Blogs from Ko Similan Marine NP, South-West Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 2

When god made earth he started with the Similan Islands Very early start this morning , and for us who have been sleeping in until about midday this was really early. We were picked up at 7.30am and driven onto the main land to catch the speed boat to the islands about 2 hours away. So once we arrived and still half asleep it was time to collect our snorkelling gear and board the speed boat. The Similan Islands, located about 50 Kilometres West of Khao Lak, are composed of nine granite islands washed by a clear blue tropical ocean and blessed with some of the world’s finest beaches. Similan is a Yawi or Malay word, which means nine or a group of nine islands. In 1982, this 128 square kilometres area was declared a ... read more

I think we fell into the same trap as everybody else when Paul first asked us if we wanted to make a dive on Boonsung Wreck, this being the first time we had heard of it. While the Similans and other surrounding sites are constantly featured in write ups from magazines and reef guides, Boonsung has remained something of a mystery, except from the local guides who work here and know better. Located just a few kilometers offshore it’s simply a case of loading up the longtail, picking up some rice and curry for lunch and then heading out for the twenty minute ride to the site. Not ones for ‘mass organisation’ before diving trips Sarah and I were quickly sold and as the engine of the longtail fired up we started to get the feeling ... read more

~Une journée aux Similan~ Day 22 Zoé la tortue m'attendait, à peine les palmes chaussées et hop elle était là, pas farouche, tranquillou, comme si je n'étais pas là. Un décor incroyable mais malheureusement beaucoup de monde, nous qui pensions être seuls ou presque. Une sieste à l'ombre pour certains. Un petit coucou aux mérous, murènes et autres poissons clowns pour les autres. Et un retour à pleine vitesse vers le continent, debout sur le pont cheveux aux vents, dernier contact avec la mer d'Andaman et le sud de la thailande avant le retour à Bangkok et la France.... read more

Last week, the whole family, Bea, Sean, Tracy & myself returned to Similan. Bea snorkeled while the three of us dove. Like the trip I did a couple of weeks prior, we had 3 dives on the first day with a 4th dive at night. Then the next day we dove 2 more times before returning to Phuket. We began our trip at the Yacht Marina on the northeast corner of Phuket. From there the dive boat enters the Andaman Sea through the channel running beneath the Sarasin Bridge. The ride to Andaman was about 2 hours. Pearl Andaman's boat is well equipped for this trip and provides a fast and comfortable way to reach Similan. Bea and I spent the night in the small bungalows with a fan while Tracy and Sean stayed in ... read more

We finally joined Khaolak Scuba Adventures 24th trip on 3rd March, looking forward to 4 days and 3 nights aboard the Manta Queen II and hopefully 14 amazing dives (11 day and 3 night dives). The journey took us north toward the Similan Islands, renowned for providing some of the best diving in the world and a few other famous spots, one in particular called Kho Bon where Manta Ray’s are almost always found feeding due to currents found there. I shan’t bore you with the details of the air-conditioned double cabin, sun deck, clear water, good company and fantastic food (particularly from our viewpoint of being used to the cheapest roadside food we could find), but for you fish heads out there, here’s a few highlights of the wildlife that we saw. Triton trigger ... read more