MARSA ALAM, Egypt, April 2004
by Mike H Scott PADI
MSDT 600664
Divers:Paul Cole, Sue Meakin,
Malcolm Cole, Tony Curtis, Sam McCormick, Steve Cain, Graham
Morrison, Mike Scott.
Non-Divers: Sue Cain, Rob and
Helen Cain, Tracy Witts,
Photographers: Paul Cole, Malcolm
Cole, Steve Cain, Mike Scott
The trip got off to a good start with
only minor delays on the M4 and M5. We arrived at LGW in plenty
of time for Tracy to fill her Duty Free bag. Others were seen
indulging in similar activities but we have it on good authority
that Tracy won the prize for cramming the highest value into the
smallest shopping bag!
The flight, with Excel was fine.
Passenger Processing did throw up the odd problem but that's
normal when you fly with all that gear and extra boxes of camera
equipment too. It was all amicably resolved, though some seat
changes at the last minute raised questions during the flight.
Those of us who paid extra for extra legroom found that this had
been recorded. The flight was fine, the catering better than we
might have expected, the cabin crew were better than some I have
met on major scheduled airlines! Note that we had informed the
airline that we were a party of divers and they had increased
our baggage allowance from 20kg to 30kg hold luggage.
We arrived in " the middle of nowhere".
Marsa airport seems to be just a strip in the desert - you are
on the ground before you know it because there are no tell-tale
signs of lights in the vicinity as you approach. We landed at ??
o-clock. WE knew what time it was but for the umpteenth time we
have flown to the Red Sea, the Aircrew did NOT! There is, in the
Summer - a 1 hour difference between BST and Egypt. There is a
2-hour difference between "Zulu" and Egypt. The airport is more
modern than Sharm but works on the same organized chaos theory.
Queue for your visa stamps, queue to get the passport stamped...
Look for your courier. We were in the Hotel at just after 9pm,
and had time to get dinner that evening, in the Italian
Restaurant. As determined in other parts of Egypt, the term
"fast food" is not yet fully understood, but when it arrived it
was OK. This was also the time when the present rate of exchange
registered - LE10.5 = £1. The Egyptian people are
suffering from this and we must do what we can to keep Egypt
free and democratic, and friendly to Europe.
(End of political statement - but do
go there - go soon - spend money!)
Welcome to Pioneer Divers: A good
set-up. with everything to hand. Pleasant classroom in which an
overview of the operation was given, and a brief description of
the main dive sites.
Friday 23rd April - St. George's
Day - Day 1 Dive 1 : The
usual shake-down, with reference to past experience and getting
the buoyancy right. This was a shore dive at Marsa
Shagra, just a few minutes down the road. One thing you must
expect here is travel by truck - but the trucks are more like
open buses - perfectly comfortable for the average journey. The
dive gear is brought along in a trailer behind the truck. The
dive went well, with us behaving as we always do - and getting
told off for not concentrating enough on the instructions of the
guide - Kalled - who mellowed after a while, realizing the level
of experience we have and the self-preservation skills that go
with it. We are so used to be relatively free in the Ocean...
Tour guides have to look to their own protection and not lose
divers. Somebody said something about me not needing a buddy...
can't imagine what he meant!
Day 1 Dive
2: Again into the truck and a longer journey this
time. The visibility on the shore dives was not the best, due to
diving at low tide and recent wind storms. This second dive, at
Marsa Egra, was a relaxed trip also. despite only fair
visibility, there is plenty of life to see in these two, but we
were of course eager to get on to "the real thing".
Saturday 24th April - Day 2 Dives 1 & 2 : Dolphin
House :a pair of dives, one to the East, one to the West of
what is effectively a Lagoon. The inner, roped off area is a
Dolphin rest station. Snorkeling only in there. Diving at the
outer edges is excellent. A mixture of terrains and life. This
was a special trip for which there was a fee to use the boat and
son on. However it was impressive enough for the entire party to
cancel the "day off" and book the boat just for the Seahorse
Crew. We also invited new friends we met, Dan and Holly, from
Slough.
Sunday 25th April -
Day 3 Dive 1 :
Elphinstone :This requires a wake-up call at 04.30, and
at the Dive Centre by 05.15. It is a single dive after a fast
RIB crossing and it brought into immediate contact with a Grey
Reef Shark estimated at between one and two metres. However, as
you can see from the photo he did not come too close - pity! The
dive is very similar to the walls in Ras Muhammed. Plenty to see
and lots of colour. It was of course certain that some people
would get very special dives, and indeed while most of us were
at the Elphinstone Reef, Malcolm and Holly were on a later shore
dive during which they were acquainted with a huge Turtle and a
Manatee (or Dugong or Sea Cow). The Dugong was grazing the
bottom grasses as they came to the shallows at the end of the
dive.
Day 3 Dive 2
: Marsa Shunni :down though a gully and across
a sandy bed with coral heads everywhere. This site can be home
to small Hammerheads, and other pelagics but they were out the
day we called. Nevertheless an interesting area.
Monday 26th April -
Day 4 Dive 1: Sharm Abu
Dabuor :- again a gully (with a guide rope) leads down to a
sandy bed and coral heads. Tremendous range of fish on this
dive. the best shore dive of the week.
Day 4 Dive 2:
Marsa Asalya : which is entered by walking across a coral reef
that has mainly been covered in sand. However there are some
holes in this reef, and they go deep, it is like walking over a
rooftop! Entry to the water is by back "fall" when you get to
the end of the coral. This is a well-populated dive site,
possibly because only a few of the divers go there. Entrance and
exit are not easy!
Tuesday 27th
April - Day 5 Dive
1: Sharm Shunni - not to be confused with
Marsa Shunni. (Marsa means "bay", Sharm means "gap in the
reef".) Generally accepted as the best dive site so far, with
reasonable shore access, a good range of corals, and a wide
variety of fish life. One turtle seen, but too far away and it
did not come to look at us.
Day 5 Dive 3: Night
Dive: Marsa Shagra - interesting enough but a bit crowded. Lion
fish hunting, Parrot Fish sleeping, and Spiny Urchins on the
move. A generally enjoyable night dive.
Sometimes there
are TWO clowns, |
and sometimes there are
THREE clowns! |
Wednesday 28th
April -Day 6 Dives 1 &
2, plus Snorkeling: Dolphin House Special
Trip:An early start, the entire Seahorse expedition party
together for the first time. We were joined by 6 French divers
also. A full boat. The first dive was a drift along the side of
the main reef, without a guide, and thus the ability to wander
off if something interesting was spotted. A few of us did not
get back to the boat due to these other interests - but the RIB
soon picked us up. We then had a light snack, a 45 minute
surface interval, and we were in again. We were advised of a
route that should be good. Some of us followed it, and had the
most colourful and populated dive of the week! One hour at 10
metres in a reef complex that was better than Ras Muhammed.
Others went there own way to almost nothing... When we were all
back on the boat we took a little lunch, then went to see if the
dolphins were home. This is snorkeling only. 20 minutes lying in
wait showed the pod had gone out for the day!
The French divers were from Lille. They
dive the English Channel too. They hope to dive
Cornwall.
Eating Out: With a group of 12
people it is impossible to eat together all the time, but that
works in our favour as we get to hear about all the
possibilities. In all cases the service was good, with the staff
aiming to please in any way they can. Tourists are essential to
Egypt.
The Italian Restaurant was the
first we visited as a full group on the night we arrived. Not
everyone likes Italian but the Pizzas and other dishes were good
to most tastes. Some of us returned there later in the week for
the Garlic Bread, a special Lentil recipe (actually Egyptian,
and very like Tarka Dall), followed by the good old Steak and
Chips - which they were very happy to make for us Brits. It was
at this venue that Tweedle-dum and Tweedle-dee ate a main course
for starter followed by a full main course for main course, plus
chips on the side! They know who they are! I referred earlier to
the exchange rate. The steak meal we enjoyed, described above,
with beer too, cost £7.50, and the steak was good quality.
If pizza and spaghetti are not your thing there is also the Main
Restaurant, where we ate on a few occasions.
The Main Restaurant (MR) is much
more palatial, and runs mainly buffet systems all day. Some
guests were on "all-in" packages, we were on B&B. The Main
Restaurant is good too. Plenty of choices, with chefs on hand to
make bespoke omelettes, and so on. This is £10 per dinner
buffet. Still good value and certainly good variety. Breakfast
is taken in the MR too.
Outside the MR is a Pool-side Bar - our
only advice on this would be - do not eat here if you are on a
tight schedule as the service can be very slow. However the
quality of the food is as the MR. Further on, beyond the
pool-side bar, set on a promontory there is the Fish
Restaurant.
The Fish Restaurant was a
disappointment. Some of this lies with us, of course as most of
us do not frequently eat the type of fish prepared here. We are
so used to meaty fish like the Cod that when confronted with a
rather bony specimen we are unsure how to handle it and there
seems little actual fish to eat. Scraping the last morsel of
fish from a bony subject is not everyone's cup of tea. Those
readers who are experienced in this cuisine would enjoy this
restaurant.
Under the reception area is an excellent
little bar with a Pool table. Beer is cheap and the nuts and
crisps are free! The Pool Table is LE20 per hour.
On our last evening we journeyed
en-masse to a "Beduin Evening" - yeah, right! The apparently
all-Italian cast failed to remind me of anything Arabian. The
Belly-dancer was good, but spent too much time messing about in
the audience, with children in particular. The whirling dancer
was certainly clever, but the "Fire-Show" would have failed to
entertain a drunken end-of-the-pier crowd at any UK seaside
resort. The (mainly) Italian audience thought it all wonderful!
We really must get a grip of European Standards!
Other entertainment, for some of the
Group included (watching) Beach Volleyball, In-water Aerobics,
and the Weight Training Centre - all of which seemed to have a
large proportion of Italian Ladies involved.
Non-Diver Comments: The place is
good for adults needing to chill out. Not so good for children
though the beach facilities are OK. The local shop (yes - just
one) is a LE15 ride away and "interesting". The pool in April is
cold. The heated pool is not heated in April. Small children
might be OK. Teenagers less so, though there is a Disco near the
Italian Restaurant. This resort is really about
unwinding.
General Comments: While the
breeze was blowing there were no flies at all. When it stoped a
few flies appeared. Compared with other places we have visitied
there were effectively no flies. There were no mosquitoes either
as far as we could see.
Gossip: Apart from the appetites
of Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum, we had the usual spate of
banter, including the idea that the non-diving females on the
Dolphin House trip "could always help out in the galley". The
proposer is now fully recovered. There was a great deal of "age
before beauty" but that just gets me the front of the
queue! Certainly there was an element of girl-watching, and some
were indeed very attractive, but as they were either Italian or
French... and they never shut up, that's all it was!
Certain couples seem to have "Do not
disturb" signs on their doors a lot...
Certain children took great delight in
telephone wind-ups...
There was an unofficial competition to
see who could do the longest dives - silly really, as all you
have to do is stay at 5m for as long as the tank would last -
but boys will be boys - and I won! Yes, I did, because the only
longer dive was with the assistance of 20Bar from a Pony bottle.
Paul Cole and I spent 61 minutes around the 8m mark on the
second day at Dolphin House, where we found a reef equal in
beauty to the best of Ras Muhamed. We could spend a week on that
site and still be finding new detail.
That's all we are going to print this
time round... Those who were trembling can relax, now that the
cheques have cleared. Those wanting more dirt can always
persuade me with crisp red ones (those are £50's for those
who rarely see actual money these days).
To see more pictures from this
expedition go to these pages, clicking on certain pictures will
give you a high resolution image - note that this may be slow on
a Dial-up Modem connection:
Steve
Cain
Malcolm
Cole
Paul
Cole
Sam
Mc
Mike
Scott
BACK TO: Dive report archive page
and
finally... a word from the Author
...
and they're going to let me out again soon!
