Increment of the Sipadan Levy Fee

This is a confirmed and reliable abstract from one of the dive operators in P. Mabul:

<<<
Dear Divers,

With much regret I wish to notify that our MD who is currently in Kota Kinabalu had just finish a dialogue session with Taman - Taman Sabah (the local authority overseeing the operation within all Sabah Marine Park). The session was attended by more then 10 Dive Operators through out Sabah and among others which was discuss during the said session was, on Levy Fees for diving in Sipadan. Despite the sole objection from our MD (the rest seemed not to be objecting), Taman - Taman Sabah had conclude to impose A LEVY OF RM40 PER DIVER PER DAY. All divers who plan to dive in Sipadan must register their name, Passport Number/NRIC and country of origin with those dive operators two weeks prior to diving day together with the full payment (based on RM40 per day diving) to be made simultaneously to Taman-Taman Sabah.....>>>

Other than the increased Levy fee per day(used to be RM45 per week), is the unconfirmed report of Sabah parks imposing a limit to the number of visitors to Pulau Sipadan daily. The number of people which includes, divers, snorklers, tourists and etc, is limited to 120 per day. These 120 visitors will have to pay the RM 40 2 weeks prior to their arrival on P.Sipadan as the pass are issued on a first come first served basis. Those who failed to register their details and make due payment fast enough, will be unable to secure their passes to dive or visit Sipadan.

Shutterfly Gallery Locked with Password

Some of you guys may have noticed that I password protect my shutterfly gallery now. This is due to, that fact that some of the pictures therein were subjected to controvesy on some forums whereby, they(the pics and it's subjects) became part of a very heated debate and further generated into an overwhelming upheaval of insults, argument and complaints.

I do not wish to further comment about the subject and hopefully the matter is left to rest. For those of you on the trip who wish to view my gallery, pls drop me a note and i'll release the password to you. For that matter I may need you to identify yourself as anonymities would not be entertained.

For the priviledged few who happened to have my password for access, please do not freely share any contents in my gallery(pictures, descriptions and password) with anyone, be it on forums, bulletins, weblogs and anywhere conveniently visible to public view, without my prior consent.

Pulau Tioman LOB MV WaveBreaker Photos online!

Ok the Tioman pics are up on Shutterfly for your viewing pleasure! These photos together with those of my recent Sipadan pics are still without Captions...need a bit of time to do those things... so check back often... they should be done in a weeks time....

Btw i still have some very interesting underwater video shots taken during the Sipadan and Tioman trips, but have yet to upload them... I need to find a suitable web host for them...so if you guys out there know any good ones pls let me know.

I have removed restrictions on anonymous comments so now you guys out there can leave any comments you wish without having to sign up as a blogger member or even leave your name... i'll appreciate any helpful tips and info...thanks

Here's the link to the underwater pics

Hantu Bloggers' 2ND ANNIVERSARY DIVE!

The Hantu Bloggers celebrates its second birthday! To commemorate two years of great diving, They'll be doing 4 dives for the anniversary trip, which includes a night dive.

As such, you'll require at least Advanced Open Water Certification (or its equivalent).

The anniversary dive is as scheduled: Saturday 25 (Sat) and 26 (Sun) March, 2006 For reservations and enquiries, email Debby at hantublog@gmail.com
RSVP March 17 with the following:
1. Your name,
2. IC/Passport number,
3. Your email address,
4. Your handphone number, and
5. Any rental equipment required incl number of weights.

The itinerary is as mentioned below.
=====
Hantu Blog Dive Itinerary Cost: S$95.00 (excl gear rental)
Venue: Keppel Marina, Bt. Chermin Rd
Time (Departure): 0900 hrs
[Dive 1]
1st Surface Interval + Lunch
[Dive 2]
2nd Surface Interval
[Dive 3]
3rd Surface Interval + Dinner
[Night Dive]
Departure ETA: 2100 hrs

Please also bring your own lunch, dinner, water and torches for the trip.
=====
Gear Rental Rates
Regulator $5.00
BCD $5.00
Mask $5.00
Fins $5.00
Weight belt (incl 4 weights) $3.00
Wetsuit $6.00
Additional weights @ $0.50
All rental equipment is arranged by Diver Airman.

Asian Diver Annual 2006

The Asian Diver Annual 2006 is out in stores now. It features exotic and famous dive sites around the australasia pacific, with detailed commentary about each dive site. Of course, it comes with beautiful pictures of the underwater world and its denizens, accompanied by colourful maps to show you the exact location of the dive exotica.

Writeups of the various dive region covered in this issue are:
Indonesia: The Coral Triangle;
Philippines: Archipelago of Colour;
Thailand: Something Wild;
Malaysia: Just Can't get Enough;
Australia: Sea of Dreams;
Papua New Guinea: Paradise Exotic;
Micronesia: Pearls of the Western Pacific;
Maldives: Feels Like Heaven.

Oh, I almost forget to mention it also sourced out cheap dive travel deals to suit your holiday needs. There's a Free Diving guide that comes with this issue of the Annual too.

Dive Logsheet Designs

Back Page

This is my first attempt at Logsheet design using photoshop...... I created 2 similar 2 page logsheet designs which includes extended dive information like weather conditions, equipment protection and types of dives. Of course, the basic entry for RNT, ABT, TBT, PG, Time in/out and Air in/out are there.

You may download and print any of the logsheet for your usage. They are in high resolution adobe acrobat reader format (PDF). I will create a much simpler 1 page design if I have the time. Have a sneak preview in low res jpeg format:

Front Page

Download the documents here :
Cartoon Logsheet PDF

PADI Logsheet PDF

Front Page

Australasia Scuba Diver Feb/Mar Issue

Feb/Mar Highlights

Mystic Vietnam by David Harasti
At the desires of his better half, underwater photographer Dave Harasti has to find a holiday destination that's both luxurious and promising as a dive location. Looking further, he heads for the Far East and finds an undefined allure hidden in mystic Vietnam.

Australia's Other Reef by Campbell Jefferys
Ningaloo Reef, home to some of Australia’s best snorkelling and diving, is Australia’s only fringing reef and merely a few strokes from the beach in Coral Bay. This quirky coastal hamlet doubles as the reef’s main access point and is normally the first stop on any tour of the North West Cape.

Top 10 Maldivian Safari Sites by Michael AW & Gillian Fagan
Choosing the ‘right’ live-aboard is an important issue, and the wrong choice can turn one’s dream holiday into a nightmare. Careful planning is essential. Safari boats these days range from converted fishing boats and locally built cruisers, to the specially built live-aboards.

Portfolio: Kasey Canton by Kasey Canton
A veterinarian by profession, and a graduate of Cornell University, Kasey Canton has dedicated thousands of hours to learning and refining the techniques of underwater photography and videography. We feature his Portfolio in this instalment of Portfolio.

Surface Interval: Sydney by Gillian Fagan
Who said you’d have to head to the outback for gritty adventures? With summits to gain, wild animals to satisfy, and dangerous sharks to lurk with, it’s all a matter of mustering the nerve to confront the jitters in the face, the rest is just a cab ride away. Writer Gillian Fagan takes us on an urban adventure, right in the middle of Sydney Harbour.

Surface Interval: Phonpei by Philip Game
Many consider Pohnpei to be the most beautiful among the islands of Micronesia. From comforting freshwater pools to crystal clear seas, lush tropical rainforests, and a community some 700 years old. Photojournalist Philip Game sucks a shot of sakau to bring us this story.

Little Hectors: Swimming with the world's smallest and most endangered dolphin by Debby Ng
New Zealand has been holding on to a little secret that harbors its coasts; The Hectors dolphin or upokohue, as it is known in Maori, is the world’s smallest known marine mammal; with females getting no larger than 1.4m and the males at 1.2m. It is thought that because of their small size, these beakless dolphins prefer the sheltered sounds and bays near the coast, never straying too far out to sea where they may be at risk to predators such as sharks and Orcas.

LOB MV WaveBreaker Tioman 10th - 12th March 2006

I just can't enough of diving! Just came back from Sipadan and today i'm going on a Live On Board trip to dive sites around Tioman! Simply can't wait to go....This is my first LOB experience, just hope i don't get too sea sick and become wasted like a dead fish...unable to dive.... Heard all the sea sickness and vomiting bad experiences from Xiangyi, Michelle and Amutha.... and that makes me really nervous....nevertheless i won't let that kind of experience spoil my upcoming trip...I'm well prepared with lots of strong motion sickness pills...hope that helps...(keeping fingers crossed...)

As for the captions and photo info of the Sipadan trip, i'll only be able to update them when i'm back from this Tioman dive trip. Wish me luck with critter hunting and hopefully i'll be able to catch more stuffs on camera and i'll try to load them up as soon as i can when i return!

Pulau Sipadan Trip Photos 1st-6th March 2006

I've uploaded all 500++ photos taken with my Canon Powershot A610, with Canon WP-DC90 underwater housing, on Shutterfly photo sharing community. I'm still in the midst of identifying the various Genus of the macro and pelagic subjects i've taken though... Some of the photos are updated with titles and descriptions but majority are not yet entered with any information.

This is my first time with underwater photography and i'm starting to love it already! Do leave some comments if you like the photos or have any queries about them.

This is only a temporary gallery @ shutterfly. I will be building a personal gallery on my blog page soon, so in the mean time pls bear with the small preview window @ shutterfly. You can click here or follow the gallery link in the menu bar above to start browsing the photos.

By the way, Xun and Jeya, if you guys happen to upload your library of photos pls send me a link so i can view them as well. My email address can be found on the side of this page.

Fins Magazine vol 5.2 : Animal Attraction

This issue features:

Micronesia: Perfection in the Pacific
Palau — Jewel of the Caroline Islands
Gunther Deichmann

Hotspot: Bunaken
Nestled in North Sulawesi's National Park
Adi and Mala Gehri

Malaysia: Hammerhead Hotspot
Pulse-pounding encounters in Layang Layang
Matt Oldfield

Hotspot: Komodo
Here be dragons...really
Tony Wu

Thailand: Andaman Dreaming
Discovering the magic of the Similans
Jez Tryner

Hotspot: Kapalai
Sabah's sandbank sensation
Andrea and Antonella Ferrari

Let There Be Light: Part 1
Bringing back vibrant colours with strobes
David Lim

Talking Megapixels: O-E-M
Digital manipulation — How much is OK?
Dr. Alexander Mustard

Critters: Blennies
Under-rated entertainers of the reef
Andrea and Antonella Ferrari

Pulau Sipadan Trip with Seaventures!!

Wow Im so tired after 9 hours of travel from Seaventures back home by boat, van, plane, MRT and bus! Totally Shagged out...... But i am so fulfilled and satisfied about the whole trip. It was filled with fun, laughter, peace, joy, excitement, fascination, enjoyment and maybe a bit of irritation but turned out to be part of a joke...ha ha..... can't wait to share all the good stuff with u guys out there!

Thank you Michelle for being such a sporting and fun buddy....and also not to mention about the great dive buddy services u rendered underwater! Thank you Xiangyi, Xun, Jeya, Amutha, Johanna and Karin for being such good company and special thanks to Xun again for being the first aid handy man who relieved me of my gastric pain just before the last dive! I must thank Jeya and Xun for the great photography tips! Wait till u guys see my photos!

Last but not least, appreciation goes out to DM Yong, DM Roslan, DM Nellie and the crew of Seaventures for providing us with comfortable, warm and quality services during our stay.
I must commend DM Yong for his patience and hard work in order to spoil and throughly spurge us with a good and relaxed diving experience, despite his injuries, hangover and toothache!
I guess without the sharp eagle eyes of DM Yong and Roslan, I will not be able to photograph the many exotic Macro Subjects!

Yah forgot to mention about the food! It was fantasically a sumptous spread!

Till soonest, please watch this space for announcement of my gallery opening and the Sipadan Trip Report! Good night :)