Padang Bay
This bay is one of the busiest bays in Bali, where the public ferry crosses from Bali to Lombok, white sand beach, at the hot day quite many foreigners exposure in the hot sun. There are several diving points that worth to explore Blue lagoon, Padang bay channel, Tanjung bungsil (Bias Putih), and Jepun.
1. Blue Lagoon
This lagoon is just north of Tanjung Silayukti, takes 6 minutes to get here by outrigger fishing boat with the outboard vessel or even shorter by speed boat from Padang bay. Actually this is a very small bay, in the bay grows dense sea grasses and boulder rocks covered with soft corals and Hydroids, reef extended towards Turtle’s neck (Baong Penyu) is steep slope reef exposures to the channel, table corals shaped and variety of Crinoids major structure of the slope. At the hook of the slope stands dome hard corals at 15 meters, with its huge floppy sponges lives swarm number of cleaning Shrimps, Black frogfishes, Leaf scorpion fishes and others unusual animals. The reef runs toward Tanjung Silayukti is lying at 10 meters gradual down the sandy slope at 15 meters. The drab bottom with scattered rocks descend down the sloping to about 18 meters, there sits dome hard corals where the unusual animals like variety of Scorpion fishes, and Crocodile fishes are common encountered. The scattered rocks and boulder rocks in the bay are interesting colourful reef with variety of prolific fishes. The surge sometime is quite strong pushing toward the bay to the shallow reef and it easily causes disorientation. The water temperature is damm cold sometimes and it has ever reached 18 C, sound good to wear long exposure suit to dive here.
2. Jepun
Its location is about 50 meters offshore, where stands a small temple at the rocky cliff on the coastline, this temple is -Pura Jepun-. Jepun stands for Frangipani flower in Balinese language. Descending reef is started up current offshore from the temple sits, first 2 to 3 meters reef then continues a wide sloping terrace falling off significantly where giant Anemones, Crinoids of varying colour and many other reef fishes. Chevron barracuda, Pencil thin keeled needle fish are common here. The drift diving is end up until finding the rockier reef wall before Blue lagoon. It is better put ourselves at shallow outcrop to see swarm of reef fishes outmost. If big wave occurs might the drab bottom swirl up, makes the visibility is blur, better shift the diving to other reef. The water temperature is rather cold (roughly 24 C) due the thermocline often occurs.
3. Tanjung Bungsil
A small outboard motor boat cruises south side of Padang Bai harbour about 15 minutes to pass the peninsula south of the harbour, boat will anchor to get the divers prepared dive gears, don them and hit the water. Descending to the slope bottom up to 20 meters spur into the bay, soft corals, rocky boulders shaped covering with coral reef are rich with sea life animals, Reef sharks often spotted. By the end of the dive, when surfaces watching out the ferry passing into the bay, if the sound of it is heard better delayed a moment direct ascent, because it’s hard determined the ferry’s relative position underwater. Best time to dive at this location is if the current flows into the bay or on the slack high tide. Water temperature is relative warm and sometimes even drop as to 25 C during up current is occurred.
4. The Channel of Padang bay
To dive here is started descending from the buoy close to the ferry dock, the channel runs further east to the hook of Tanjung Silayukti. At the beginning of the dive the reef is not interesting, much more interested around the hook of Tanjung Silayukti with scattered boulder rocks, bommies, colourful hard corals, soft corals, number of Crinoids and varies of tropical reef fishes. Tortoises are frequently seen on this steeply slope reef that runs to 3o meters deep, the current unpredictable change its strength and direction that pushes extremely into deep water. Don’t let ourselves suck into blue water and always ascent safely from the shallow reef of Tanjung Silayukti so the boat skipper easily provides the pick up service by the end of the diving. Water temperature is frequently fallen roughly 26 C.
