M7 Diving Cruise on sy Crescent

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This is Burma, and it will be quite unlike any
land you know about - Rudyard Kipling Letters
from the Far East 1898
Tourism Authority of Thailand International
License 31/0099
M7 Diving Cruise on s/y Crescent
The setting tropical islands of the exquisite
Mergui archipelago, Burma (Myanmar)
SEAL (South East Asia Liveaboards) is the true
pioneer of diving in the Mergui Archipelago.
Comprising over eight hundred islands and
covering an area of ten thousand square miles,
these pristine islands had, until January 1997,
been closed to all foreigners for well over fifty
years. This area is totally untouched by modern
development, with a rich history of maritime
trade, mysticism and piracy. The modern-day
Mergui Archipelago is as it was in days gone by,
bar the piracy! Due to the archipelagos
virtual isolation, the islands are uninhabited,
except for a few sea gypsies. The plankton rich
waters are alive with an amazing diversity of
wildlife, flora and fauna. We have discovered
huge Gorgonian sea-fans in various shades of
orange, hard and soft corals in vivid colours,
living gardens of sea anemonies and very
impressive expanses of plate corals. The larger
creatures include various species of shark such
as Bull, Silvertip, White and Black Tip, Grey
reef, Nurse, Leopard , Tiger and Hammerhead
sharks. Manta-rays thrive in the archipelago
during the 2001-2002 season particularly, we
experienced what was known as Manta madness on
many occasions. Scores of Manta rays converging
around the divers! Apart from the sharks, Manta
rays, Giant groupers, Moray eels, powder blue
Surgeon fish, Parrot fish, Lion fish and Black
banded sea snakes, to name but a few species
found in the Mergui archipelago, the dive sites
of the region also have an amazing array of small
but exquisite highlights that divers dream of
seeing, such as Sea Horses, Ornate Ghost Pipe
fish, colourful Nudibranchs, Snails, Cowries,
many types of Moray Eels and Rock Bleny. For
true diving connoisseurs, this is a trip not to
be missed. This is your opportunity to dive on e
of the worlds last frontiers which is only now
unfolding its hidden treasures.
S/y Crescent
Red Fan Coral
Manta-ray
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Topside and under water shots in the wild and
beautiful
Mergui Archipelago, Myanmar.
Extracts from S/y Crescents Divemasters Report
2002
Again, diving this week was excellent. A total
of ten dives where we saw many Manta rays,
besides which we also saw a lot of very unusual
things several Sea Horses, Stone fish, a school
of one hundred Mobula rays and three Frog Fish
  The wave effect the glass fish made while
dodging invading tuna was a amazing.  On our
second dive at Devil rock, named after the Devil
rays, we encountered a school in which I
personally counted one hundred Mobulas  Here
(Western Rocky), as always the visibility was
great, allowing us to see four White Tip Reef
sharks and many passing Dog Tooth Tuna.  The
next morning we dived first Little Torres where a
rather strong current but 30 metre visibility
awaited us. Immediately we spotted a Gray Reef
shark swimming just above the hard coral bottom
in about 21 m. of water. Then back to Black Rock
where once again the Mantas were waiting. We saw
them above and below, with Cobia, without Cobia,
some white, some black and some had scars from
shark fights. To this point we though we were
lucky enough and had got our Manta quota. We
were wrong!.  We went back through the main
swim through and again saw the ten Gray Reef
sharks. We also had a chance to briefly look in
the cave where there was a Nurse Shark and a
Marbled Ray  Immediately we jumped in (Black
Rock) we saw three White Tip Reefs swimming
together and a Leopard shark very close with the
good vis you could see always around 35 m. When
we stopped two more Leopard sharks were in the
sand several divers knelt down beside them,
paying no attention to the two Manta rays just
overhead, each around 3 to 4 m. Later we saw
them again on two more occasions. With the
leopard sharks alone this would have been a
fantastic dive but the Mantas well Mantas just
made it one of those dives youll never
forget!  At Twin Cheeks we saw four Leopard
sharks and heaps of schooling Tuna, again chasing
the Glassfish but the highlight of this dive was
the 3 m. Nurse shark sleeping under one of the
many house size boulders.  About twelve minutes
into the dive a 4 ½ m. Manta was spotted barely
moving about 1 m. off the bottom. When we
approached he wasnt shy it seemed just as
curious about ourselves as we were of him! Again
in the shallows other Mantas were around when
huge splashes were seen from breaching Manta rays
all about the reef. Jesse Huey - Divemaster
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The Moken People, otherwise known as sea
gypsies, are a shy and mystical nomadic race
who wander throughout the Mergui Archipelago.
They are the only inhabitants living here, apart
from a few Burmese fishermen. During the monsoon
season they seek shelter at what is known as the
sea gypsy village on one of the islands, where
the children can attend the little school,
overseen by the resident monk.
Burmese fishermen
Moken lady in dug-out canoe
Twins
Live-aboard s/y Crescent home for seven
days/eight nights - A very comfortable 65 ft
fibreglass ketch, professionally built to a high
standard in Seattle. Onboard, our professional
crew will guide you to the secret dive sites of
the region, helping to make your cruise a long to
be remembered an experience . From the Captain
to the Deckhand, all of the SEAL crew take
pride in seeing to your needs. What better way
to spend a week than diving and sailing through
this long lost archipelago! Accommodation
Max. 8 passengers in 4 separate cabins, 3
showers/toilets, plus deck shower. A well
equipped galley and large well laid out decks to
provide the maximum in diving convenience and
enjoyable tropical living. Air-conditioning
available. Relaxation facilities Plenty of deck
space for sun-bathing and relaxing. Canopied
areas afford shade. Equipped with CD stereo
system, TV and DVD. Fishing equipment. Diving Di
rect from yacht with easy access to water, or
from a 4.6 metre inflatable dinghy with a 40 hp
outboard. Equipment Radar, 2 x GPS navigation
and plotter systems, depth sounder, SSB and VHF
radios, Satellite telephone and fax, auto pilot,
2 AC generators, water-maker, oxygen and First
Aid kit. Camera charging facilities. Fully
equipped with 2 electric driven compressors below
decks. Adequate diving tanks, weights/belts and
dive lights. 12V, 110V 220V charging
facilities. Specification Length 65 ft (20
metres). Beam 155 (4.7 metres). Main engine
165 hp diesel. Crew Captain,
Divemaster/Instructor, Cook and Deckhand, plus a
Burmese guide.
Nine Pins
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S/y Crescent ITINERARY Trip M7 Typical
Itinerary Day 1 Check in to our Dive Centre in
Phuket (Thailand) by 8.15 am for departure by
9.00 am by air-conditioned mini-bus, arriving in
Ranong (Thai/Burma border) by 2.00 pm, stopping
en route for lunch. Check out at Immigration
(Ranong) then cross the Pakchan river (the
border) by longtail boat to Kawthoung. Board the
yacht plus sightseeing and shopping in this
interesting border town. S/y Crescent will depart
Kawthoung by 600 pm for the Mergui
Archipelago. Day 2 Western Rocky IsletThree
great dives here. Highlights of the dive site
being a big cave filled with fifty or more
lobsters and thousands of Glassfish. Good chance
to see Manta-rays and Whale-sharks as well as the
resident Grey Reef, Black Tip and White Tip
sharks at this open ocean dive site. Day 3
Stewart Island, Cavern Island and High RockThree
dives, plus optional night dive. Great macro life
makes these sites a must see on any divers
checklist. Commonly seen are Sea Horses, Ornate
Ghost-Pipe fish, Frog Fish, Stonefish, Turtles,
Rays, sea snakes, Cuttle fish and much more.
Guaranteed to give even the most experienced of
divers a thrill! Day 4 Black Rock. This dive
site consistently gives some of the best diving
to be found anywhere in the Andaman Sea. A true
oceanic dive site, with no other land in site.
Big pelagics are virtually guaranteed.
Manta-rays, Whale-sharks, plus lots of other
different types of sharks and rays can all be
seen here. On top of this, you will see big
schools of Jacks and Tuna. If this isnt enough
the macro life is also first-class but expect to
spend your time looking away from the reef at the
bigger stuff out in the blue. Day 5 Torres
Islands Devil RockLooking for Pelagics? Devil
Rock will blow you away! Expect to see large
schools of Mobula Rays (small Manta-rays).
Virtually guaranteed and quite often in schools
of one hundred and more. Bull-sharks are a common
sighting at Torres Islands. Day 6 Early morning
travel south back to Black Rock - three dives
again. A night dive is available as additional
dive. Day 7 In Through the out door'Considered
by virtually all of our guests to be the best
dive of the trip. The highlight of this dive site
is the big swim-through, which is home to more
than ten resident Grey Reef sharks. The majority
of the dive is spent being buzzed by these
magnificent creatures. Inside the cave also lives
a family of Nurse sharks, one of which is about
four meters long. A very healthy coral reef,
inhabited by a profusion of fish life is another
bonus. Sea Horses are very common here. At the
end of the afternoon we sail back to
Kawthoung. Day 8 Early morning departure from
Kawthoung and travel back to Phuket in our
mini-bus. Arrival time in Phuket is approximately
3.00 pm.
NOTE Alternative route to join this
trip.Guests can fly direct to Ranong from
Bangkok, thus avoiding the mini-bus journey.
Bangkok Airways presently have flights (on
Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday) departing
from Bangkok at 08.20 am, arriving Ranong (Thai
side of Thai/Burma border) at 09.40 am. We can
pick up guests up in Ranong at 2.00 pm.
South East Asia Liveaboards
Co Ltd 225 Rat-U-Thit 200 Year
Road, Patong, Phuket, 83150 Thailand e-mail
info_at_seal-asia.com Tel [phone] 340932
Fax [phone] www.seal-asia.com