“You dance with the tide,” Ruby Lita, operations manger at Whaleshark Adventure and Tours , which operates out of Bicol Dive Center in Donsol, says during a dive briefing for Manta Bowl.
Then she pulled out the hook on a string.
Divers hook onto a rock or hard piece of coral, then wait for something big to pass by. Photo by Bobbi Lee Hitchon
How strong is this current?
Lita says five knots on average. The dive plan is to descend in a group, find a hard piece of rock or dead coral attached to the ground and hook in.
Why do it?
To dive the Ticao Pass, which Lita also calls, “Big boys’ alley.”
San Miguel, located above Ticao Island alond Ticao Pass, also known as "Big boys' Alley."
The pass, located between Luzon and Ticao Island, is known for its large fish, in particularly manta rays, hence the name Manta Bowl. People also see sharks and sometimes even whalesharks.
It was clear by Lita’s look and questioning, “What is your experience? Have you drift dived before?”, that this wasn’t the easiest of dives. Still divers ranging from open water-certified with eight dives to rescue diver-certified with countless, boarded the banka boat for the dive companies full-day, scuba tour.
Crew and divers board the banka boat in Donsol, Philippines. Photo by Bobbi Lee Hitchon
The banka boat departed from a short walk from the dive center, which is located across from Donsol Tourist Center just minutes away from Amor Farm Beach Resort, where I’m staying. The first destination was San Miguel Island, located above Ticao Island, about an hour banka ride from Donsol.
On the way out, the sun came out and a blue flying fish landed on board. First spot of the day! This dive was already shaping out to be a lot better than some of my previous ones. The island looks like two massive mountains coming from the water with a deserted beach in between.
A flying fish landed on our banka on the way to San Miguel.
Upon arrival Reynado De Castro, our divemaster, briefed us all again. This site was to see a few things, but also to get sorted with weights and test everyone on a slight drift before heading to Manta Bowl. With that my group of six divers and two divemasters geared up. While getting ready, Ray told me the dive site is named “Bobby’s Wall,” like me, but with a y.
And what a beauty my wall was. Within five minutes of descending, Rey spotted a stone fish, followed by several lion fish, a sea snake, marble ray and two nudi branks. I was quite relaxed on the dive, thinking this drift time thing is easy, when boom! Literally, BOOM! Then again and again. Rey turned around and signed with his hands to relax. Once on the boat again, he said it was dynamite fishing, which is illegal in the Philippines, but still occurs.
One lion fish Rey spotted at Bobby's Wall. Photo by Tobias Loechner
After an easy first dive, I felt quite relaxed on the hour-long journey to Manta Bowl. But my confidence and calmness disappeared as I saw on the side of a rocking boat, about to roll back into unforgiving currents. Rey and the rest of the staff were extremely attentive to every diver. In spite of all calamity at sea, Rey kept everyone in order and together.
As I descended 18 meters in waters with 10-meter-visibility at Manta Bowl, it was hard to even noticed the current. Then I caught a glimpse of the bottom and realized just how strong it was. The group hit bottom and all looked to Rey. He motioned for us to keep drifting, then pulled out his hook.
It’s really frightening at the moment. I attempted to latch onto one piece of rock, but it was not attached. I quickly grabbed onto another and while I was hooked in, it didn’t seem like a comfortable position. I tried once more and finally felt somewhat safe. All the while I was nervous of bumping into other divers behind me, but even more concerned about completely passing the group.
I was in constant motion down there.
Holding on as the water swung me around the bottom. Photo by Tobias Loechner
Once hooked in divers just wait for something big to pass by. To be quite honest, I was more focused on staring at the rock that was holding me. Waiting there I started picturing myself coming undone and having to grab onto something again. Then I wondered if my knees were positioned anywhere close to a sea urchins or something else that could really hurt me. Finally, I realized I was the one doing the hurting as I looked back to see my knee on a piece of coral.
My body flew side to side, while my right hand clung to a short rope completely straightened. We moved once more, but no big fish passed by. In fact, the only cool thing I saw was a puffer fish who I think was taunting me.
The group ascended hand-in-hand to a safety spot. Rey released his safety sausage connected to fishing line, so the boat could come pick us up. Then everyone boarded for lunch. Lunch was a simple marinated chicken with rice and string beans. The boat offered us endless water and cookies.
The third and final dive went about the same as the second. No big fish, but I actually enjoyed the current. It was quite a rush to be in the middle of water that strong. Plus, the way Rey handled the previous dive and kept us all together made not worry about the last.
While I didn’t see any Manta Rays, the whole experience was thrilling, yet relaxing. Just the boat was something special and the rides to and from offered some beautiful sites. I saw things in the first dive that I have not anywhere else in the world, which gets me pretty excited for diving the rest of the country.
Whaleshark Adventure and Tours
Located in Bicol Dive Center across from the Donsol Tourist Center in Donsol, Philippines
Underwater Manta Bowl Tours
P4,500 for three dives, P3,500 for two dives
Contact Ruby R. Lita
+63 921 929 3811
reservations_donsol@yahoo.com
http://donsolwhaleshark.net
Thanks to Amor Farm Beach Resort and Whaleshark Adventure and Tours for supporting my trip to Donsol.
Become a fan of Amor Farm Beach Resort and Whaleshark Adventure and Tours.
This was posted from Quick Access Internet in Donsol Proper. Internet costs P20 per hour.
