November on Koh Tao

Well hello to all of you out there and sorry that we have not posted anything for quite a while but as you all know it is monsoon season here on Koh Tao….. where was the rain though!

November was actually a pretty dry month with some rain, so this meant that we were busy. We had lots of DSDs, Open water courses and a few Advance courses.

Because of Jansom Bay being here on the resort we have a lot of people who just want a nice and easy dive, so off we swim to 3 Rocks, drop down and enjoy the underwater life that we have there, like blue spotted stingrays, giant pufferfish, scorpionfish, scribbled filefish, giant groupers (this one we saw on our night dive, it was just resting there and was about 1m-1.5m), moray eels, poison sea claw urchins, blue ringed angelfish, longfin bannerfish, cleaner shrimps, gobies and there shrimp roommates, nudibranchs, batfish, various crabs, starfish, fusiliers, goatfish, sea cucumbers and also a lot of corals.

In the month of November we were so lucky as to have so many sightings of Whale sharks here, not only at Chumphon pinnacle but also on White rock, Green rock & Hin Pee wee.

As high season is starting to kick in again we have had a few changes here at Dive @ Charm Churee Villa with our staff, a new DMT, old Instructors and Dive Masters coming back and Assistant Instructors leaving.

Currently the visibility is around 6m – 11m depending on which dive site you go to. This does not mean that there is nothing to see, quite the contrary as the fish seem to hang around the reefs more. On some of the sites baby Mantis shrimps have been found as well. It even adds to some of the dive sites like the Sattakut wreck, making it a bit more mysterious especially when some of the areas are shrouded in clouds of mist as if it was early morning on land! Water temperature is currently around the 28’c/29’c and is still fine to dive with a 3mm Shorty.

Also on the island some of the roads are getting upgrades as they are being resurfaced but only in certain areas. We also had a small water shortage here but that was due to the flooding in Bangkok and not having enough supplies.

We try every month to make an underwater cleanup so as to help the coral and fish have a nicer and cleaner home. It is amazing what you tend to find dumped in the sea, from plastic bottles, M15 bottles, beer bottles, plastic bags, broken bits of plastic, brick filled sacks, soft drink cans, wood and coconuts.

Happy diving for all of our readers and remember…

Take only pictures leave only bubbles!

Don’t eat shark fin soup and boycott those places that do!

Dive Sites around Koh Tao

See down under all the information about the dive sites around Koh Tao

JAPANESE GARDENS                      Depth 1-14 metres

A nice, shallow dive site that is perfect for beginner divers. It is a large bay area, with a section marked off for snorkelers, swimmers and divers doing their confined dives. It has a selection of corals that resemble a Japanese Garden and includes swim throughs on the south side. For the more experienced diver, it may also be possible to do a drop dive from outside of the bay.

Coral types: Funnel corals, mushroom and slipper corals, staghorn and table corals, etc.

Fish types: Angel fish, butterfly fish, titan trigger fish, porcupine puffer fish, etc.

JANSOM BAY & THREE ROCKS                   Depth 1-9 metres

This is the dive site that we at Dive@CharmChureeVilla take all of our beginners to, and any divers who wish to do a shore dive or night dive with us. Jansom Bay is the private beach for the resort and Three Rocks is located a short surface swim outside of the bay. Whether you follow the shore line or go out to Three Rocks, you will see a wide variety of coral and fish life. There are rock formations, which have made a large swim through at Three Rocks. This gives you many places to look for fish life you may be hoping to see.

Coral types: Pore corals, mushroom and slipper corals, staghorn and table corals, brain corals, etc.

Fish types: Giant puffer fish, titan and yellow margin trigger fish, scribbled file fish, nudibranches and, if you’re lucky a green turtle, and Indian walkman during night dives.

For Intermediate Levels

TWIN PEAKS                      Depth 5-18 metres

One of the most popular dive sites, this is made up of 2 main rock formations. A small swim through is located on the deeper of the 2 pinnacles. This is a fun dive site with an abundance of coral and fish life, and is perfect for all levels of divers. Just off of the dive site, there is also Buoyancy World, an area which has been made especially for people who want to practice buoyancy techniques.

Coral types: Whip corals, staghorn and table corals, magnificent anemones, etc.

Fish types: Trevally, pink anemone fish, moray eels, blue-spotted stingrays, porcupine puffer fish and saddleback clown fish (Nemo’s cousin!)

WHITE ROCK                      Depth 5-22 metres

This is a very large dive site and is made up of 2 large rock formations, with a coral garden in between. Appropriate for beginners and experienced divers alike, has both shallower and deeper parts to it, with a small swim through on the south pinnacle. “White Rock” itself is the shallowest point of the dive site and can be seen as a light green or “white” patch from the surface. A great dive site to explore and can be visited more than once to cover the ground you may have missed on the first dive!

Coral types: Large staghorn and table coral formations, leather corals, bubble corals, grass corals, etc.

Fish types:  Angel fish and butterfly fish in abundance, blue-spotted stingrays, porcupine puffer fish, yellow box fish, scribbled file fish, moray eels, and the occasional rhizotome jellyfish and banded sea snake/krait.

SHARK ISLAND                 Depth 4-25 metres

An amazing dive site, but you must be aware of the conditions as Shark Island can sometimes endure current. At the deeper parts of the dive site there is an array of various soft corals, with large rock and hard coral formations leading up to the shallower parts of the dive site. The pore coral field looks awesome and can be a great part of the site for seeing trigger fish, stingrays and sometimes even a whip ray.  There is also a kind of “pond” area, with an abundance of coral and fish life at around 6 metres, which is great for doing the safety stop.

Coral types: Grass and whip corals, leather corals, pore, boulder and brain corals, etc.

Fish types: Yellowtail, chevron and the occasional great barracuda, bat fish, yellow box fish, scribbled file fish, and trevally on the hunt!

For Advanced Levels

CHUMPHON PINNACLE                                Depth 12-35 metres

Chumphon Pinnacle is Koh Tao’s best and probably most well known dive site. It is one huge pinnacle which starts at around 12 metres and drops off to around 30 metres. There is a swim through (more like a small cave!)  and a large opening running the width of the pinnacle. There is also a smaller pinnacle off to the south west of the main pinnacle called Barracuda Rock. There are many cracks and crevices to look into and through so keep your eyes peeled for some of the larger fish that inhabit Chumphon Pinnacle and use these to hide away.

Corals types: Large magnificent anemone fields, some small staghorn and table corals, large barrel sponges and some delicate funnel corals.

Fish types: Giant groupers, yellowtail, chevron and great barracudas, yellowfin and longfin trevally, scorpion fish, moray eels, porcupine puffer fish, reef crabs, yellow box fish, etc. There are also seasonal bat fish, grey reef sharks and, depending on the moon, sometimes even a Whale Shark!

SOUTHWEST PINNACLE                                Depth 5-30 metres

Another of Koh Tao’s most well known dive sites and has become a favorite for a lot of divers. Like Shark Island, there can be some current to deal with on this dive site. However, the layout of this site offers a fantastic multilevel dive and plenty to see, whether you have a deep dive certificate or an open water (18m) certificate. The main pinnacle begins at around 5-7 metres and is covered with magnificent anemones, and is great for looking for moray eels or reef crab while doing your safety stop.

Coral types: Grass and whip corals, anemone fields, small table corals, etc.

Fish types: A huge school of fusiliers, giant groupers, Janss’ pipe fish, moray eels, cleaner shrimp, scorpion fish, barracudas, blue-spotted stingrays, trevally, and again, the occasional Whale Shark!

These are just a few of the dive sites around Koh Tao, the rest, as you can see from the map of Koh Tao, are as follows:

Pottery

Hin Pee Wee

No Name

Green Rock

Red Rock/Nang Yuan Pinnacle

Mango Bay

Lighthouse Bay

Hin Wong Pinnacle

Hin Wong Bay

Laem Thian

King Kong

Aow Leuk

Hin Ngam/Aow Leuk South

We hope that you all going to dive with us at Dive @ Charm Churee Villa

Finding something new

Dear all,

It was an incredible week here at Dive@ Charm Churee Villa, even after all of the dive staff being here for more than a year and a half, we have all found something during a dive that we have never seen before!
It started with Andi, during a night dive for an Advanced Open Water Course, he came across a type of nudibranch that he hadn't seen since diving on Koh Tao. Andi is a macro-diver, he loves finding the small stuff and was excited to have found this during a night dive. Unfortunately, he has done a few more dives on Three Rocks since, with the camera, but has been unable to find it again :(
Then, P went diving on Shark Island and, despite numerous dives on this dive site, she found what she at first thought was a surgeonfish. Then, as it stuck up its trigger to attack something floating in the water, she realised that it was a teeny version of the Titan Triggerfish and caught it on camera. After looking on the internet, it turned out to be a Pinktail Triggerfish! Much smaller than the normal triggerfish we get around Koh Tao, and seemingly more friendly, she was exitied to show everyone the pictures and video that she got!

Finally, after hundreds of dives on our house reef, Three Rocks, Margo had taken some fun divers over and was confused when she saw what she thought was a blue-spotted stingray, a creature that we have in abundance here on Koh Tao. However, when the sand settled and her eyes refocused, she realised it was not this common stingray, but a MUCH larger and lesser seen Jenkin's Whipray! She was so impressed by this that she called everyone in excitement, even P who was enjoying a nice, relaxing day off to tell them her news!

Between the 3 of us, we have well over 4000 dives here on Koh Tao so we have all felt the invigoration at each coming across something new to all of us. It just goes to show that, even if you have enjoyed a dive site for many dives, doing one more dive there does not mean you will see only the same things.
There are many weird and wonderful creatures of the deep, many of which we as professional divers, see on a regular, if not daily basis, but nothing can describe the feelings we all get when we can come out of a dive here and say, "I've NEVER seen THAT before!!!!"

Welcome

Welcome at our Blog from Dive @ Charm Churee Villa,

Dive @ Charm Churee Villa is a PADI 5 Star Dive Center, and we are located on the resort Charm Churee Villa and Koh Tao Bamboo Huts.

We are located at the Island Koh Tao, 70km east of the coastline between Suratthani and Chumphon, in the Gulf of Thailand.

 

We offer all PADI Courses from Bubble maker to Divemaster and we also offer  boat dives 2 times a Day around the Island Koh Tao with the favorite dive spots: Chumphon Pinnacle, White Rock, Twins, South West Pinnacle, Red Rock, Green Rock and much more.

We would like you to take a look at our life as a Dive Shop, we write our updates about our courses, fun divers, Dive Spots weekly and, of course, we will keep you informed about special sightings of whale sharks, sharks or other nice animals.

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