| Reef
type: | Fringing reef, deep walls, coral gardens
-- you name it | | Access: | Lengthy
liveaboard trips from Phuket; one, possibly two dive centers in Port Blair offering
local trips and instruction | | Visibility: | Variable
from 3-50 metres | | Current: | Variable,
often strong | | Coral: | Average
to unbelievable | | Fish: | Unusual
and prolific, very big | | Highlights: | OK
for beginners | | | |
A part of India, the Andaman Islands are one of the world's newest
diving destinations and have yet to be properly explored for diving. After a 50
year period of virtual isolation from the outside world the Indian government
has made a decision to allow limited, environmentally conscious tourism
development in the islands. The Andaman's modern history began as a British
penal colony for Indian radical elements. During WWII it was occupied by a small
Japanese force. Once India gained its independence from Britain, India initiated
a limited colonization program and at the same time, committed itself to protecting
the island's aboriginal population and its natural environment.
On the
surrounding islands live some of the last stone-age peoples on the earth. One
tribe, the Sentinelese, are isolated on their own tiny tropical island, North
Sentinel, and no visitors are allowed; no camera crews, no journalists, no scientists,
and no researchers. Contact has been attempted only a few times by the Indian
government and the locals have made it rather clear-by throwing primitive spears
and shooting arrows at the party-that they do not want to be disturbed.
The islands have no modern fishing fleet and commercial fishing licenses are granted
to foreign operators only on an extremely limited basis. Thus, the waters surrounding
the islands are simply full of fish that have never been disturbed by modern man.
And, since the islands only opened recently, most of the off-shore diving areas
have been dived by less than 50 people.
Although in many of the near
shore areas the visibility is limited, the off-shore islands such as Passage Island,
Barren Island, and Narcondam are rich in marine life-huge fish, sharks, manta
rays, unbelievable coral growth-and are blessed with crystal-clear water.
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About 70 kilometers to the south of Port Blair, the capital and main
port of the Andamans, Passage Island features an offshore pinnacle -- appropriately
named Fish Rock -- where two-meter long dog-toothed tuna compete with sharks for
food. Groupers larger than most men cruise the reef unafraid of divers. Large
eagle rays patrol the plankton rich waters completely at ease in the strong currents.
The active volcano Barren Island, almost 20 hours cruising northeast
of Port Blair, last erupted in January of 1994. The eruption covered almost everything
underwater and above with a thick layer of black sand, creating an unusual landscape
to explore. Although most of the coral was killed by this layer of sand, tunas
and sharks swim along its black walls, which plunge to over 500 metres. Hammerhead
sharks have been seen here. Visibility can exceed 50 metres, and even though there
is not much coral left, the contrasting vivid colors of bright fish against the
jet-black walls is almost psychedelic.
The most fantastic spot in the
Andaman Sea is an extinct volcano located another 160 kilometers north of Barren
Island. Walls drop to over 500 metres here as well-just off the shoreline-but
the difference is that here everything is alive and healthy. This is truly a diver's
paradise.
Imagine four-metre tall barrel sponges. Fans twice as large
as they are in the Similan Islands. Monstrous dog-toothed tuna -- one animal we
saw was almost three metres long. The best part of our first trip to the area
was the herds of manta rays that visited us on every dive -- both in shallow and
deep water. In four days we saw at least 50 mantas -- no kidding, and we snorkeled
with three groups of 12 feeding animals for over two hours our first day there.
The Andamans are certainly not for everyone. It requires spending long
periods of time on the boat and traveling almost every night in order to get to
the best spots. However, for those interested in the best of frontier diving,
this is it.
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