Michael McFadyen's Scuba Diving Web Site
Home · Contact Me · Sydney Reef Dive Sites · Sydney Shipwrecks · NSW Dive Sites · Australian Dive Sites · Overseas Dive Sites · Dive Accidents and Incidents · My Yachting Adventures · 4WD Trips · Weather · Search 02 November 2024 15:36
Navigation
Home

General
About Me
My Diving
FAQ
Downloads
Web Links - Dive Clubs
St George Scuba Club
Some of my Best Photos
Contact Me

Dive Sites
Sydney Reef Dive Sites
Sydney Shipwrecks
Sydney Dive Visibility, Swell and Temps
Kelly Talking on ABC Sydney about Shipwrecks
NSW Dive Sites
Sydney Shipwreck Summary
NSW Shipwreck GPS/Marks
Australian Dive Sites
Overseas Dive Sites
Aircraft I have Dived
Old Bottles
Free Shipwreck Books

Dive Related Equipment
Shearwater Predator and Heinrichs Weikamp OSTC 2N
Uwatec Aladin Dive Computers
Apollo AV1 Underwater Scooter
Bauer Compressor
DIY Oxygen Stick - Nitrox
GoPro HD Hero Video Camera
My Camera Setup
Purchase of New Dive Boat
My Dive Boat - Mak Cat
My Old Dive Boat - Le Scat
My Dive Gear
GPS and Diving
Make Your Own Car Tank Rack

Marine Life
Rarer Sydney Marine Life
Bare Island Pygmy Pipe Horses
Bare Island Sea Horses
Bare Island Nudibranchs
Bare Island Marine Life
Encounter with Southern Right Whale and Calf

Other Dive Info
How Weather Affects Diving in Sydney
Visibility and Wave Averages in Sydney
Waves and Diving
Diving Weather and Sea Conditions
Tide Tables
Dive Accidents and Incidents
Dive Book Reviews
Site Map
Noel Hitchins 1951-2005
Lloyd Bridges - Mike Nelson in Sea Hunt
My Yachting Adventures
Below is a list of links to the main pages about my yacht, Catlypso and My Yachting Adventures:
  • Purchase of Catlypso
  • Details about Catlypso
  • Cleaning/Repairing Catlypso
  • My Yachting Adventures.
  • Login
    Username

    Password



    Forgotten your password?
    Request a new one here.
    Michael's 4WD Trips
    Click here for a list of my Four Wheel Drive and Camping Trips.
    Home Brewing
    Click here for an article about Home Brewing.
    Sydney Dive Site Hints
    "If you are very fit, you can shore dive the grey nurse sharks at Magic Point"
    Manta Alley, Komodo Island, Indonesia
    Michael McFadyen's Scuba Diving - Manta Alley, Indonesia

    In September 2012 Kelly and I did a week long liveaboard dive trip in Indonesia which went from Bali to Komodo and back. We went on the MV Mermaid II. Click here to read about the boat. This is one of the dive sites we did on the trip. The trip heads north-east from Benoa Harbour on Bali out north of Lombok and then north of the other islands to Komodo Island and then down the eastern side of Komodo to the southernmost point of Komodo. For all dives on this trip we used 31% Nitrox, so bear this in mind when considering the bottom times we did.

    Manta Alley is located at the southern end of Komodo Island. Famous for its dragons, the southern end of Komodo is one of the most spectacular places I have ever visited. The southern end has very large bay that has a small island to the east and extremely steep cliffs on Komodo that drop straight from perhaps a thousand feet to the water. In addition, there are a number of rocks that provide a bit of protection to the south. An approximate GPS mark for the dive spot is 8Âș 44' 9.7"S 119Âș 24' 55.8"E (using WGS84 as the datum). The site is to the west from the GPS mark.

    Satellite PhotoPhoto
    A satellite photo from Google Earth that shows the
    location of the dive site around rocks left of arrow

    GPS is at tip of arrow
    A photo of the dive site

    The actual site is located in a large bay on either side of a series of five rocks that jut up from the sea. The name Manta Alley comes from a channel that runs north-south between the westernmost rock and the next one. You can dive anywhere around these rocks, but I will explain in detail the preferred way.

    Dive Site Map
    A map of the dive site - north is at the right of the map
    Used courtesy of Mermaid Cruises

    As with virtually all dive sites that you do when on MV Mermaid II, you use the RIB (rigid inflatable boat) to get to the start of the dive (and also to get back to the boat). The RIB will drop you normally about on the western side of the rocks, probably towards the south western most spot.

    Once you enter the water, you drop to the bottom which looks amazingly like the terrain around Fish Rock in New South Wales. We drop to about 14 metres and then heading for the north, we drop gradually to 26 metres.

    We are looking for manta rays, but we see none. The bottom is much deeper here, reaching down to 30 and further on, 40 plus metres. At that depth the bottom appears to be sand. The reef we are on is a sloping rock.

    KellyPufferfish
    Kelly on the southern side of the site Starry pufferfish I think

    After about 15 minutes we enter the Alley. This is a gully that runs to the east and the other side of the rocks. We enter it and start ascending a little. This is supposed to be the best place to see mantas, but we see none.

    At about 10 metres we exit the Alley and head to the south. Again, the bottom is similar to Fish Rock. We continue going to the east and see lots of small yellow sea cucumbers. There are hundreds of them, some in large groups.

    When we get towards the southern side we turn around and head back towards the Alley. There are lots of small fish around and we even see one large hump-headed wrasse.

    Humpheaded parrotfish
    A large hump-headed parrotfishBright yellow sea cucumbers, having an orgy?

    Back near the Alley, we do our safety stop on the reef.

    Although we did not end up seeing any manta rays, it was an enjoyable dive. The visibility was 30 metres and the water temperature was about 27ÂșC.

    Click here to return to the list of sites we did on our MV Mermaid II trip.

    Copyright © Michael McFadyen 1990 to 2024
    Non-commercial use of an article or photograph is permitted with appropriate URL reference to this site.
    Dive shops, dive operators, publications and government departments cannot use anything without first seeking and receiving approval from Michael McFadyen.
    This web site has been wholly thought up, designed, constructed and funded for almost 30 years by Michael McFadyen without any help from the Australian Dive Industry.
    Website created 1996!