92 replies to this topic

[WreckWench]

Welcome Elias!!! We are THRILLED you are joining us! This will be a very small and fun trip!

Please email us your flights to trips@singledivers.com

[ScubaPunk]

Payment Update:

1) Que aka sea urchin: ww has received your payment of $1965!
2) Que aka sea urchin: ww has received your payment of $2441 + $73.23 cc fee !
(Airline + misc $2441)
3) Elias aka Elias: ww has received your payment of $1410!
(Trip $1320, Nitrox $90)

[ScubaPunk]

Welcome to the Lembeh trip Elias!

I have sent you a message with the Link and Password for the Trip Documents. Please return them as soon as you can, along with your flight details.

Please include the entire route including all cities, airlines, Flight #s, Arrival & Departure times, and Dates!

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[BJ MathPro]

Please update my preference in the below items:

* Those who are diving Nitrox

John aka BJ MathPro - FREE for early payment in full by Jan 1

* Those Wanting to Use Cochran Computers to Aid DAN PDE Research Efforts

John aka BJ MathPro

[ScubaPunk]

Please update my preference in the below items:

* Those who are diving Nitrox

John aka BJ MathPro - FREE for early payment in full by Jan 1

* Those Wanting to Use Cochran Computers to Aid DAN PDE Research Efforts

John aka BJ MathPro

Will do. />

[Elias]

Hi all,


Is anyone interested in making some deep (40M) dives in Lembeh? The site descriptions indicate this as the deepest dive sites in the area.

Related, is there any policy regarding deco dives (on the part of SD or Eco Divers)? Time limits to keep things running on schedule are well understood, of course.

Also related, what is the highest EANx blend we can get at Eco Divers? If making a planned deco dive, then I'd like to get at least 40% to use as a deco gas.

Lastly, who else among us is qualified to do wreck penetration? It looks like at least one of the two wrecks in the area is considered safe to explore.


Regards,
Elias

[WreckWench]

Hey Elias...I did not realize there were any wrecks nearby so that would be intriguing! I wrecks!

I will find about diving them and gas options etc. The no deco rule is the operator's so they *may* allow for a small deviation if we have several people qualified to do a deeper dive. I am but usually do not due to group leadership responsibilities. Not sure the qualifications on this trip...I know several are qualified on the Maldives part...so will have to look.

I'm still trying to fill the last spots so been pretty crazy trying to finalize the roster.

I will let you know what I find out. kamala

[Elias]

I did not realize there were any wrecks nearby so that would be intriguing! I wrecks!

Indeed, I suspected you might be interested. The site descriptions at <http://www.eco-diver...mbeh_sites.php> list a few in the area, all at the southern end of the channel --

1 Bimoli - Wreck - Propeller 40m,Length 60m
A Japanese WWII wreck lying on its starboard side in 100' of water. It suffered major damage when it was hit by torpedo. The twisted wreckage is heavily overgrown and great for exploring. A giant lobster usually puts in an appearance and a school of giant Barracuda circle the ship.
[...]
3 Kapal Indah - Wreck & Coral - prop 25m, length 40m
Means beautiful ship. It is a small wreck about 180' long, it sits in 100' of water along side a fringing reef. The wreck has been down for 40+ years so is covered in coral life; a great spot for finding black coral crabs on sea whips and crinoid critters also large scorpion fish. When your bottom time is up simply swim into the shallows where you can find devilfish and crab-eyed gobies.
[...]
5 Mawali - Wreck - Propeller 30m,Length 70m
Is a wreck named for the near-by village on Lembeh. A Japanese WWII ship that was scuttled lies on its port side in 100' of water; it's about 250' long, intact and heavily overgrown. The highlight of the dive is its many large lionfish that suspend themselves around the masts. Also seen are many kinds of nudibranchs huge scorpion fish and a banded sea snake often puts in an appearance.

I've done a bit of research on these sites, with the additional info I've gathered summarized below.

Bimoli -- This is the Japanese freighter Myoken Maru, torpedoed by the USS Swordfish in January of 1942 . The wreck starts at 18 meters and has extensive torpedo damage. There seems to be some discrepancy on the max depth of the site and the depth of the prop, with other sites listing these as 35 and 30 meters, respectively. (Perhaps there is simply a typo on the Eco Divers site?) It is located in the middle of the straight, where there can be moderate currents (1-2 knots) and the danger of shipping traffic. Apparently very little has been removed from the wreck and ammunition can still be found within / around the wreckage, as well as the bakelite cargo that she was carrying when she sank. Unfortunately both the propeller and gun are missing, likely salvaged for scrap.

Kapal Indah -- This is the wreck of a fishing boat that sits upright in 26-29 meters, depending on the tide. The wreck is out of the main current stream of the channel, however shipping traffic is still a concern. Some listings identify this as one of the more popular sites in the area, due to the large amount of marine life around the wreck. The shallower waters closer to shore apparently have some coral formations that can be explored at the end of a dive.

Mawali -- Another Japanese freighter, the Tanduk Rusa (?), that apparently burned and sank in 1943. The wreck starts at around 14 meters and is a popular wreck for diving due to the amount of marine life. The upper portions of the wreck supposedly have so much encrusting coral that it is almost unrecognizable as a boat when you approach it on the descent. The currents at this site are said to be mild but, as above, shipping traffic is still a danger to be aware of. The wreck can be penetrated, with the kitchen and forward cargo hold (empty) being accessible, however the machine room is unstable and should be avoided.

Some sites also mention a couple of other wrecks in the area but they seem to be either too recent to have much marine life around them or have been extensively salvaged and are uninteresting as far as wrecks go.

I will find about diving them and gas options etc. The no deco rule is the operator's so they *may* allow for a small deviation if we have several people qualified to do a deeper dive. I am but usually do not due to group leadership responsibilities. Not sure the qualifications on this trip...I know several are qualified on the Maldives part...so will have to look.

Thanks Kamala, I wanted to ask here first so the folks at Eco Lodge weren't getting multiple enquiries from different people. My experience with 'no deco' rules has generally been that they are blanket policies intended to deter unqualified divers from doing stupid things. A private conversation regarding qualifications is usually sufficient to alleviate any concerns about accumulating a decompression obligation. I've also found that sharing the details of a dive plan with the boat staff goes a long way towards making them more comfortable as well, as it demonstrates a different attitude than casually going into deco and not worrying about it.

Unfortunately most operators catering to recreational divers won't offer EANx blends higher than 40%, since their blending stations aren't set up to handle higher percentage mixes safely and their tanks aren't O2 clean. An exception to this is when tanks are filled offsite and the blender has O2 clean tanks available, however the operator probably won't have O2 clean regs and it's an open question as to whether the blender makes them available as well (generally not). I have brought my own O2 clean regs on a few trips but am not currently traveling with them due to weight considerations. Given this, I'll gladly use EANx40 as a deco gas since it makes a 25@40 dive manageable from a boat scheduling perspective.

Sorry for the long post, I'll try not to make a habit out of it!

Edited by Elias, 29 January 2013 - 08:33 PM.

[ScubaPunk]

Payment Update:
1) John aka BJ Mathpro: ww has received your payment of $50! />
(One night s/o)

[WreckWench]

Elias...your posts are great! I will forward this info to the operator and see what we can set up. It may be we have to wait until we get there and THEN work out such requests...it usually works best when they see what good divers we are and THEN we ask for special request!

[Elias]

Would anyone be willing to bring a new strobe to me in Lembeh? I recently managed to destroy mine by flooding it and the prospect of spending a week in Lembeh without a strobe makes me sad... (Queue tiny violins for first world problems.)

[WreckWench]

Would anyone be willing to bring a new strobe to me in Lembeh? I recently managed to destroy mine by flooding it and the prospect of spending a week in Lembeh without a strobe makes me sad... (Queue tiny violins for first world problems.)
/>

What kind of strobe? I'm bringing a lot of stuff already for the two back to back trips but I'm sure one of the Lembeh only peeps would be happy to bring one to you. Let us know approx weight and we'll get it worked out!

[Elias]

Would anyone be willing to bring a new strobe to me in Lembeh?

What kind of strobe?

Sea&Sea YS-D1 -- 650 grams at 3.5 x 5.4x 4.4 inches

I was hoping one of the Lembeh only folks would be willing to mule it across the ocean for me, to minimize the hassle and potential extra baggage fee.

BTW, I'm happy to pay the extra luggage weight fee if it pushes someone over the limit.

[ScubaPunk]

Payment Update:
1) Larry aka Orcaman: ww has received your payment of $4076! />
(Trip $1965, Airfare $2111)

[BJ MathPro]

We are 2 weeks away from departing for the "Lavish Lembeh" trip, and this thread is on hibernate mode

Just want to throwing something to wake people up :

According to the resort, the electricity is 220 V and they have 2 pin socket:

"For your information, please kindly note that electrical sockets carry 220 V and here in Indonesia we have two pin plugs, model Schuko (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schuko) therefore you could use schuko plugs and all the unearthed two pin plugs."

(I guess "unearthed" means un-grounded )
So if you plan to bring anything electircal, you will need adapter/converter.

Anything else we should know about before we leave?