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Dream diving: Pemuteran and Menjangan

  Indonesia: Bali - July 2008

Dear English-speaking readers, this page is an automatic translation made from a post originally written in French. My apologies for any strange sentences and funny mistakes that may have been generated during the process. If you are reading French, click on the French flag below to access the original and correct text: 

I arrived on Tuesday at PemuteranThe village is located on the north coast, in the very west of Bali. In this area of arid mountains, bordered by black sand beaches, all the activity of the village is turned to the protection of the coral reef.

Welcome to Pemuteran

The mountainous region of Pemuteran, seen from the sea. (Bali, Indonesia, July 2008)
The mountainous region of Pemuteran, seen from the sea. (Bali, Indonesia, July 2008)

I stay at the diving center Reef SeenThis is the first time that the island has been visited by an Australian, Chris Brown, who has been living here for 17 years and who has done a lot for the preservation of the local underwater environment. He has, among other things, created a turtle nursery... But I will talk more about the different "eco-friendly" initiatives of Pemuteran in a future article.

The article is online here → Pemuteran: baby turtles, underwater temple and electric coral

The funds are so beautiful that I dive every day, either on the sites near the beach or Menjangan Island, an hour away by boat.

A captivating underwater atmosphere

The island of Menjangan is especially worth seeing for its underwater atmosphere, which is spellbinding. The reef on the south side of the island is a wall covered with a forest of huge gorgonians and a profusion of soft corals. The place is teeming with life. A life-size aquarium!

The visibility is excellent, and when you look up to the surface, the delicate branches of the sea fans are shaded in Chinese shadows on the blue. Super show.

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Few encounters were really new to me, except for a yellow-orange-black banded flatworm that I had never seen before.

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In addition to the usual tropical fauna, particularly rich here, I met a lot of interesting creatures: beautiful and photogenic nudibranchs, a ghostly white stone-fish, two white tip sharks, a crocodile-fish...

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And the profusion of pygmy seahorses (already three since Tuesday) fills me up... Come on, I'll give you a small one for the road!

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  Indonesia: Bali - July 2008

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  1. At the risk of repeating myself, but too bad, the photos are still as beautiful and enrich the text, which is also very interesting; here no tropical fauna, but the festival fauna you know .... already quite excited! In a few hours, on the way to the south, a quick round trip, besitos, Lydie. 😉 🙂

  2. Thank you for this little note. I'm leaving Pemuteran tomorrow, reluctantly. But for another nice place, in the east this time: Amed.

    See you soon!

    😉

  3. Hello Corinne!

    I'm just discovering all your texts that I hadn't seen! Superb crocodile fish, well framed 😉

    I loved Pemuteran: very rich and diverse dives, I really enjoyed myself last year. And I bet you'll find inspiration for new stories in Amed too. If you're lucky enough to have clear water, Amed's little wreck is just a delight, in less than fifteen meters of water. But I suggest you explore the surrounding coral garden in particular, which is superb and rich in small creatures.

    Bravo for the pygmies, without a macro lens, it was a challenge!...

    Good luck on Bali ...

    Hugs,

    Marie Ange

  4. Hello Marie-Angel!

    Thanks for the compliments on the photos. This crocodile-fish was particularly cooperative and let me peacefully flash him from all angles. Until I finally found the right one: the one that really shows off his crocodile mouth.

    As for the pygmy, I spent many long minutes circling him, this shy little fellow insisting on showing me his back... Grrr! But I finally got him!!!

    I had a great time in Pemuteran too, and I'm looking forward to having just as much fun in Amed. Tomorrow, of course, I start with the inevitable Liberty wreck in Tulamben. As I'm planning to stay in the area for a good week, I'll have plenty of time to explore the rest, and I'll follow your suggestions...

    Kisses too, see you soon!
    😉

  5. Hello,

    I discover your blog with wonder this morning ... I am attracted to Bali for almost 4 years now without even having set foot on the Indonesian side!

    I enjoy reading your articles, which really encourage me to decide to go on an adventure there ... (there are other destinations, of course, but Bali is ahead of Costa-Rica, Mauritius and New Caledonia ... diving is a must ...)

    As soon as I can... zou... I'm off... (I know enough about the Caribbean now, hehe). In the meantime, I'll be following your blog regularly, tips and good plans... it's always useful!

    See you soon, Virginie 8)

  6. @Virginia: Thank you for your note. I really like Bali. If you get the chance, don't hesitate to go there. The island may be touristy, but it's a fascinating place, both on land and underwater!
    See you soon!
    😉

  7. HATI HATI - Reef Seen Aquatics - Beware of the commercial practices of this dive club !! 👿 July 2009
    […]
    *** MODERATE MESSAGE BY CORINNE ***

  8. @Balajo: I had to delete your message because my blog is not designed to receive complaints from unhappy customers. Besides, I didn't witness what you're reporting, so I can't publish your story, which would make me liable.

    When I visited in July 2008, I had a very good experience with this center, in terms of welcome, transaction and safety, and I paid the agreed price, with even degressive rates given the number of dives I did (rates agreed on site, directly with the owner). I didn't have to deal with the dive-master you were complaining about, but with a local dive-master and the Australian owner, both of whom were very nice.

    The best thing would be to share your bad experience on a specific site for this kind of thing, like Good Plans Bad Plans, or the forums of Plongeur.com.

    Finally, you complain that you had to pay to rent the equipment (BCD + regulator), even though you already had fins, mask and snorkel (PMT). I don't see anything surprising or shocking in this, as all centers rent out specific bottle-diving equipment to customers who don't have their own, and PMTs aren't considered "equipment" (for my part, I don't have this problem, as I carry my complete diving equipment with me - except the tank and weights, of course). Perhaps you should have made it clear beforehand whether or not this rental was included in the price of the dive.

  9. Hello Corinne
    I also discover your blog by the answer to a bad comment posted on diver.com
    i spent a month in bali in the spring, half the stay dedicated to diving
    unfortunately I was less lucky than you on pemuteran because the day I dived there there was one hell of a current.
    I confirm however, the site is wonderful
    your photos are magnificent
    I can also confirm that Bali is a fascinating place, both on land and underwater.
    for my part, in addition to the beauty of the island, I particularly appreciated the great kindness of the Balinese people.
    I hope to be able to return in the future.
    friendly
    christian 🙂

  10. @Christian: Welcome to "Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs" and thank you for sharing your impressions of Bali, which coincide with my own. The island may be very touristy, but it still has an irresistible power of seduction. I hope to return there too!
    🙂

  11. Thank you for these testimonials! For departure on February 21, 2014 !! We look forward! For this second trip to Bali, we go off the beaten path and explore the Pemuteran region for 8 days!
    Emma 🙂

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