Mamanucas, Fiji
07/30/2008 - 09/01/2008
Forty four of the dive sites in the Mamanucas are shown on this dive map. There are several more not shown on the map. We should be able to do quite a bit of exploration in this area.
While the diving near Vanua Levu was decent, we were not as awe-struck as expected. With that, diving near the Mamanucas island group in Fiji was much anticipated. Our hopes climbed for great visibility as we learned the best months for diving in Fiji are supposed to be August and September.
One of the many great aspects of Musket Cove Resort is the on-site dive shop, SubSurface Dive. We purchased a fourteen dive package to use between the two of us. The dive boat leaves from Musket Cove, picks up divers from other nearby resorts and then heads off to the dive sites. In the morning, two-tank dives are the norm. In the afternoon, a one tank dive is available. With several other cruisers wanting to dive, we occasionally filled the entire dive boat and specified the desired dive site.
Off we go to start diving the Mamanucas.
Endangered Species Robin and Rick donned their gear and are ready to start some diving.
Barb and Tom from Gosi joined in on the fun, too.
Splashdown! Robin (from Whisper) hits the water.
Fish
Fish of every size, shape and color filled the waters. This beautiful pink anemone fish contrasts...
the size and power of this large Spanish mackerel.
Lionfish are quite abundant in Fiji. Beautiful.
Barb discovered this juvenile lionfish hiding under a ledge.
Sweet lips are a new fish-find for us. They look quite sweet...
...compared to this grumpster.
Schools of fish filled the dive sites.
These guys tried to hide under a soft coral ledge.
Aren't clown fish (tomato anemonefish) supposed to by shy? Obviously this class of clowns was not too frightened by us.
These small two-spot snapper (clever name) like to hang out in gangs.
A black-tip reef shark cruises by to say hello.
These long-fin bannerfish were a bit shy.
This Eclipse Butterfly fish was pretty cool. Maybe it needs to be the total solar eclipse butterfly fish just to be a bit more descriptive?
This spotted Grouper looks tasty, I mean friendly.
This rare x-fish is a remote cousin of the starfish family. Or maybe it's the mutant offspring of a Pacific nuclear test?
The regal angelfish sure is colorful!
More friends of Nemo, the Fiji a-nem-o-nem-o-ne-fish.
And Nemo's distant relatives, Clark's anemonefish.
Creatures
Giant clams popped up everywhere.
The beautiful color and curves of the clam-lips (our technical term) make for some relatively abstract art.
I am a Moray eel, and I am bored. Please pet me on the snout with your index finger.
The deadly banded sea-snake swims by to say hello.
Blowing Bubbles
Fellow divers blow bubbles.
Fins to the left, fins to the right.
Tom and Barb explore something interesting in this nook (or is it a cranny?).
Goodness, there must be something good in this area. One disadvantage of dive groups is they tend to group!
Robin to pauses for a look. Are you taking my picture again?
"Here let me take your picture". Duncan kicks frantically to get into the frame.
Ooo, what is around this edge of the wall? Oh, more coral and fish.
Aren't fish supposed to be on the plate and not hiding under it?
"Hello" says Robin, "just passing by".
Either Robin is ready for a timeout or she only has a half-tank of air left.
Corals
The hard corals were abundant, colorful and healthy. Yea!
Looks like a never ending field of coral.
Jabba the Hut invades this coral.
Impressive boulder coral.
We proclaim this either "finger coral" or "bed of nails coral". Not sure what it actually is?
Coral valley.
Coral slope.
Purples and greens.
"Labyrinth" coral - is there a route out?
"Cheerio" coral. Okay, probably not the scientific name.
These fish have a good view.
More beautiful reef. It's a fishy playground.
More beautiful coral. We recommend diving in the Mamanucas!
After our first couple of dives, we knew we liked diving in the Mamanucas area. After fourteen dives, we still yearned for more and purchased another seven dives for a total of 21 dives between the two of us. Dive! Dive! Dive!
Decent 60-100 ft visibility, healthy corals, plentiful fish, and minimal currents left us quite pleased with our Mamanucas dives. The advantage of diving with the dive shop as opposed to diving off Whisper is multi-faceted. We use the dive boat's fuel, we get to more remote sites faster, and we leverage the divemaster's knowledge of the best dive sites and routes over the reef. It was a great overall experience and we thank the team at SubSurface!
Love the lettuce coral.
Unique landscapes fill this dive site.
Red seems so rare underwater which makes this fan even more beautiful.
Big fans hanging off a wall are quite impressive.
Weird. Not quite certain what this is called, but it is supposedly a soft coral. Looks more like eggs of an alien creature planning to invade the sea.
One more shot of the beautiful hard corals.
Robin smiles after one of many great dives.
Diving the Mamanucas kept us busy for a couple of weeks. And we could spend another couple of weeks diving the area. However, little voices from the French territory of New Caledonia kept whispering in our ears "frommage" & "vin". Rumor has it the diving in New Caledonia is quite good, too. However, we are concerned the water may be a it chilly there (low 70'sF). For now, we'll pack away the dive gear and prepare Whisper for the passage to Noumea, New Caledonia. Viva La France!