Tulamben, Diving in Bali

 

Bali is almost too beautiful to describe with words.  The friendly and gracious people of the island practice the Hindu religion, so I was always stepping over exquisite baskets filled with rice and flowers on the sidewalks.  One of the Balinese shopkeepers explained to me that these offerings were given three times a day, and she was basically giving back what had been given to her by the Gods. I was intrigued by their spiritualness and read more about in on my travels.  During my time there, I also discovered that many of the people of Bali believe that—“Good spirits reside in the mountains, and the seas are home to demons and ogres.”  I guess I was off to see the demons and ogres.

I was at the dive shop very early in the morning so we could leave quickly and take advantage of the undisturbed water at our chosen site. I looked at the group and realized I was the odd one out, the rest of the group was travelling together and already had partners. The divemaster sighed as he realized that he would have to be my dive buddy. I’ve always been a little scared of the water and thus was a self proclaimed “air-hog” when it came to diving.

We were en route to the US World War II freighter, the Liberty.  It had been torpedoed in 1942 by a Japanese submarine and was beached at Tulamben after two US destroyers failed to rescue it.  The ship remained on the beach until 1963 when the eruption of the volcano Gunung Agung pushed it 100 feet into the ocean.  My divemaster informed me that they estimate nearly 400 different types of reef fish inhabit the Liberty and I might still see the boilers, anchor chain, and some other parts of the ship that the locals didn’t carry off when it was beached.

It was an easy beach entry where, I was immediately surrounded by a school of yellow butterfly fish. The sand was black volcanic, and although not reflective like white sand, it provided a fantastic contrast against the brightly colored coral. The underwater life was amazing. Hundreds of Big-Eyed Trevally, goatfish and even a unicorn fish swam up to my mask. Not familiar with my partner, I was keeping a close eye on my air.  With so much going on, I was breathing faster than normal and soon realized that my tank was nearly empty.  I signaled to the divemaster and I could see the look in his eyes—even through the glass of his mask.  Shaking his head, he handed me his alternate regulator and indicated that I would be staying down until the others were finished diving. Not something I was used to, or comfortable with, but I really had no choice.

A short time later we finished the dive, without a demon or ogre to be found. Although this was one of the most diverse and colorful dives I have had to opportunity complete, I think next time I’ll bring a camera—and my own diving partner.