WEB EXCLUSIVE - Far East Expedition to East Timor

Over a five-week period in August/September 2011, the Equator Diving team visited some amazing dive areas in both Indonesia and East Timor. Following Part 1’s lowdown on Ambon, the team reveal all about the mysterious East Timor. Here’s what the team experienced during the second stage of the trip…

World's Best Coral?

The coral in East Timor is hard to compare with anywhere else we have dived. This is largely due to the fact this is a new destination, and compared to other dive spots in the world very few people have ever seen these reefs let alone dived on them. In East Timor there were whole gardens of whip corals, and the table corals, barrel sponge and gorgonian fans were bigger than any we had ever seen before. The soft coral in East Timor was particularly beautiful, with large Sea Pens, Carnation corals and Tree coral the most striking.

Seahorse

Diving by land & by boat

Diving in East Timor is still in its infancy and although there are already plenty of established dive sites there is also huge scope for exploration. The best dive sites include Tasi Tolu, a coastal dive close to Dili, and the offshore islands of Atauto and Jaco. Diving with our hosts, Dive Timor Lorosae, we were whisked out to Atauro Island and some other coastal sites by boat, while other dive sites, along the costal road from Dili, we accessed by 4x4 vehicle. This is a great way to see the coastal scenery and perfect for the adventurous diver. Dive Timor Lorosae plan to open a second resort soon, close to Jaco Island, but for now this renowned island is best dived from a liveaboard.

Diving by land

Pilot Whales...

One thing very much on our mind in East Timor was pilot whales. We had been told this was a hot spot and that our best chance to see these gentle giants was on a trip out to Atauro Island. We were told we had an 80% chance of seeing them. This sounded promising and our luck was in. As we approached Atauro for a day of deep wall diving, we were greeted by a large pod of pilot whales off to our left. And off to our right a pod of dolphins. Welcome to Atauro Island!

Dive Timor Lorosae - the centre of the action in Dili

Dive Timor Lorosae (DTL for short) is the most established dive operator in East Timor and is the only PADI dive school. DTL consists of a guest house ideal for groups, deluxe rooms which are great for singles or couples, a pool for dive training or relaxing after a dive, and a restaurant/bar - probably the most popular in Dili, serving huge portions of tasty food with influence from all across Asia. There is also a good selection of very cold beer and it is easy to see some of the positive influence from this being an Australian-owned dive centre.

Nudibranch

Thanks to Mark, Marianne, Volka, Katie, Greg and the rest of the Dive Timor Lorosae team!

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