The Western Pacific
YAP, MICRONESIA
Manta extravaganza
Season: Year-round diving
Visibility: 25-50 metres
Water Temperature: 28-30°C
Manta Ray (Gary Clarke)
A scattering of tiny islands spread across the immensity of the western Pacific, Micronesia is at the same time one of the most obscure corners of the globe and one of the world’s greatest diving destinations, a veritable Mecca that attracts underwater pilgrims from far and wide.
About 300 miles northeast of Palau lies Yap, an island where stone money, carved from the rock islands of Palau and transported across the open ocean by canoe, is still in use today. Yap is a wonderful mixture of past, present and future where ancient culture still exists alongside the 20th century. English is the official language and the US$ is the official currency. It is said that of all the thousands of islands in Micronesia, Yap today is the way the rest of Micronesia used to be with its culture, traditions and language still intact and freely observable.
Yap’s rise to world class fame as a diving locality began in the late 1980s when it was discovered that large numbers of Manta Rays could be observed here at very close range. However, there is more to Yap than Manta Rays – the outer drop-offs offer diving in remarkable visibility (30-50 metres is routine, with up to 65 metres at times!). Vertical walls, wonderfully healthy reefs, schools of Spotted Eagle Rays and grottos with swim-throughs full of tropical fish are just some of the diving highlights that can be found in Yap. Over 30 dive sites have been discovered and charted so far.
Manta Ridge is where Manta Rays are encountered almost daily. The combination of plankton, tide and current sets the stage for a truly wondrous undersea phenomenon. The site is a natural coral bridge that crosses one of Yap’s deep water channels. Through this channel come the mantas, some with ‘wingspans’ of up to 5 metres and weighing as much as one ton! Gliding in battle-style formation, these giants of the ocean line up in single file and hover about a metre above the coral awaiting their turn as the Cleaner Wrasse pop out of their coral homes and get to work picking off their parasites.
M’il Channel is a drift dive in the same channel as Manta Ridge. A slow drift at about 20 metres along the south wall with the incoming tide gives divers time to explore the vertical sides and bottom of the channel as they ride the current. Some big creatures are usually found here, including schools of Bigeye Trevally, White-tip Reef Sharks that rest on the bottom during the day and Manta Rays. Numerous reef fish and often turtles and eagle rays pass before you as you glide along.
Lionfish Wall is an exciting wall site starting at about 5 metres and plummeting to over 50 metres. Because of the staggering visibility here (up to 65 metres at times), this dive has been likened to sky-diving! A large community of lacy-finned lionfish live in the cracks, crevices and small caves and during their beautiful and graceful veil-like dancing movements they waft and wave their long, slim spines.
Yap Caverns provides a unique combination of a wall dive and swim-throughs. This site is marked by a sandy coral shelf cut into the reef, making a natural amphitheatre. Although the shelf is at a depth of 10 metres, the tall, vertical coral growths surrounding it rise through the water to within 3 metres of the surface. A series of caverns, passageways and caves tunnel into the reef from the north side of the amphitheatre.
Just five minutes from the resort is O’Keefe’s Island, named after an Irish entrepreneur who allegedly made a lot of conventional money transporting ‘stone money’ from Palau to Yap! Here the fantastic little Mandarinfish can be watched carrying out its territorial display at dusk, the males sometimes tussling with each other. These colourful, beautifully patterned fish are a joy to watch as they emerge from their hiding places in the coral rubble. At this site they are unusually fearless, making photography much easier than usual.
MANTA RAY BAY HOTEL & YAP DIVERS
Manta Ray Bay Hotel and Yap Divers are run and personally supervised by Bill Acker, who designed, built and now runs the entire resort! The small, dedicated dive hotel is situated on the edge of a sheltered bay with splendid views of the harbour and is completely integrated with Yap Divers. Each of the 34 guest rooms is tastefully decorated, and has an en-suite bathroom, air-conditioning, TV and video, and a refrigerator on request. All rooms have international direct dial telephones and most rooms have individual safes. Accommodation includes 12 Standard Rooms, 18 Ocean View Rooms and 4 Deluxe Ocean View Rooms. All Ocean View rooms are located on the seaward side of the hotel, have lovely views over the lagoon and private balconies that are perfect for watching the sunrise. Standard rooms are on the opposite side of the hotel and look across to the hills. Of the 4 Deluxe Ocean View Rooms, one is located on the third floor and has a private spiral staircase leading to an exclusive rooftop Jacuzzi and sundeck. Two Deluxe Ocean View Rooms are located on the ground floor, each having a large private garden area with a private plunge pool. Each room has a king-size bed. The third floor is the location of the other Deluxe Ocean View Room, which comprises a mini-suite with king bed, a sitting area and a unique indoor garden shower! Ocean View and Standard Rooms have two queen sized beds or one king size bed. All Deluxe Ocean View and Ocean View rooms have a private balcony.
Delicious local and international food is served in the Manta Ray Bistro, which is located on the main deck of S/V Mnuw, ,the hundred-year old South Seas Schooner which is permanently anchored at Manta Ray Bay. Menus feature European, Asian and American food and utilize fresh seafood and local produce along with imported foods. Try the local hot and spicy sauce on the Mangrove Crab! Early evenings are often spent enjoying a glass of wine, lager or fine beer from the micro brewery (which is on Mnuw!) in the nautical Weaver Deck and Bar, on the Bridge Deck of Mnuw or in the Crow’s Nest Bar, located on the top deck. The cool trade winds that blow in from the reef makes this a popular place to relax and chat to other divers.
Manta Ray Bay Hotel is proud of its sophisticated and efficient water purification and treatment system, which results in fully potable water in every room, a unique bonus in the dry season on an island!
Diving is provided by Yap Divers who operate a fleet of four custom-built dive boats fully equipped with sun-shade, freshwater, dive platform and ladders. Up to 4 daytime boat dives per day can be taken and night dives can be arranged locally. Yap Divers is a PADI five star centre and the Manta Visions Photo and Video Centre provides all the services that an underwater photographer could require. Nitrox is available. Night dives, Mandarinfish dusk dives and shark feeding dives can be arranged locally for an additional charge.
Price: from about £413 for 4 nights and 6 dives (from about £241 without diving); from about £681 for 7 nights with 10 dives (from about £380 without diving); from about £992 for 10 nights with 16 dives (from about £563 without diving). Includes: airport transfers; room-only accommodation on twin/share basis in a Standard Room at Manta Ray Bay Hotel; 2 boat dives per diving day, snacks on board, dive guide. Supersize packages include a 3rd boat dive on each diving day, lunch on each diving day and free Nitrox, and cost from about £80 for 4 nights package; from about £134 for 7 nights package; from about £215 for 10 nights package. Nitrox is also included with all packages of 7 nights or more, or all stays in a Deluxe Ocean View Room. Deposit: £200.
Single Occupancy Supplement: 30% of the applicable basic diver package price. (You can avoid paying the supplement if you are willing to share a room with another guest allocated by the hotel).
FLIGHTS: Prices from about £1255 to Yap. It is only possible to fly all the way through to Yap, via Manila or Honolulu, on certain days of the week. We will quote you the airfare applicable, based on routing, season, current fare levels and booking class availability. Our quote will include all taxes and fuel supplements applicable at the time of quotation, as well as our service charge. The usual airfare deposit is £300.
STOP-OVERS: These are available in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Honolulu or Los Angeles, depending on flight routing.
COMBINATIONS: If you are going all the way to Yap, why not take in Palau’s strange and beautiful ‘Rock Islands’ with their amazing diving or Truk and its remarkable wrecks? You will have paid for most of the airfare already! Alternatively, you could stop off to dive in the Philippines. Talk to us about the possibilities.
Mating Mandarin Fish (Alex Mustard)
