Layang layang, Malaysia - Photos and article by David Lim



Enjoy a special photo feature from Layang Layang by talented photographer/writer David Lim from Singapore.

Imagine diving in a perfectly maintained aquarium, where visibility is infinite and marine life prolific and you find yourself diving in Layang Layang atoll.

Combine this with the extremely well run Layang Layang Resort, the only resort on the atoll, located 300km from the nearest land of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, and you have the perfect ingredients for a great dive vacation away from it all.

To school children in Malaysia, Layang Layang means kites, in this case it is used to refer to the migratory birds that use this island as a rest stop. The birds that come by this place consist of terns, bobbies, swallows and egrets. The sheer numbers are spectacular and so is the odor, fortunately, the wind blows the smell off the island. The island originally was nothing more than a tiny sand bank resting on top of a 7km X 2km atoll in the middle of the South China Sea that is 2000 meters deep.

The Malaysian government decided it would be a good strategic location to build a naval post there. With that came a small air strip and eventually, the Layang Layang resort. The air strip takes up most of the man made island, and when approaching by plane, all that appears is one very flat rectangular piece of land with a few short buildings on the side, right in the middle of a dark blue ocean. The view is not unlike that of an Air Craft Carrier as seen in the war movies.

The dive center at the Layang Layang Island Resort is very well organized. It is very large and airy with ample rack space for hanging your wetsuit, and lots of baskets for your masks and fins. Each person is assigned their own area, so there will be no accidental grabbing of someone else's gear if you are in a rush. All dive sites are pre-drawn on a white marker board hung on the walls of the dive center, so it is easy to get a mental image of the dive site. In terms of equipment, they have about 200+ tanks and a Bauer compressor to fill it. They also have BCDS, Regulators, Mask and Fins for rental.

Bell Soft Coral

The resort uses fast catamaran dive boats, and during peak periods 10 boats can be deployed at once. Each boat can contain 10 divers comfortably. Dive sites are about 10 to 20 minutes away from the resort, depending on sea conditions, and hence return to the resort after every dive.

Dive schedules are very much on the dot, if you are not there, the boat will go without you. There are 3 dives a day, at 8:30 am, 11:30 am and 3:00 pm. Night dives are extra with a minimum of 3 divers. The maximum allowed bottom time is 50 minutes. Upon arrival, the 8:30 am dive would have departed, hence it would be more realistic to plan for the 11:30 am dive.

Visit the Layang Layang Web site for more information.

The 14 major dive sites on Layang Layang are on the outer rim of the 2000 meter deep atoll. The prettiest dives are at Gorgonian Forrest, The Point and Dogtooth Lair.

Gorgonian Forrest, as the name implies, is filled with giant Gorgonians. This place is a great dive during the day for the kaleidoscope of colors and breathtaking scenery. During the night the colors are even more intense as the Gorgonians go into full bloom. Besides the scenery, small shrimps and crabs skillfully blend and hide among the bizarre shapes and colors. So remember to take a closer look at the base of these animated trees. The deep blue will also hold unexpected pelagic surprises, as it typically will have the majestic large sharks or mantas cruise by. This dive challenges you to keep an eye on the blue and yet maintain vigilance for the weird and wonderful macro life.

Sea Fans everywhere...

The Point would be the main place for Hammerheads. Typically this is a deep dive and as such is normally the first dive of the day. Most will remember it as either meaningless blue water dives when the Hammerheads do not show, or fantastic adrenalin dives when the huge Hammerheads appear. The entry point is over the drop off and the divemaster will zoom out and down into the depths of the deep blue. The guests will normally follow closely behind, since the visibility is so good, a depth of 40 meters will be easily reached. It is a gamble that there may or may not be Hammerheads, luckily the odds were in our favor during our trip. Since the visibility is very good, the alternate dive profile is to linger behind and stay shallow at about 20 meters. This reduces the nitrogen intake and provides longer bottom times. Then observe the reaction of the divemaster and group, sudden excitement and very clear pointing and camera flashing means the Hammerheads are there. Quickly take a compass bearing and zoom out to where they are. Then just enjoy the view as the others have to surface as they run out of bottom time and air. The compass bearing is useful as sometimes divers get disoriented when navigating in the featureless deep blue. Furthermore, the divemaster may not be in view by this time. With the extra air and bottom time, exploration of the points shallower reefs become possible. However, always remember to discuss the dive plan with the divemaster and buddy.

The Point is really a small site and it merges between Gorgonian Forrest and Dogtooth Lair, and hence has some features of both sites. Dogtooth Lair has large towering clumps of coral. In between are either sandy patches or nicely covered coral patches. It is like swimming in a large hall where the supporting pillars are alive with colorful ornaments. It is a beautiful site frequented by large angry looking bluish and grayish Dogtooth Tuna.

School of Jacks

In the sandy patches, look out for the bizarre looking Prickly Sea Cucumber and Leopard Spotted Sea Cucumber, they may have pretty Commencial shrimps and Harlequin crabs hitching a ride. At the base of these towering clumps, various kinds of nudibranches may also be found. Again one has to decide to look up for the pelagic marine life, or concentrate on the macro.

Gorgonian Forrest, The Point and Dogtooth Lair are the must see sites located on one side of the atoll, but this does not mean the other sites are by any measure poor. The Tunnel is located between the two end of the atoll, and the other three must see sites are Wrasse Strip, Valley and D Wall. The Tunnel is not a cave dive, but multiple huge cracks in the reef overgrown with coral. The deep cracks that grow into the reef are natural dead ends, in these calmer protected spots, it becomes easier to concentrate on looking for the macro life.

Layang Flat Worm

Further along the reef, the crack grows along the side of the reef forming the shape of a canyon. It is a nice feeling to have coral on all sides.

D Wall is a huge overhang and sometimes, leopard sharks can be seen lazing at the bottom. Friendly Cleaner shrimps can sometimes be spotted if you look in the crevices. If you slowly maneuver your hand into the crevice, the shrimp will gently land on your hand and give you a manicure. This also gives a good macro photo opportunity of these red striped clear bodied shrimp.

The Point is at one extreme of the atoll, the Valley is at the other. This dive site has a gently sloping floor with some sandy patches. There are also large coral bommies teaming with life here. This site not only has macro life hiding in the crevices, but a huge school of Bumphead parrotfish patrolling this area. Their distinctive crunching noise while they feed is tell tale sign they are nearby, so look up and scan the reef.

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