Scuba Diving Thread - mini forum

[limbo]

Hi Brink,

 

you wouldn't believe how Samui has changed, the best thing IMO is that there's a Tesco Lotus now. The day it opened there where folks from all over the island for a day or 3 actually, and everybody had such big grins on their faces that we had to walk sideways through the doors.

[Brink15]

I tell you, you keep tempting me like that and I may just show up with a moving van and my scuba gear. :hubba:

[Guest]

I couldn't believe how much Phuket had changed after 5 years, far less people this time around though

 

Guess I havent really noticed the change on Samui as I'm usually there twice a year. Hated seeing the McDonalds in Lamai but confess to occasionally having one when I'm hungover.

 

Maybe going to Koh Tao next month, will PM for more details if I do :: Do they have proper roads there now then? or just sand and a couple of bungalows still?

 

Need to get back into the blue ::

[limbo]

Hi Buksida,

 

don't know about roads on Koh Tao, but you'll be surprised nonetheless. The amount of cars has increased as well.

 

I'm looking forward to your PM!

[sanukdee]

Yes, there are more paved roads now. About the steepest paved road I ever saw is at the Nang Yuan end on Ko Tao.

 

Koh Tao now has two 7-11s. One is in "town" where the boats arrive and depart and another about in the middle of Sairee beach. In the day, 7-11 is one of the few places to go to escape the heat. I would often just slowly wander the aisles enjoying the three air-cons before leaving with a large slurpee. There are lots of internet shops but only a couple with air-con. Even a few 24 hour ATMs. No McDonalds or Starbuck's. Although I did wish for a good cup of coffee.

 

If you are a scuba diver you should go to Ko Tao! Ko Tao calls itself the diving center of Thailand. Most people visit Ko Tao primarily to scuba and snorkel. There are many dive shops and resorts and bungalows catering to the diver.

 

The nightlife is laid back and enjoyable. Bring your own TG or there are many young single farang women (many Australians) about if you are so inclined. Simple Life Villa on Sairee Beach seems to be the most popular and fun hangout.

[Brink15]

Wow! Things have certainly changed. Back in 95' it was more like the wild west frontier town of diving. There was the local Thai mafiosi with his diving resort. If you tried to sell classes on the pier he would make life very difficult for you. Then there was the overall theme of the Island. With one resort called Sensi and a German owned shop named after a famous Thai band that always had clouds of smoke billowing from its shop "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" style.

 

Although I'm sure the development takes away some of the tropical desert Island charm, I'm glad to see some facilities on the Island.

 

I wonder if old Trevor the Triggerfish is still around. I doubt it. Probably the grandson of Trevor. What is the lifespan of a Titan Trigger?

 

[racha]

No idea how long a Titan Trigger fish lives for myself, I would take a guess at around 20 years or so, I did read about certain smaller species of trigger fish living only a couple of years though,

 

Here is a story for you below from your mate Johns web site about the infamous Trevor,

 

Although he's not nearly as large as a fin back, Ko Tao has a resident fish with an ego the size of any whale. Trevor, The Terrible Trigger, dwells at White Rock off Ko Nang Yuan and what he lacks in size he more than makes up for in belligerency. Trigger fish are known to be hostile around mating season and they rigorously defend their nests, but Trevor just doesn't seem to like anyone no matter what time of year it is. He has this annoying habit of sneaking up on divers and biting their hair, mask, fins, regulator, or anything else that happens to be in the way. I really beheld Trevor peering out from behind a rock waiting for divers to look away from his hiding place so that he could then spring upon the group like some kind of crazed warrior. And they say fish are stupid.

 

Personally, I have had other stimulating encounters with marine life on other dives that I prefer over my encounter that day with our friend Trevor. However, my divemaster friends on Ko Tao assure me that the terrors of Trevor are easily avoided if you know the reef and avoid his territory. Fine. Just goes to show you that a good guide is invaluable. I know that Trevor T-shirts are being sold on Ko Tao. My hope is that they will use the proceeds to open a hospital for deranged and demented fish.

 

[limbo]

Hi racha,

 

what puzzles me about the Titan Triggerfish is that they seem to be aggressive over here in the Gulf but I never heard of Titan attacks in the Andaman Sea??

 

About 3 weeks ago had an encounter with one at Sail Rock at 22m and he followed me around for a few minutes!! he took me by surprise and his first attack was from behind.

Lateron two of my IDC candidates had encounters as well, one with me around and one guy without me around. They've been very active recently!!

 

Guess I met Trevor a good 6 years or so ago when on holiday on Koh Tao.

[racha]

Hi Limbo,

Plenty of aggresive ones in the Andaman Sea as well, There are the odd ones that are always in a bad mood and will go at you at anytime, mostly its around the mating time when they get real active though, I have had two of them coming at me one after the other on a few occasions and not so easy to keep every one together when that happens, A little trick I use that helps is to make some loud noise it normaly scares them off for long enough to get away with out a piece of skin missing, the best thing as you proberly know already is to get out of the area where the eggs proberly are, they are really just defending there own small area...

[racha]

Below is a story from the New Zealand Herald

 

 

Diver lost trying to free trapped whale

 

17.06.2003

By STUART DYE AND NATASHA HARRIS

When the mayday call came about a stricken humpback whale caught in lines off the Kaikoura coast, Tom Smith raced into action.

 

On two earlier occasions the 38-year-old fisherman had responded to a roped whale and both times he had managed to free them.

 

Mr Smith is now presumed dead after being hit by the giant tail fins of the creature he was trying to save.

 

Thirty tourists, mostly British, on a whale watching adventure watched the tragedy unfold.

 

Mr Smith, whose wife, Claudine, is pregnant with the couple's third child, was on board his charter vessel the Bounty with his father-in-law and a friend when fishermen alerted him to the trapped whale, about 10m to 12m long.

 

Whale Watch Kaikoura spokesman Thomas Kahu said the tourists were watching the whale about 11.45am when Mr Smith arrived and leaped into the water about 500m from the shore at South Bay.

 

He was trying to cut the line attached to a crayfish pot when the whale fractionally lifted its tail, smashing it down on its rescuer underneath.

 

A Whale Watch Kaikoura boat had been first to the scene and had phoned the Department of Conservation. While its crew were waiting for DoC, Mr Smith's boat arrived and he put on his dive gear to attempt the rescue, Mr Kahu said.

 

"He was very keen to assist. He hopped in the water and he was within really close proximity of the whale.

 

"He saw the whale put its tail up and he then tried to dive," Mr Kahu said.

 

"After the water had settled from the whale hitting it, the bubbles from Mr Smith's tank were unable to be seen, so we called Search and Rescue."

 

As well as the tourists seeing the whale smack its tail on the water, Mr Smith's two companions saw him disappear.

 

The tourists urged their boat's crew to stay and search for him for 1 1/2 hours.

 

Mr Kahu said Mr Smith had tremendous ocean experience. He would take out visitors on fishing, diving and bird-watching trips.

 

A friend, Murray Boyd, said: "He just lived down the road and was really well-known.

 

"He was a lovely guy and this is an absolute tragedy."

 

Kaikoura police have laid out fishing nets in the hope of retrieving Mr Smith's body.

 

Sergeant Tony Yardley said there was no chance of finding Mr Smith alive.

 

Police, Kaikoura Coastguard and locals searched the area, only giving up after four hours when they knew there was no hope of finding him alive.

 

Last night, the whale was still trapped in the crayfish line as DoC staff were unable to cut the rope.

 

The humpback had limited movement and was agitated, and it was feared it would drown if it did not free itself overnight.

 

DoC's area manager for South Marlborough, Dave Hayes, said:

 

"Humpbacks can get violent - they can thrash about quite severely."

 

Mr Smith once described saving a humpback whale as "a real once-in-a-lifetime encounter" after he freed it from craypot lines in Kaikoura in June 2001.

 

He said he donned scuba gear and made eye contact to let the whale know he was there.

 

"As I swam up I could see it drop its head and thought it was going to dive, but what it did was to lift its tail and lay dead still while I cut off the float and the last of the rope."

 

After the whale was freed, it came up right beside the boat, where it stayed for a few moments, before lifting its tail and slowly swimming away.