COLOURFUL ALOR- LIVE A BOARD TRIP

Day 1: JAKARTA-KUPANG-ALOR

Pristine Reefs and Endless Visibility
Ternate, Alor/Pantar Strait

On arrival in Alor Airport, you will be met and transferred to the harbor to get on boat MV Seamore Papua for your 5 Nights diving trip.
First dive will be around Ternate. Ternate is a limestone island towering out of the northern end of the Alor/Pantar Strait. The interior of the island rises up to 800 metres and is surrounded with a fringing reef that plunges into the depths sometimes just a few metres from the shore.
Currents here can be a little confusing. Having driven all around the island in a tender during a strong ebb (southbound) tide we found several places where therewere strong counter currents, moving north, particularly on the eastern side.
The fringing reef has very good coral cover and dense but small marine life. The predominant topography is sloping reef, walls, overhangs and caverns although the northern part of the island has extensive flat and shallow reefs with some sandy bays.

Day 2: Critters and Anemone Carpets

Pura, Alor/Pantar Strait

Pura is the largest and most inhabited island in the Alor/Pantar Strait. Its mountainous interior rises to 1,050 metres and the landmass is 4 nautical miles across. There are a few villages here, each having their own place of worship, either mosques or churches. The main industry appears to be fishing as can be seen by the large number or fish traps scattered around the reefs here.
Due to its position the water temperatures at dives on Pura can vary considerably. Sometimes the southern sites are blasted with cold water from the south causing a lot of surprised looks on some faces, as well as some whispered oaths directed at the divemasters.
Due to its location the island is constantly buffeted by strong currents and care has to be taken with site selection with a firm eye on moon and tidal information. The northern sites are generally the calmest with the southern shore sometimes hit with cold water and heavy swell from the open sea to the south. The reefs at Pura are in particularly good condition with little evidence of damage, probably because of the fishing methods the local people employ. During a dive it is not unusual to encounter spear fishermen as they go about their daily business – they are also happy to pose for photos too.

Day 3: Daring to Dive The Dream and Muck Galore

Alor Kecil, Kalabahi Sound

Kalabahi Sound is the narrow body of water that leads up to the main town on Alor, Kalabahi. Both sides of the sound rise high from the waters edge up to hilly peaks. There is more habitation (and electricity) on the northern side and the whole area has a roadway close to the shore. Plenty of boat traffic uses the sound, small local ferries connect to the outlying areas and islands and fishing boats make daily trips out into the main Pantar/Alor Strait. Kalabahi is also a main port for the Pertamina petroleum organization and the Pelni ferry line. The bustling town has a number of facilities, the most important being a hospital and several pharmacies. There are some excellent muck/critter diving sites here, some well known to dive operators and others still to be discovered.

Day 4: A New Critter Hunting Mecca

Beangabang Bay, Pantar

Nestling on the south eastern edge of the island of Pantar, Beang Bay forms a natural harbour, the two outer points stretching 800 metres across, north east to south west, surrounded by rolling hills and woodland. A small, primitive village is spread across the coast inside the bay, populated, it seems, mostly by children, who have a small school house sited back from the beach.
There is a hot spring that empties into the bay below the schoolhouse and the black sand and rocks at the waters edge can become very hot indeed, particularly at low tide! The sparsely wooded slopes around the bay provide great opportunities for treks up onto the hilltops for spectacular views out over the Savu Sea to Treweg Island at the bottom of the Pantar/Alor strait and in the distance, the rocky coast of West Timor to the south.
There are several terrific dive sites here, both inside and outside the bay. The three main sites inside the bay are: Hot Property, Ribbon Eel Run and The Lava Flow, comprising between them coral reefs and volcanic sand and gravel areas, great for critter spotting and on a par with the some of the best dives at the Lembeh Strait. Night diving here can be particularly dramatic with the sea floor coming alive with juveniles such as boxfish, scorpionfish and waspfishes. The octopus that inhabit the shallows become very active at night too.
The reefs on the outer edges of the bay are blessed with sparkling reefs, outcroppings and ledges again featuring a prolific array of marine life. The rocky layout and tubastraea corals growing on these sites are reminiscent of the more famous dives in the southern Komodo National Park.

Day 5: Pristine Reefs and Fine Textiles

Buaya, Alor/Pantar Strait

Named for its shape, apparently it looks like a crocodile, this limestone island sits at the top of the Alor/Pantar Strait and there are some interesting dive sites here. To the west and the east are the two major dive sites and both of these feature great coral growth and spectacular deep walls. The north facing shore of the island features sandy bays separated by small rocky cliffs. There is a small fishing village on the south facing shore of this pretty island which features a mosque and some settlement further up the hill.
A big feature of a visit to Buaya are the textiles on display and sale here. The local women will paddle out in their canoes and boats to sell good quality spectacular and colourful Ikat weaves – prices are from Rp.200,000.

Day 6: ALOR-KUPANG-JAKARTA

After breakfast transfer to the airport for your flight to Kupang and other destination.