Indonesia: Pulau Weh [Sumatra] - March 2010
Dear English-speaking readers, this page is an automatic translation of an article originally written in French. I apologise for any strange sentences and funny mistakes that may have resulted. If you read French, click on the French flag below to access the original, correct text:
Français
Friends of bubbles, here is a little video just for you... I take you to the underwater "hot springs" of Pulau Weh. Volcanic hot springs, which give off a profusion of bubbles, a few meters below the surface!
A Jacuzzi... underwater!
You may have already seen this kind of springs on earth, with a characteristic sulfur smell (it smells like rotten eggs). There are many of them, in the volcanic regions.
Indonesia, located on the famous "belt of fire" of the earth's crust, is in fact a long string of volcanic islands. I remember having seen springs similar to the lake Danau Linownear Manado, in North Sulawesi, as well as near Lovina Beach, in the north of Bali.
But underwater, it's much more fun!
From the boat, you can just see big bubbles on the surface, big bubbles that come up. Moreover, even before seeing them, we already perceive the smell, this strange smell which reminds us of the chemistry lessons and the stinking balls...
Some of the Indonesian guides prefer not to put on their wetsuits, for this short dive. They say that the wetsuits remain impregnated with them. Being as cold as I am, and not really willing to check the concentration of stinging bugs in the water right on my skin, I kept my 5 mm. But I didn't notice anything particular when I rinsed, phew!
Water temperature : 33°C
Underwater, it is a delight to wallow in the warmth of these bubbles that never stop spouting from the bottom, in the middle of crevasses of varying size, fringed with a whitish deposit.
The game consists in making the thermometer of the diving computer on your wrist rise as high as possible, by placing your hands in front of a big release of hot water and bubbles.
Last record, during our outing on Wednesday: 33°C.
🙄
