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FLORES DIVING-MAUMERE
Diving in Maumere :
Until 1992 Maumere was one of the top dive sites in Indonesia. In
December 1992 a tsunami hit the coast and killed at least 2500
people. On Pulau Babi, an island in front of Maumere, the
30-m-waves killed 1000 people. Fortunately there were no divers
under water when the earthquake happened. Alex, the dive instructor
of Sea World Resort, told me that already two days before the
earthquake sharks had become aggressive. He had to cancel diving
the next day because of engine trouble with the boat so that no
diver was in the sea instead many went into the mountains to climb
Kelimutu. This was the day Maumere was destroyed.
Sea World Club:
Sea  World Club is managed
by a retired German missionary, Father Bollen, who finances with
the money earned with the Sea World Club an orphanage in the
neighbourhood. As far as the diving was concerend i left Maumere
with big expectations in 2002 but upon my return in 2003 I had
mixed feelings. At certain dive spots i saw few pelagics (groupers,
sharks), but walls and slopes were in many places completely
destroyed. i liked a dive spot called pamana. A wall with nice coral
growth and many small animals hiding in the crevices and holes.
Maybe this wall still gives some impression of what Maumere was
like before the earthquake.
 According to Father Bollen the
regeneration of coral in Maumere is taking place rapidely. So
diving has become more interesting in the meantime.
Merpati flies from Denpasar to Maumere five times a week and pelita
air once a week on Wednesday. So Maumere has again become a good
place to start or finish a journey through Flores. Sea World Club
has two dive boats one with twin 40-hp-engines and the other one
with two 25-hp-engines.
Diving in Riung:
Riung is
 a
small town on the north coast of Flores north of Bajawa. There are
nice coral gardens in the 17-Islands-National Park (Pulau Tujuh
belas). There are only a few losmen in town. We can recommend the
losmen of the catholic church in Riung. Ask for "Missionaris", the
locals will show you the way. Prices for boat trips to the
snorkeling places or to spots where to watch flying foxes or
komodo-dragons, which also live in the Riung-Area, must be
bargained.
According
to the locals visibility depends on the direction of the wind. Best
visibility is between April and September and also from September to
November. Water temperature is usually around 28° C. The six dives
we did in the area do not justify a conclusive evaluation. However I
think that the area could become an interesting alternative to
Maumere.
Since 1999 it is also possible to rent
dive gear in Riung. Frans Mola, a civil servant working at the
tourist office in Bajawa, has installed at Home stay Nurikhlas (ask
for Acung) a compressor and other equipment. If you contact him in
advance he can organize your dive trips in Riung |
