Diving is the number one reason to visit Tulamben and boy, it will never disappoint you. Tulamben is close to paradise for divers—even for the beginners. This little village in the northeast coast of Bali hides super vibrant marine life and rich biodiversity under its waves. In its shores, you can see the majestic, sacred volcano Mount Agung looming, guarding the area. Spending some of your Bali holiday for diving in Tulamben will reveal you to new things you probably never experience before.
Diving in Tulamben Brings You the Shallowest Wreck Ever
Do you know the Tulamben has one of the shallowest ship wreck in the world? Here lies the body of USAT Liberty, and American war ship which served the US back in the World War II. It was torpedoed by the Japanese, left abandoned on Tulamben’s beach, and get pushed to the sea by mega earthquake in 1963 when the Mount Agung erupted. Now, the ship wreck lies in a descending slope. The shallowest part rest in three meters below the surface, while the deepest is in 20 meters below. This ship wreck is very popular among divers and is a major diving spot for every beginner. It’s not everyday you can see a beautiful, almost fully intact wreck with blooming corals in such easy site!
Diving Wouldn’t be Complete without Jukung Boat
Almost no dive trip in Tulamben is complete without hopping on a jukung boat. When you come to Tulamben, you will see that the beach is lined up with traditional canoes with a huge single sail of every colour. Fisherman uses jukung boat to catch fishes, but now lots of them are taking divers to dive sites. It’s practically good to reach nearby dive sites instead of spending too much on speed boat, which is more appropriate if you aim for further or more remote sites.
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Dives Got Very Interesting with Black Sand Ocean Floor
One thing that set Tulamben and Amed apart from other dive sites in Bali is the sand. Instead of Bali’s signature white, golden sand, these beaches are blessed with pitch black volcanic sands from the Mount Agung. Diving in Tulamben gives a certain different vibe as the black sands provides a remarkable and unusual contrast to the vibrant marine life on the ocean floor. It gets even interesting if you specialize on muck/ macro diving. The colourful macro animals stand out more when contrasted to the black sands.
More Sunken Things You Can Have on Tulamben Diving
Do you know that the USAT Liberty is not the only awesome sunken object you can see while diving in Tulamben? Another shipwreck lies in other part of Tulamben; the Boga, and so it’s called as the Boga shipwreck. It’s another World War II cargo ship that got torpedoed by the Japanese as well. Today, the Boga shipwreck is covered with various algae and corals, and is home to the coral trouts, angelfish, peacock grouper, as well as pelagic like barracuda.
Tulamben also hides another less-famous site which is not less interesting; the Suci site which means holy in Indonesian. This is where dozens of Buddha and other Gods and Goddesses statues were sunk to create artificial reefs. It works very well and now this place is brimming with fishes, cleaners, and sea critters. Diving in this place feels like submerging in a holy aquarium!
