	Porqupinefish
A very strange crab I saw for the first time	I have never seen this tiny fish before

Bulak

Only a short distance from the resort. We didn't moor, live drop and picked up near where we started. Sandy bottom and some rocky reefs, only a metre or so high. Some small overhangs and coral growth. Went south along them for 50 metres and then deeper and north again. Another pipefish, different species, quite a few nudibranchs, anemones and clownfish with porcelain crabs, Plenty of ropes on the bottom and a couple of mooring blocks. Back up in shallows there was warm water coming out of the sand. Good dive. Maximum depth mostly 19 metres but dropped to 23 for a short time. Visibility very good.

Dived - 14 October 2024

The typical terrain at this site	Porcelain crab on the underside of an anemone
Doto nudibranch	Two clownfish, with a glass shrimp just visible next to small one
Lots of species of Shaun the Sheep nudibranch here	Very colourful Shaun!
Another Shaun species	The eye of a porcupinefish
Very colourful nudibranch	Swallow-tailed slug, Chelidonura amoena
Small white painted anglerfish	One more Shaun

Cars

Located about 10 minutes south, just before yesterday's sites. Did two dives here, both different. Went E along the mooring rope line, 5 mins to get to the drop off, sandy slope down to more rope, some mooring blocks and a bunch of concrete pipes and "thimbles". Lots of life around them. Then N to the bottom of the steep slope and more mooring blocks and ropes. Went further along the rope to 27 metres. Saw a black anglerfish here and two many banded pipefish. Some interesting nudibranchs. We also saw a soft coral (candy) crab, the first I have seen in over 7 years. Went up the slope and then across to south-west. Hot water coming out of sand again. Lots of huge garden eels shallow. Came back across to the main rope and back to boat, two juvenile batfish on the mooring line. Good dive. Visibility very good.

Second dive went south to reef edge and followed it east to the steep wall and then S. Lots of nice corals, some sea whips, sponges, a large bommie and more. A few moray eels, one large, a huge octopus under coral, two turtles, both quite friendly and a few nice nudibranchs. Saw another black anglerfish too. Back across reef at about 9 to 14 m and then followed sand and mooring rope to boat. Another good dive. Visibility a milky very good.

Dived - 17 October 2024 (twice)

Some of the artificial reef structures	More of the artificial reef
One of the structures with catfish inside	Lots of these silver fish on this dive
A really nice turtle	Two many banded pipefish
Black giant anglerfish	Another giant anglerfish, not the same one as at left
Soft coral crab	Hairy shrimp
We saw quite a few of these nudibranchs	Another species
One of the juvenile batfish at the mooring	Another nudibranch

Ginamaan

About 200 metres north of last dive site. Main feature is a tyre reef about 20 by 25 metres in size, small truck tyres split at bottom and standing in threes or fours making caves. Went via sand first, then to here. A black anglerfish, impossible to photo as usual, a many banded pipefish but not as bright as the one from two days ago. Then a brilliant green giant anglerfish which yawned. Lots of fishlife. Then back to boat, saw a few nudibranchs and a pufferfish being cleaned by a glass shrimp next to an anemone. Very good dive. Maximum depth mostly 19 metres but short drop to 21 m. Visibility good.

Dived - 16 October 2024

John McPherson and the reef	Christmas tree worms
Blenny in its home	Moray eel
Giant anglerfish	The giant anglerfish yawning. Such a big mouth!
Black anglerfish	Many banded pipefish
Colourful nudibranch	Oxynoe kylei - a sea slug

JJs Dive Site

This site is north of Ginamaan and apparently a new one. We tied to back of a large banca and went north-east across the sand to a slope and then a reef. The first section had a few barrel sponges, a couple of small bommies and heaps of coral "plates", thousands of them. Then a sand section and then another reef section but no plates, just lots of weed. Some fish traps off and on the reef, we moved one from top of a bommie and I then cut it open as a pufferfish caught inside. I found two more many banded pipefish, there were a few nudibranchs and a highlight was a pufferfish being cleaned by about six glass shrimp. A few moray eels, three turtles, two of which had a fight over ownership of a bommie. The new one won! Around here we headed back south-west and eventually in the shallows back to where we started. A good dive too. Maximum depth 21 metres. Visibility milky but very good.

Dived - 18 October 2024

John McPherson on the reef with a large barrel sponge	A reasonable sized gorgonia
These two turtles had a fight and the one on the right lost and then left	A nice anemone with a clownfish
Cowfish	Pufferfish
Orange black dragonet, ugly but at the same time sort of beautiful	Annother shot of the dragonet showing the head at left
Many banded pipefish	Nudibranchs

Masaplod North

Located south 12 minutes. Two sandy ridges running east, went down gully then south to first one. Some rocks and coral here, a few barrel sponges, gorgonias and sponges. Not much life. A couple of fish traps off the reef. A few anemones with clownfish, porcelain crabs and shrimp. A small eel and a few other things. Then went north to the other ridge which also had rocks and coral and many more barrel sponges. Here a few nudibranchs, including green striped one with red extremities. Huge garden eels all over again. Only an average dive. maximum depth 24 metres. Visibility very good.

Dived - 16 October 2024

The reef at Masaplod North	So many garden eels, and very long
Clownfish	An anemone with clownfish
Porcelain crab in an anemone	Clownfish
Dancing or sexy shrimp	Longhorn cowfish
Glass shrimp	This is one of the most brilliantly coloured nudibranchs, the rhinopores are much redder than this photo shows

Sahara

Further south than other dive sites so far. Tied to back of another boat and then did drift dive to north. Sandy bottom again but lots of ropes and moorings from the marine reserve boundary. Then into the artificial reef area. At first cartons of bottles and then a small boat full of cartons of bottles. Further on concrete structures of many types. Then a large barn structure made of steel. A tiny black anglerfish, a few lionfish, batfish, a larger yellow with black spots boxfish, anemones and clownfish. Also a featherstar with shrimp, nudibranchs and more. A very good dive site. Visibility very good.

Did this site again as we had some new divers with us, first lot really since we got here. Went in at the S end again and did a one-way drift to the N. However, the last 20 mins was into a current which was not there before. Not too hard but solid. Went the same rough way as on 14th, but a bit deeper. Found another sunken boat, this time a small yacht. Lots of Sergeant Majors in it as well as other fish. Again, nothing real special except near the smaller "barn", there were four of the nudibranchs with red extremities. A few batfish, short-finned bannerfish and butterflyfish near the artificial reef. Lots of other tropical species too. A good dive anyway. Visibility very good except some small sections where about 10 m.

Typhoon Kristine is E of Manila and causing rain and strong winds. Boat diving cancelled, shore dives only. Went via jeepney to shore near the site. A concrete wall and some flat areas. Entry and exit easy, only small waves and mostly sand bottom. Had to swim out a bit before descending. Arrived at the N end of artificial reef. The yacht is here. Went along the rope which is a bit deeper and re-found the small yellow seahorse. Also saw a turtle on the reef, a few different species of eel and one red-tipped nudibranch. Lots of yellow fish, some bannerfish and butterflyfish, batfish, large and semi-juvenile and a pipefish. Went south a fair bit and then back through middle of the reef. Then north for safety stop and west to exit. A nice easy dive. Visibility very good.

Had to do second dive here, wind too strong at places further south. Many dive shops here. This time did not go to the rope, just followed the east end of reef to south end, then back from there. Similar things to last dive as well as a large grouper. Back at the coral bommie near the smaller "barn", found four red-tipped nudibranchs that we there Saturday. Viz was down a fair bit from first dive, perhaps 12 m. A nice dive though. maximum depth 26 metres. Visibility good.

Dived - 14, 18 and 22 (twice) October 2024

A small boat scuttled as part of the artifical reef	There are a few dive sites with the same artificial reef structures
Part of the reef with some artificial reef in background	Black painted anglerfish
A very colourful shrimp	This nudibranch is far more colourful in real life as the orange rhinophores look red
Another very colourful nudibranch	A small boxfish

San Miguel

Site is south-west from Liquid, less than five minutes. Millpond seas, no wind and 29C temperature. Started at mooring and went south-east and then south-west. Sandy bottom, a few bits of coral with growth. Quite a few Shaun the Sheep and other nudibranchs. A flamboyant cuttlefish, two small soles, a few anemones with clownfish, porcelain crabs and glass shrimp. After 30 mins headed north-east back to mooring. A few more nudibranchs and in the shallows a large wide-bodied pipefish. A nice relaxing first dive of the trip. Visibility very good.

Glassy seas and no wind but windy after the dive. Second dive here, also dived here first dive of the trip. Went in to north-east and north to the mooring blocks holding the big banca with divers above. Went to the small bit of coral bits, a few anemones and clownfish. Then south to the small artificial reef, mostly concrete cones but two large TV antennas and the real reef next to it. Not a huge amount of interesting stuff, a few nudibranchs, some shrimp but I had problems focusing on the small stuff not on the ground. Lots of other divers seen near the reef. Some small garden eels and razorfish. Back to boat and John found a wide-bodied pipefish, perhaps the one seen last Sunday. A fair dive but nothing special. Maximum depth 24 metres. Visibility excellent.

Dived - 13 and 20 October 2024

Nudibranch	Largish pipefish
Hairy shrimp	Flamboyant cuttlefish
Shaun the Sheep nudibranch - these are tiny	Tiny many banded pipefish
Another Shaun the Sheep	Shrimp on the prowl
The antenna	Razorfish
Part of the reef	Three shrimp
Clownfish in a anemone	Wide-bodied pipefish

Talisay

Started on a mooring and went north, sand and then some coral outcrops on the slop. A larger bommie and some smaller ones. Some mooring blocks too and a large barrel sponge. I found a giant anglerfish on the bommie and then we saw a brilliant many banded pipefish. A few nudibranchs, some more eels, more featherstar shrimp and squat lobsters, Another nice dive. Maximum depth 23 metres. Visibility very good.

Glassy seas and no wind and much bluer water, viz was about 30 metres compared to 20 previously. Went north-east and north to to mooring blocks and then to the coral reef bits. We dived here last Tuesday too and I again found the grey/green giant anglerfish I found then, still in the exact same spot. Then up the slop a little and a many banded pipefish in same spot at bottom of sea whip which had shrimp and gobies. I did not see that pipefish but I found another one under a small bommie. We also saw two small turtles here and guide saw a larger one later. Then we headed back to south-west to mooring. Saw Shaun the Sheep nudibranchs, garden eels and razorfish. A few more nudis in shallows. A good dive. Visibility excellent.

Dived - 15 and 20 October 2024

One of the many mooring blocks, seen on most dive sites	A large artificial reef structure
John McPherson and a large barrel sponge	Clownfish in anemone
A giant anglerfish	Seawhip goby and shrimp
Many banded pipefish	Moray eel
Tiger shrimp	We saw a few of these nudibranchs
Clownfish in a closed anemone	Giant anglerfish, not sure if its the same one as above
Striped nudibranch	A small herd of Shaun the Sheep

APO ISLAND DIVES

We also did a day trip to Apo Island. It is about 45 minutes in a large banca from the resorts. On these trips you get three dives, morning tea and lunch. Our cost was 6000 pesos, AU$155. I strongly recommend doing at least one excursion to Apo Island.

A diagram of the Apo Island dive sites

The Chapel

Went over to Apo Island on a large banca, there were eight divers and four staff. Wind picked up as we went and it was a relatively rough trip. The west side of the island was getting smashed by the SW wind, but we dived there anyway. Once in the water went W to a sandy slope. Saw a large black giant anglerfish here. Then S to the wall. This was pretty impressive, from 10 to 40 m I would say. However, not a great deal of growth or life on it. A nice cave, a few overhangs and an electric clam. After 35 mins we came up shallower and last 15 mins we came back across the top of the reef. Two turtles seen in this section. Not too bad getting onto the banca despite its bucking. An average dive. Visibility very good.

Dived - 21 October 2024

Moorish idol	Black anglerfish
The start of the wall	A colourful section of the wall
Looking out from the small cave, presumably "The Chapel"	A friendly turtle

Cogon

After first dive we moved around to the NE side of the island, totally protected here and heaps of boats moored. We tied to one and then did a drift dive to the S. The bottom was a gently sloping coral reef, very impressive. So colourful, so many different corals and fish. We saw a large school of jacks and other species like Moorish idol, short-finned bannerfish, butterflyfish and more. An excellent dive site. Visibility excellent.

Dived - 21 October 2024

Barrel sponge	Very colourful featherstars
More featherstars	Moray eel
Leatherjacket	Gorgonia

Kan-Uran

Located SE corner of Apo Island. Wind was from SW so a bit rougher here. Dropped in at mooring and S to wall and then SW. Really good wall, went to at least 30 or 35 metres, but we only went to 21 m. Into slight current. Very colourful, with lots of sponges, sea whios, small gorgonias and coral. Plenty of fish, all the usual tropical species. Turn around at 32 mins when we found a gorgeous colourful anglerfish. Back along the top part of the wall and then on the top itself. A great dive. Visibility very good.

Dived - 21 October 2024

John McPherson with on the wall	John and a gorgonia
A very beautiful anglerfish, not sure what species	The same anglerfish
Two clownfish in an anemone	Tomato clownfish in anemone

COSTS

All shown in Australian dollars and where applicable, Filipino pesos. Accommodation is half the price paid as John and I shared, same with transport.