Enchanted Waters: Journey to Raja Ampat
Amy Christopher Feb 12, 2024
Enchanted Waters: Journey to Raja Ampat
Raja Ampat, Indonesia, is a destination that divers dream about, creating a bit of envy when mentioned as the next dive adventure location. The anticipation and excitement glow in those who say they're headed there, while those who aren't vow to make it happen one day.
Ocean First was fortunate to bring a group of 16 intrepid adventurers to the magical Raja Ampat (Four Kings) and Misool Eco Resort in January 2024. This trip, our last rescheduled due to COVID, was a perfect farewell to the pandemic's headaches and mess. Originally scheduled for November 2021, our new dates saw the majority of the group departing right before New Year's, spending New Year's Eve on a plane over the Pacific!
Traveling to this part of the world requires patience and fortitude. We spent a day and a half in Jakarta to accommodate potential flight and/or baggage delays and to give everyone a chance to acclimate to a new time zone. After a much-needed rest, we boarded a midnight flight to Sorong, Irian Jaya, the jumping-off point for excursions into Raja Ampat. We arrived in Sorong without any issues, stopped for a quick breakfast, and then boarded Misool Eco Resort's private speedboat charter, Merantau, for a 4-5 hour ride south towards the island of Batbitim.
The group's excitement built as we approached the resort. This was to be our home for the next 12 nights, and everyone anticipated a much-needed reprieve from the responsibilities of "real life" back home. As the boat pulled up to the dock, we were welcomed by the entire staff and the departing guests. Disembarkation was easy, and it was time for a welcome drink, checking in, sorting dive gear, and getting into the water for our check-out dive. You know you're in for an amazing week of diving when you see a thriving reef community and baby blacktip reef sharks on the check-out dive!
Misool Eco Resort is a very special place. The resort was constructed on an old shark finning camp, and a good portion of the restaurant and original water cottage accommodations were built using driftwood and locally sourced materials. The staff, hailing from all over Indonesia, mostly come from local villages. Educating locals on the benefits of sustainable fishing techniques and eco-tourism has been a focal point and has proven to be a successful model for other dive resorts to follow. The marine protected area surrounding Misool has helped transform these waters into one of the most prolific reef systems in Indonesia. Particularly, the shark population has rebounded to very healthy levels after years of being hunted for their fins.
Our days revolved around an arduous schedule of first breakfast, dive, second breakfast, dive, rest, lunch, dive, rest/massage/snorkel/lounge, maybe a dusk or night dive, dinner, and then sleep. It was tough! The water cottages (our accommodations) are built around a lovely lagoon that offers great snorkeling with direct access from the veranda. Baby blacktip sharks, green and hawksbill turtles, juvenile reef fish of all kinds, and even an occasional manta ray can be found right outside your front door. Paddleboards and kayaks are available at all times for those seeking a bit more adventure.
Of course, most of us were here to dive. The diving is nothing short of spectacular, with more reef fish than any of us had ever seen. There are plentiful hard and soft corals and a nice mix of wall diving and coral gardens. All dive sites are close by, so boat rides are relatively short. The water temperature was warm, 85°F, making for very comfortable diving in either a light wetsuit or rashguards. The fish didn’t seem to mind as they flitted about the reef, performing their everyday tasks of foraging for food and avoiding being eaten by larger fish.
The highlights of the diving were the mantas, octopuses, and small critters. We saw octopuses every day, and many of the encounters were very interactive! These amazing animals are so well-camouflaged that divers often swim right over them, thinking they are part of the reef. Then, an arm with suckers on it emerges, revealing its true identity! It was a treat to see so many of these super cool creatures.
The mantas were a big highlight for everyone on the trip. These graceful animals glide effortlessly over cleaning stations, waiting their turn to have small parasites cleaned off by a myriad of reef fish. We would see them coming in, slowing down (sort of), and hovering over flat areas on the reef to get tidied up. Both reef and oceanic mantas, with wingspans of 15ft, were present, providing close encounters even for our snorkeling friends on the surface! Misool has a manta monitoring project, and it was fun to take part in identifying individual mantas as they came in from deeper water.
No trip to Indonesia is complete without spotting the small macro critters. Pygmy seahorses, ornate ghost pipefish, orangutan crabs, frogfish, tons of nudibranchs, porcelain crabs—the list goes on. Sharp eyes are needed to spot these small and well-camouflaged animals as they blend in with their environment perfectly.
One of the best parts of trips like this is getting to know your fellow travelers. Evenings were spent recapping the day's adventures and perhaps listening to an interesting presentation given by the staff on topics such as the history of the resort, manta behavior and morphology, or sea turtle identification. New friendships are forged that last a lifetime, as travel has a wonderful effect on people, bringing like-minded adventurers together to make new friends and plan their next expedition.
We love Raja Ampat and the special creatures and people who call this magical place home. We love it so much we are going back in 2026 and 2027! You need to experience the magic yourself to see if these stories are true.
Onto the next adventure... Terima kasih, Amy.
