Fiji Sept 2008 Trip Report

Bula Fiji – From one Paradise to Another …
After we bid farewell to the folks in Tonga, eight of us continued on our journey and traveled northwest to Fiji for our much-anticipated “The Big Fish – Shark Dives” at the famed Beqa Lagoon. Fiji has a fascinating history that encompasses centuries of tribal warfare, colonial influences, religious meddling and cannibalism. The country occupies an archipelago of about 322 islands, of which 106 are permanently inhabited, and 522 islets.

The world-renowned Beqa Lagoon offers some pretty handy resort diving, close to Fiji’s main island. Once christened “The Mecca of Pacific Diving”, Beqa Lagoon (pronounced “Benga”) is surrounded by over 350 kilometers of pristine reefs and is considered the soft coral capital of the world. It is known for its tradition of Fire walking and made world famous by its Fijian dive masters who hand feed the resident sharks. The species usually present on these dives include Black-tips and White-tip reef sharks, Bulls, Silvertips, Lemon, Grey reef sharks, , Nurse Sharks, and the occasional Tiger shark. My primary purpose for this trip was to see the Bulls, as well as the massive 5-meter Tiger shark, nicknamed Scarface.

Our journey to Lagoon Resort was lengthy and quite an adventure. The resort is situated in the south of the main and largest Fijian island of Viti Levu. It is 50 kilometers; about 40 minutes drive from the capital of Fiji, Suva, and about 120 kilometers from Nadi International Airport. We departed Vavu’u at 9.15am on Fiji Airlines for Tongatapu and then boarded a 2.5 hours Pacific Blue flight into Suva International Airport. At the terminal, we have to collect our luggage and check-in again although we were flying on the same carrier but on a different aircraft. One of Daniel’s bags containing their dive equipments didn’t arrive in Suva and he wasn’t very happy about that. Connecting on another 40 minutes flight, we finally reached Nadi International airport.

From there, we were picked up and transported on a mini-bus, traveling along the magnificent coral coast on sealed roads. Along the way, we picked up two cartons of local Fiji Bitter beers and stopped over for 10 minutes at a souvenirs store where I bought 3 dresses and 2 packets of kava. Suddenly, about 2.5 hours into the journey, we saw smoke coming out from the engine compartment of our vehicle and promptly evacuated. Although exhausted from the long-lasting voyage, the fun-loving bunch were still in good spirits and were having fun drinking beers and posing for the camera on the pitch-dark road while waiting for the replacement bus. We finally arrived at the Lagoon Resort close to 9pm, after more than 12 hours of traveling. Note: Fiji is one hour ahead of Tonga. We didn’t quite figure out why we had to take the longer route but were all glad that everyone was safe and arrived in one piece. Feeling jaded and hungry, we promptly checked-in and were assigned our rooms before dinner was served. I emptied the bowl of delicious corn and chicken soup, fish and chips and half a serving of ice cream before retiring for the night. The atmosphere at the resort, the room and the first dinner was “Paradise” found as compared to Paradise Resort in Tonga.

A friendly couple, Heather and Jim Sherlock, owns Lagoon Resort. The outstanding Fijian staffs are accommodating and always seem happy to be serving you. So, it’s Bula here, Bula there and Bula everywhere! The resort was originally built in 1988 as a casino and bordello and is nestled among 3 acres of landscaped grounds on the banks of the Qaraniqqio River, which leads out into Beqa Lagoon. It was soundly built of permanent materials and has been lovingly maintained. Gwen and I were assigned to a spacious deluxe room with 3 single beds. All rooms feature air conditioning, a private marble bathroom with a bath, ceiling fans, refrigerators, Cable TV, direct-dial phones and broadband Internet access. The resort also has a full service bar and a swimming pool for lounging in the hot afternoons.

All our meals were included in the dive package. All breakfasts were the same, with fresh fruit, yogurts, cereal, juice, coffee and tea, with toasts. Lunch and dinner were varied and the serving was huge so I usually asked for half a portion. There were 2 choices to pick from per meal. Lunch menu includes beef burger or chicken sandwiches with salad and fries, beef stir-fry or curry chicken with rice for main course. Dinner menu includes a choice of salad or soup (tomatoes, spinach) for starters, lamb chops with mashed potatoes, pepper steak with greens or assorted pastas for mains. Desserts are either raspberry cake, ice cream served after lunch and dinner. The food was fantastic but I did not like all of them, particularly the super thick dhal soup and over-powering tomatoes soup.

Sharks are Friends …
We dived with Beqa Adventure Divers (Beqa Adventure Divers – Welcome to Fiji-Sharks.com), a professional on-site dive operation, which specializes in the world famous Big Fish feeding and the soft coral reefs of the Beqa Lagoon. The shark diving team on the Shark Dive is the original shark feeders and has been conducting the Shark Dive in Beqa Lagoon since 1998. The shark feeding is carried out in a very safe and controlled way, the feeders are incredibly experienced and know the individual animals’ characters. The shark dive is conducted at an innocuous hard coral reef named Beqa Channel within the Shark Reef Marine Reserve and about 30 minutes from the hotel. Beqa Adventure Divers are the trustees of the Shark Reef Marine Reserve and have formed partnership with two local villages and the Fiji Government dedicated to the protection of sharks and has the sole rights to dive this reef. Every diver that dives this reef must pay a FS$ 10 which goes to the villages to compensate them for not fishing on the reef and for protecting it from other fishing boats.

Our itinerary for the next 3 days will be 2 shark dives on Day 1, 2 reef dives on Day 2 and another 2 shark dives on the final day. I only came to learn from Daniel on the trip that we were at the peak of the low season for Bull sharks and would be lucky to see just a few. The high season for the Bulls is from Jan-Mar and accordingly to the dive crew, you can expect to see 10-20 of them in a single dive.

On the way to the Beqa Channel on the first day of diving, Pedro, the lead dive guide, gave us a thorough dive briefing with detailed map on what was about to take place. All divers must wear full-length wetsuits and gloves. We were to descend in a group, stay down and behind the wall when watching the feeder hand feed the big pelagic fish. We were told that the first dive would be a “lure” dive to attract the bigger guys like Bulls, Silvertips or the elusive Tiger shark and then the second dive will be the Real thing! The two shark dives will be conducted at different segments: The first dive will at “The Arena” at 30 meters for 17 minutes, and ascending up to “The Den” at 8 meters for the remaining time of the dive and then followed by safety stop. The second dive will be at the “Take Out” at 16 meters for about 35 minutes before hitting shallower water for safety stop.

As soon as we arrived at the dive site, we were told to geared up and the crew began chumming by throwing dead fish heads into the sea. Within seconds, large school of giant trevally, red snappers and rainbow runners was seen splashing on the surface, fighting vigorously over the bait. It’s this commotion, together with the fish scent that attracts the sharks.

One by one, we jumped off the boat via giant strike entry, re-grouped at the surface before descending together with the four guides and two feeders. The feeders carried with them two huge bins full of dead fish and once in the water, I was overwhelmed to see the huge clouds of hungry fish scrambling around us, all trying to filch a piece of food from the feeders’ bin.

The first level of the shark dive took place at 30 meters on a reef ledge next to the drop off into the abyss of the Beqa Passage. We immediately took positions, kneeling down and hiding behind the constructed coral wall, waiting anxiously as Rusi, the lead shark-feeder entered “The “Arena”, about 2 meters in front of us. With his hands covered with mesh gloves, he began hand-feeding the gigantic ball of pelagic fish with fish scraps from a plastic bin. Soon, a few gray reef sharks and a couple of nurse sharks joined the never-ending streams of trevally and red bass. The pelagic fish were trained to come from left to right and only the obedient ones will be fed! I was at the end on the left-hand corner of the wall and 10 minutes into the dive, one of the safety guides ushered me down onto the floor in “The Arena” near to Rusi. Finding myself in the middle of a shark feed, my heart was thumping really fast as I watched in awed and excitement while trying to capture this magnificent moments on my camera. As I went busy clicking away, a 1.5-meter nurse shark suddenly swam right towards me, almost knocking into my camera before it slipped over my head and away to the outer edges of sight. Holy sh**! I squealed.

Soon, our bottom time was up and we ascended to the second level of the shark feed. Up in “The Den”, smaller shark species like White-tip Reefs and Black-tip Reefs were found circling, completely at ease with the presence of the divers. Then, they instantly joined in frenzy and together; they put up a reality show showcasing the survival of the strong versus the weak in the underwater world.

Back aboard the boat, the group was contented and looking forward to the next dive hoping to see the bigger sharks. During the hour-long surface interval, hot tea was served and we chatted with the Fijian dive masters. From them, we learnt that there was never an incident involving a shark bite during the shark feed in the past 10 years at Beqa Lagoon. Only the giant trevally bites! And so, I affirmed my belief that sharks are our friends if we respect them in their natural habitat.

The second dive took place at the “Take Out”, halfway down the reef slope at 16 meters where most of the feeding occurs. Again, the huge ball of large pelagic fish and few nurse sharks immediately entertained us with a show, which was both exciting and intriguing. They soon kept their distance, and we soon learned why. The Bulls have arrived! They were about 4-5 of them and each one about 2.5 meters. They looked impressively massive even from a distant. As soon as the fish scraps were out of the bin, the Bull sharks took the bait and then began devouring the food. One of the bulls after swallowing the huge chuck of bait cruised closer to within one meter from me with its wide mouth still agape. I could see clearly row upon row of its huge triangular teeth and small eyes. Wow, what an intense moment, what a thrill! This one just seemed curious, but not aggressive and I never felt at all under threat. I missed capturing this truly magical close and personal moment due to the shutter lag on my camera. Damn! This magnificent creature then glided slickly over my head before disappearing into the blue.

Most of us went into few minutes of deco-stop for this dive, as everyone wanted the dive to last as long as possible. Big smiles of contentment were painted over our faces after the adrenaline rush of this dive as we motored back to the hotel, ready for lunch and a big kava party after that.

We returned to dive the shark dive again on Day 3. It was raining, gloomy and the sea condition was windy and rough. The dive plan was the same as the first day so dive briefing was only given to the newcomers in the group. Despite the lousy weather, the visibility looked better than the first day. We had the usual large fish action at “The Arena” with a handful of nurse sharks. There was also some really cool White-tip and Black-tip reef shark action at “The Den” but I was not able to make good photograph from my spot. I then decided to swim away from the feed with the permission from a safety guide nearby to make some photographs of the cruising sharks before ending the dive. The exit from the water was slightly different from the first day due to the harsh surface conditions. We were instructed to ascend up the rope one at a time towards the side of the boat, removed our BCDs and hand-over to the dive master on the surface before kicking and then sliding up the side of the boat.

The winds were blowing stronger and after enduring the cold during the hour-long surface interval, we re-entered the water. Much warmer, I felt. Descending down to 16 meters, we waited and waited but besides seeing the same huge ball of trevally, red bass and many playful surgeonfish swimming around us and trying to nibble our gloves, no shark was in sight. After 25 minutes, two Bull sharks appeared but kept their distance and only came in a few times to feed from Rusi. I didn’t get a good look at these big guys. The legendary Tiger shark evaded us again! We ended the dive feeling somewhat disappointed but everyone was in full agreement that we were lucky to have participated and experience the best shark dive in the world. Not quite yet but I’ll be back!

A Kaleidoscope of Colors and Shapes …
You can’t call yourself diving in Fiji if you have not dive the reefs! The Fiji archipelago is encircled by pristine coral reefs, offering thousands of scuba dive sites and its underwater vistas are the stuff of fantasy. Steep drop-offs, magnificent reefs, shallow lagoons, stunning canyons and swim-throughs decorated in vibrantly colored soft corals, sea fans and feather stars await you.

On Day 2, we made two dives at the local reefs. Our first dive was at a dive site called Seven Sisters. Seven Sisters is said to be a site with seven easily discernible pinnacles, but it is not an easy task to identify exactly where these seven start and end. Underwater, the magic never lets up, offering a plethora of soft corals, hard corals and macro life; this pinnacle is literally a fish magnet.

The fish life in Fiji outshines Tonga by far. There were many large shoals of fish and the variety is spectacular. There was no shark on this dive, but plenty of amazing creatures that kept us entertained. There were many tropical fish like wrasses, angels, damsels, surgeons and snappers streaming by, and an astounding array of macro critters like Zanzibar shrimps on whip corals, orang utan crabs in bubble corals, as well as pipe fish, nudibranchs and flatworms lying on the sandy bottom. The shallower reef was filled with many different anemone fish cuddled coyly amongst the anemone tentacles, surrounded by legions of colorful anthias, fusiliers and basslets. When I was doing my safety stop, one of the dive masters found me an anemone with some newly hatched Nemo’s eggs and the female anemone fish tending her eggs was seen bravely charging out to confront us when we hovered too close by. I spent the last few minutes of the dive watching nearby, totally enthralled and moved by the motherly love portrayed by this female anemone fish. It was a nice leisurely dive after all of the intensity of the previous day’s shark dives.

The second dive was at a site called the Golden Arches and this site live right up to its name. The reef has a series of arches and swim-throughs covered with golden yellow soft corals and magnificent sea fans. After we descended, we swam through a large swim-through with many big trees of gorgeous gorgonians growing densely on the underside. Then, we gently finned over and round the reef, between ridges and small bommies, all the while having our eyes feasting on the sheer splendor of its underwater rainbows.

The Kava Party …
While the diving is superb it would be a shame to leave Fiji without sharing in the culture of its hospitable people. In Fiji, drinking kava is one of the foundations of Fijian life and the social cement that bonds society. Made from the ground root of the yaqona pepper plant (Kava – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia), the mildly narcotic, mud-colored earthy beverage is enjoyed in ceremonies as well as casually nearly everywhere you go in the country. It has a mildly anesthetic effect so your lips may tingle or feel a bit numb when you try it.

The most important aspect of kava drinking is psychological. Sitting around a bowl in the village, exchanging talanoa (conversation, chat) and listening to the guitars hammer away is a very pleasant experience. Most importantly, the act of sharing a bowl creates an invisible bond between the participants. The visitor feels a warmth and acceptance among complete strangers that is normally associated with family or close friends.

Well, the kava parties that we had were unlike the traditional kava ceremony performed in the Fijian villages. I had my first taste of the kava drink in Tonga when Daniel invited a Fijian guy, Tim to help us make the kava beverage at the hotel. Daniel is a non-alcoholic but he loved the kava drink after drinking it in Fiji prior to our trip. He said he was feeling “high” after drinking 2 bowls. We had 2 kava parties in Tonga on our last 2 evenings and I had 6 bowls on the first evening and 11 bowls on the following evening but didn’t feel anything. Hence, I was called the “Kava Queen”. But I believe that drinking this somewhat “spiritual” drink gave us good luck and we had the best whale encounter on our last day!

In Fiji, kava flowed profusely. We had kava party with the dive crew everyday starting from late afternoon till night. Our new Fijian friends even brought us to a local village to buy the “Real” stuff. Wonderful Fijian hospitality is the hallmark of the Beqa Adventure Divers and welcoming us into their community, Pedro would spin the poison offering “low-tide”, “high-tide” or “Tsunami-tide”, and then passing the kava bowl from one person to another, we had some wonderful time drinking kava and sharing stories while listening to the Fijians singing along to the beautiful tunes from the guitar boy or sometimes CD player.

Dreams do come true, sometimes twice better …
While my primary aim for this trip was to swim with humpback whales in Tonga but I’m glad that I did the Fiji extension. Fiji is one magical, friendly, musical, and stunningly beautiful place. I left the country with great sadness but with superb memories of great diving and friendships of my new Fijian friends.

Photo link: Jovin’s Cool Photos!! :: Fiji – Beqa Shark Dives Sept 2008

Tonga Sept 2008 Trip Report

Whales are memorable
My heart skipped a beat as I watched in awed when the 40-tonne mother humpback whale breaches her entire gigantic body out of the water within point-blank range from our boat. The sound of her landing back onto the surface was amazingly powerful, the splash huge. Together with Natalia and Jake, I was sitting on the bow of the boat, some on the top deck while others still in the waters, we were all caught by surprise and were screaming in excitement but none of us has our cameras ready for this magical moment of life’s greatest wildlife encounters. That captivating display was the finale for my whale watching experience in Vava’u group of islands in Tonga and I took home with me many cherished and unforgettable memories.

Southern hemisphere humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) is a baleen whale and a rorqual whale that sings amazing songs. An adult female humpback whale can grow up to 16 meters in length and weigh as much as 45 tonnes. Adult males are slightly smaller. A humpback whale calf at birth is around 3 meters in length and weighs around one tonne. The humpback has a bulky head with bumpy protuberances (tubercles), each with a bristle. Humpbacks are acrobats of the ocean, breaching and slapping the water. They live in pods and have 2 blowholes. The name humpback describes the motion it makes as it arches its back out of the water in preparation for a dive. It spends around eight months of each year in Antarctica, feeding on krill, small prawn like critters, and shoals of herrings. The South Pacific kingdom of Tonga is one of the only places on the planet where tourists can swim with humpback whales. From July to September each year, the humpbacks migrate to Tonga to mate and calve in the island-nation’s warm, sheltered waters. Boisterous courtship displays and mating occur during these months … it’s an exciting time to be observing the whales of Tonga.

Tonga – A distant Paradise
Tonga? Where’s that? Most people I mentioned to do not know about this unique archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean; let alone what the Friendly Islands has to offer. Tonga lies east of Australia and north of New Zealand with its closest neighbors Fiji in the northwest and Samoa in the northeast. Tonga, a constitutional monarchy, is the only South Pacific country never to have been colonized by a foreign power. Its comprises a scattered distribution of 171 islands, spread out in a north–south direction across 800 kilometers (500 miles) of the South Pacific Ocean. Only 45 of Tonga’s 171 islands are currently inhabited, but the population of nearly 100,000 is growing rapidly. There are four island groups including the mostly low-lying Tongatapu group, the volcanic and coral Ha’apai group; the flat coral islands of the Vava’u group, and the volcanic Niuas group in the far north. Tonga personifies the beauty of the South Pacific. It has an abundance of remote (almost endless) white sand beaches, all protected by reefs. Snorkeling and scuba conditions are pure perfection, and the Tongan people are very welcoming.

Getting there was no small task, I took off from Singapore to Sydney on an overnight 7 hours flight, stayed two days in Sydney catching up with some friends and did a dive at Bare Island for the weedy sea dragon before continuing on the planned Tonga/Fiji trip organized by Ron Hunter from Dive Forster (http://www.whaledive.net/). A 3.5 hours Pacific Blue flight into the main island of Tongatapu, overnight and then 45 minutes on an early morning Chathams Pacific flight later, I stepped foot onto Vava’u to begin an incredible experience beyond words.

The people I met on the trip are an interesting and fun loving mix. Our tour leader, Ron from Sydney is one such lucky guy and was on his 6th year whale trips; he yellow-carded me for chasing whales. Hey! This was my first! Go figure. My best traveling and kava parties mates, Daniel and Natalia from Brazil – Daniel, famous underwater photographer, was on an assignment working for National Geographic featuring humpback whales and Natalia, his beautiful fiancée and underwater model. Gia, my amazing roommate, was on her first snorkeling trip and even did her first Discover Scuba dive at 50. Big girl (as Steve call her) George, who cried for 10 minutes after seeing her first whales, is from London. The rest of the group is from different parts of Australia: Scott and Coleen from USA are now living in Brisbane, “Santa” Roger and lovely Ann, Neil and Poh Sin, Steve, Michelle, Gwen, Tony and my dive buddy, Jake aka Mr. Chef, from Germany and is also living in Brisbane working as a banquet chef. The new group who joined us on our last 2 days is also from Australia: Matous, Josephine, Tina and Lynn. They were very lucky, very lucky indeed! Not only are they on a small group (meaning more opportunity with the whales), they had the best first whale day on our last day!

After we cleared immigration and collected our luggage, we were met by Mano, the friendly driver from Paradise Hotel and transferred to the hotel by bus via a 45 minutes journey. The road, which snakes through the township of Neiafu, has spectacular views of the harbor, with the Catholic mission occupying one of the most commanding locations in the township. Along the way, Mano showed us the banks, Post Office, Market Place, and Beluga Dive Center which are located about 7~15 minutes walk from the hotel. Occupying a 15-acre site and overlooking the Port of Refuge Harbor, the hotel was constructed in the early 70s and is need of a “facelift”. Upon arriving at the hotel, we checked in and were assigned our rooms. Gia and I were allocated a double room but changed it to a twin room instead. Many from the group also have their rooms changed due to some utilities not working or cleanliness of the room. The rooms are obviously in need of some cleaning and maintenance. Our room is spacious, with a double bed and a single bed with a private balcony and en-suite hot shower. It is air-conditioned but the air-con is old and noisy. The temperature was set at 24 deg C and not adjustable. It was constructed with wood and wood shavings were falling from the ceiling. Carpeting the whole room is a bad choice as the floor has become rather moldy due to snorkelers/divers walking in wet over prolonged time. The water supply was cut-off for the whole day on our last day and some of us didn’t get a shower. I have stayed on many small islands in Asia and the rooms might be smaller and basic but clean and well kept. On a sad note, this hotel just isn’t Paradise at all! On a very positive note, the welcoming and accommodating Tongan staff made our stay a pleasant one.

Where and what to Eat … The hotel offers free continental breakfast everyday and the menu was the same each day. The menu consists of fresh fruits (papaya, pineapple, bananas and watermelon), cold cereals (Wheatabix), toast, eggs prepared to order and omelets, juices, tea and coffee. I miss my Asian breakfast and had to make do with instant noodles for the last three mornings. Lunch was usually the delicious egg, Tuna or chicken sandwiches prepared by the ladies from Beluga Diving on whale-watching days or a quick sandwich or pasta meal washed down with a glass of fruit smoothie at the Aquarium Café after dives. Most afternoons, I enjoyed stopping by the Aquarium for a Gin & Tonic or two, reading my book or just chilling out. From 5.30pm – 6.30pm daily, free cocktails and beers are available from the hotel bar. It was when we will all gathered together to recount the happenings of the day, had fun and lots of laugh on the “Truth Chair” while enjoying the free drinks before making dinner plans. We frequented few restaurants suggested by Ron for our dinner. Actually the food is decent here but can’t speak much of a variety comparing to Asian cuisine.

Aquarium Cafe is an Internet cafe, restaurant, tour-booking agent and general social area. Its’ waterfront location provides a beautiful view of the harbor and I like the fun and laid-back atmosphere here. The American owners and staff are very friendly and the waiting time for our food was reasonable. They served Tapas style dinner consisting Spanish style potatoes with paprika dip and Mexican samosas, Chicken curry with rice, Tongan style tropical fish, French style Chicken Cordon Bleu or Blue cheese Ravioli and so on. I did not try the desserts but those who did say the coconut cake, brownie and ice cream was a treat. We also had a small birthday celebration for Gwen here and we had an absolutely fun and lovely time playing drinking games and singing along to the musicians. If for some reason you can only eat at one dinner at a Vava’u restaurant, don’t even think of passing up the Aquarium!

Mana’ia served an assortment of Italian inspired dishes and freshly made gourmet style calzones and pizzas. I had the Marinara and Capricciosa pizza with Gin & Tonic on 2 different evenings and they were delightfully good. Actually, everything that the group had here has been really good. No complain.

Mango is a modern waterfront bar/restaurant situated in front of Moorings yacht charters. The menu is rather limited and on 2 occasions when we were there, they do not have fresh fish and therefore do not have the tuna rolls that we liked. The fish and chips were quite good but the pizza was non-appetizing. It was more expensive to dine here and the portion was quite small. Also, this place runs on “Tongan” time so expect more than an hour for your meal to be served.

Dancing Rooster offers a very popular Wednesday night “All-you-can-eat” BBQ comprising of fish, chicken, sausage and lamb with assorted salads and fruits. We were here on both Wednesdays and I found it to be value for money.

Humpback whale encounters and Dive trip itinerary
Day 2 (10th Sept) – 2 dives for divers and cruise on Catamaran for snorkelers
Day 3 (11th Sept) – 1st whale day: Swim with 2 adults and 3 juveniles, witness heat-run between 2 males and a female from the boat, breaches and tail-slap.
Day 3 (12th Sept) – 2 dives for divers and Go-Kart rides for snorkelers
Day 4 (13th Sept) – 2nd whale day: Swim with a mother and calf pair (in the waters 4x) before handing them over to another boat, more breaches and tail-slap.
Day 5 (14th Sept) – 3rd whale day: A male whale singing upside down in mid waters (So surreal) and swim with 3 adults (briefly)
Day 6 (15th Sept) – 2 dives for divers and Free & Easy for snorklers
Day 7 (16th Sept) – 4th whale day: Very brief underwater encounters with 2 juveniles and a mother and calf pair, followed 5 whales at the surface for 30 minutes while seeing them separated, re-grouped, breached and tail-slapped etc.
Day 8 (17th Sept) – 5th whale day: Whales at the surface but avoided us as soon as we went into the waters for 5 hours. Finally, got the chance to swim up-close with a mother and calf pair with 1 male escort for 10 minutes. Awesome.
Day 9 (18th Sept) – 6th whale day: First mother and calf pair didn’t want to play, was with another mother and calf pair with 1 male escort for 3 hours before handing them over to another boat. Female whale breaches her whole body out from the water about 5 meters from the boat. Truly sensational!

It is illegal in Tonga to swim with whales without a licensed whale-watching operator. There are 12 licensed whale-watching operators and we use Beluga Diving (Diving in Tonga Vava’u. dive courses Tonga Pacific Island. Whale watching tonga), which has 7 years experience and the crew are truly professional and helpful. Moa, our skipper is the BEST and always positioned us to have the best encounters with the whales. The humpback whales encounters are very clearly regulated by a code of practice and professionally handled. Only a licensed whale-watching operator may be within 300 meters of the whale. There can only be 4 snorkelers and 1 guide in the water with the whales at each time. Snorkelers are told to perform a Soft-In-Water entry, avoid big splashes and any rapid movements while in the water to avoid stressing the whales. No flash photography is allowed and strictly no touching or any physical contact with the whale. Respect and Do Not harass the whales.

An experience beyond words …
Some say it’s a life changing experience. I think that the excitement and emotions one felt while in the presence of the humpback whales cannot be described by any words. The experience you have and the dazzling array behaviors of the humpback whales you witness will leave you feeling joy, awe, amazement, humility, gratitude and respect. Simply put – Speechless!

Stunning first whale day – The skies were clear blue, the sea was calm and the water crystal clear. Two huge blows erupt from afar. Someone called out: “Whales at 10 o’clock” and instantly, 19 pairs of eyes were looking towards the same direction. Moa, our skipper and whale-spotter, motored the boat towards the sprouts. A hushed silence fell as we drew closer and all eyes watched the water off the sides of the boat. All of a sudden, with a loud roar, up came a whale as she let a large gush of water out her blowhole before lurking below the water’s surface. Almost immediately, another big gush from another whale followed, this one smaller and presumably a male escort. The crowd clapped and watched in delight as the gentle giant then flipped back into the water lifting his tail for all to see. While we were recovering from this unexpected spectacle, they returned, this time passing within a couple of meters of us. Moa shouted: “Get Ready” and skillfully maneuvered the boat following the whales.

There are 16 of us and we were divided into 4 groups. I was in Group 3 and the chances are 1 out of 4. This is my first time with the humpback whales and I wish to be in a smaller group (say to have more opportunities with them). As such, I traded one diving day and the catamaran sailing day for 2 additional whale days and paid extras. Many from my group paid for extra whale days too. The new group was only 4 people. How lucky! Next time, I’ll check before booking my trip.

The first group of snorkelers got ready and waits eagerly for Moa to position the boat. At the command of “Go, Go, Go”, the snorklers gently slipped into the water and then bobbing like corks in the sea, they followed behind our guide, Conna, swimming towards the whales. From the boat, we watched as the two whales swim so effortlessly and passed by the snorkelers before disappearing into the deep. The whole encounter lasted for slightly less than a minute but the smiles on the faces of those returning to the boat were huge.

Whales behavior patterns are remarkable and unpredictable. The encounter can lasts as long as the whales want to play, as brief as seconds, or sometimes missing them completely as soon we were in the water. In the time I spent with these tremendous giants, I experienced all of the above and had few incredible encounters.

On one day, we met a humpback mother with a calf pair and 2 male male escorts. We followed the leisurely moving group for about 30 minutes and once they were used to the boat, they stopped close by the boat, seemingly as inquisitive to see us, as we were to see them. We slid down into the water from the boat and “slowly” snorkeled over – The whales were unfazed by our presence and were curious about this unfamiliar species they had encountered. The mother was at the surface, the calf was nearby and the accompanied male escorts swimming 20 meters under. Soon, the mother descended to about 15 meters below the surface and stayed there. The calf needed air more frequently, about once every 7 minutes, so it surfaced more often but always swam back down to its mother. When the calf swam back to its mother, she would open her fins and allow the calf to swim under her and inside the fins. Then she closed them around her calf, as if in a hug. When the male escorts together with the mother and calf pair surfaced to breathe, they rose to the surface and back into the sea, entertaining us with their graceful movements of a fine ballet, with the choreography only Mother Nature could compose. I went into the water 4 times and each time was totally different experience. We stayed with them for close to 3 hours before handing them over to another boat. At that point, I do not know the significance of this “handing over” rule; I wanted to have more time with the whales! Why can’t we stay with them longer? I pondered.

On another occasion, we saw a sprout from distant and as soon as we motored our boat near to the spot, the sea remains glassy, as if untouched, with not a whale in sight. Then, another sprout will surface some distant away; we again motored over and still couldn’t find any whale present. This whale was playing hide and seek with us and this pursuit continued on for the next hour. It got to the point when all of us were losing hope to catch a glimpse of this evasive giant when Moa suddenly stopped the boat and gestured to Conna to get into the water to have a look. Almost immediately, we could hear loud guttural groans, long-winded whines and melodious moans coming from beneath the water and felt slight vibrations from the boat. “There is a whale singing nearby”. Ron cried out; overjoyed. About 5 meters from our boat, Conna signaled that there was a whale underneath and the first group of snorkelers got in to join him. When I got into the water and swam towards the whale, the complex song that he was singing was so loud that it was literally vibrating my entire body. In the water, I saw a 30-tonne male humpback, hanging upside down stationary about 25 meters beneath us. Floating above him, I was completely entranced and enamored by the complex pattern and rhythm of his song. The song lasted for about 10 minutes before he decided to move, surfacing for air for a brief period before submerging and stopping to sing again. We spent about an hour with him before Huib decided that we should give the whale a break. It was an incredible sensory, emotional, and utterly mystical experience. How did Moa know that he was there? I wondered.

Black or Not so Black Wednesday … A perfect day with clear blue skies, sun shining, glassy sea and not a breath of wind to disturb the tranquility, we motored around the islands and found several groups of whales but they were just not interested in having us around. They entertained us with breaches, tail slaps, rolls and flukes but avoided us and dived into the deep as soon as we got into the water. Up, down, up, down, up, down. No one see any whale in the water that morning and we all had some good workouts instead. We spent 5 non-rewarding hours following these “yo-yo” patterns of the whales. Feeling disappointed, we decided to call it a day after lunch. On the way back, Moa radioed another boat and have some good news for us. The other boat was going to hand over their whales, a mother and calf pair, with a male escort to us.

Too lazy to suit up again, I got into the water wearing only my short-sleeves red rash guard and board shorts in 24 deg. C water. When we approached, the mother was almost stationary and vertical with her nose few meters below the surface. The calf was hanging above. The mother then positioned her calf on her nose and gently pushed her precious baby sideways through the water. The playful little one then decided to swim towards me with its mother following closely. At first I froze, afraid to move a muscle, as they swam right up to me, barely an arm’s length away. But as we came eyeball to eyeball, it dawned on me how harmless and gracious they are. During the whole encounter lasting over 10 minutes, the inquisitive calf swam another 2 times towards me (I think it was attracted to my red rash guard), the mother following and watching nearby. Of course, Murphy’s Law was in effect, I was camera-less for this incredible encounter because my camera housing fogged up after it was left in the tub under the hot sun for long hours.

What struck me about this experience was how gentle this massive mother humpback was and how she knew exactly where I was at all times during this encounter. Whenever I drifted past one of her flippers, she would tuck it under her belly so as not to strike me with it, then turned and positioned herself so that I was next to her massive head. She seemed to be quite content to have me hovering in the vicinity of her watchful eye. I feel welcome in their underwater world. Cold, wet, exhausted and grinning, we motored back, with a well-recorded memory that we would re-live again and again over kava party and dinner that evening.

Saving the Best for Last … Our luck held and the following day, after patiently waiting for an hour, we were rewarded with a cooperative pair of mother and calf, together with a male escort. We spent 3 fruitful hours with them before handing them over. This time round, I have fully appreciated and understood the term “handing over” and gladly do so. As we watched them go, I think we were all aware that we had been privileged to witness something quite extraordinary, a one in a million, certainly once in a lifetime moment of pure magic.

In the moments I spent with the whales, I communicated with them in a way I didn’t before know possible. Our souls seem to be connected and when we met eyeball to eyeball, I told them just how much I respected them. Fear never entered the picture. All I could feel was love, admiration and respect. I now also appreciate a good breach photo, as mine were all just big splashes.

Now onto the Diving …
I did 6 dives over 3 diving days (10/09, 12/09 and 15/09) covering The Fingers, Rhino’s Point, Split Rocks, Chinatown, Fotula and Sea Fan. It was winter in Tonga and the weather was as varied as its whale’s behavior patterns. We had clear skies, calm sea and gin-clear visibility around 40 meters on the first day. Overcast skies and slightly choppier sea conditions on the second day. The weather on the third day was horrendous; the wind averaged 25 knots, dark clouds filled the skies and it was raining cats and dogs making entry and exit into the water difficult. Luckily the visibility wasn’t bad, around 15 meters.
The water temperature was around 24 deg. C and the current varied, from nice and easy dives with non-existent current to pretty strong current with surface surge on some dives. The dive sites were about 20-30 minutes from the harbor.

Tonga’s underwater realm is filled with interesting rock formations, caverns, swim-through and tons of species of hard corals, many rising close to the surface. Some reefs have profusion of hard corals adorned with Christmas tree worms of every color while some are filled with beautiful soft corals and sea fans. I do not have any diving photos for this trip; my strobe wasn’t working properly on the first dive on our first diving day and so I did not bring my camera for the second dive. I found both my macro lens missing after the dives, I must have dropped them underwater during the first dive. And so, I decided to be my buddy’s critter spotter instead and did not bring my camera for the rest of the dives.

There are many species of brilliantly colored reef fish playing around the reef but I did not feel the constant spectacle of action and we did not see huge shoals of them swimming together. Neither did I see any pelagic, just a few juvenile nurse sharks resting in a cave and a Wahoo cruising passed. However, I did find an astonishing array of macro critters ranging from crinoid shrimps, lobsters and many cling fish hiding in the colorful feather stars, swaying carpets of garden eels on the sand, which Ron teasingly labeled the Tongan boys, few species of nudibranchs and flabellina, crabs in soft corals, an occasional huge carpet of anemone housing anemone crabs and shrimps, a dragonet and many more.

Dreams do come true …
The Friendly Islands – For me, visiting Tonga is yet another dream fulfilled. Apart from the incredible whale encounters and fantastic dives, what made this place special were the qualities of the Tongan people I met. Not yet jaded by mass tourism, the island people are mostly shy, genuine, and are graced by great generosity, exuberance, and with a sense of humor. Tonga became real to me.

Photo link: Jovin’s Cool Photos!! :: Vava’u,Tonga – Swimming With Humpback Whales Sept 2008