Travel Stories
In love with (a bommy called) Suzy
Is it possible to fall in love with a dive site? Christopher Bartlett visits Loloata Island Resort in Papua New Guinea to find out
She’s bright and colourful on surface, but deep and complex the more you get to know her. Her charms are numerous and sometimes mysterious, yet she’s always easy-going and welcoming.
If she sounds like the ideal girl, it’s because she is – almost. Suzy is in fact a bommy and a dive site on the barrier reef outside Bootless Bay, Port Moresby.
I’d heard of Suzy’s charms over dinners in Paris, lunches in London, and coffee in Madrid. The few aficionados of adventure and connoisseurs of coral who’d witnessed her beauty recalled their encounters with misty, wistful eyes. I promised to myself that on my next visit to PNG I would check her out.
Sometimes legends are created from little substance, exaggerations creep in, embellishments are made. To top it off, I would be spending my 40th birthday at Loloata Island Resort. Festive expectations are often raised, anticipation runs high, and then the party goes off with a pfffft rather than a resounding pop. Would Suzy be the same?
My party plans weren’t in synch with the dive plan (although I was more than happy to just be getting back into PNG waters again). A group was in and had requested morning dives at Pumpkin Patch and Dinah’s Delight with a post-prandial potter around Lion Island. Being my first dive in five months, I missed part of Pumpkin Patch readjusting my kit, getting used to my new BCD, tuning back in with the water and my camera. I did see the Pygmy seahorse, the crocodile fish, and an olive sea snake, though with a not inconsiderable current my photos were never going to be keepers.
Dinah’s Delight, named after the wife of PNG diving pioneer Bob Halstead, was true to its name. The gorgonian fan-filled gullies were gorgeous and harboured my first ever sighting of a tasselled wobbegong shark, it’s mottled camouflage not evading the eye of our dive guide, Roy. It was an unexpected birthday treat, and I marvelled at the elaborated fronds protruding from below its bottom lip. Within the mass of tassels are branched nasal barbels and grooves that channel surrounding water to the shark’s mouth. The barbels are perfectly positioned to help these bottom-dwelling sharks detect a variety of bottom-dwelling prey such as crabs, lobsters, cephalopods, echinoderms and fishes. Wobbegongs have even been documented eating bamboo sharks of a length similar to their own. Although believed to be a rare occurrence, with a jaw structure that facilitates dislocation, a large gape, and sharp, rearward-pointing teeth, wobbegongs can grasp a relatively large prey before swallowing it whole.
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After a lobster-tail lunch back at Loloata we departed for nearby Lion Island. The island is the location of a couple of deliberately sunken fishing trawlers that host some interesting fish life, and a shallow sandy slope interspersed with patches of seagrass that hide a host of small and interesting critters. A spinecheek anemonefish posed for a birthday photo, a porcelain crab modelled perfectly for me, a luridly coloured peacock mantis shrimp poked its bright blue eyes out of its tunnel in the sand, and a shrimp bearing eggs that I had never seen before (that turned out to be a Holthuis’ shrimp) hopped around the tentacles of her host anemone. All in all, I didn’t feel like I’d missed anything at all and was most content with the underwater birthday bounty I had received.
The next morning Roy and Raga gave us our daily diving menu: End Bommy, Suzy’s Bommy, and the wreck of the MV New Marine. Three nautical miles out to sea on the outer barrier reef, End Bommy’s abundant life is fed by the tides that bring nutrients around and over it. After mooring on a pin on the main reef, we started finning across 40 metres of blue water. Before I was halfway across, I could make out the wall opposite me. It was certainly well-nourished; with gorgonian fans, pink sea whips, tubastraea and soft coral trees perched on its sides. The tide hadn’t quite started to go out, but there were still plenty of fish. Crinoids, also called feather stars, hung off gorgonians and sea whips with their limbs extended, feeding on plankton in the gentle current. The colours were beautiful.
On the way back I started sorting through the 100-odd images I’d taken, thinking that we were done, Raga led us off on a short diversion. We’d already been down for 60 minutes, so it had to be something good. And it was. The largest congregation of bubble-tip anemones I have ever seen, playing host to over a hundred dusky anemonefish. Incredible.
How was Suzy’s going to beat that? An hour later the outgoing tide was in full flow, pulling nutrients from the inshore waters out to the deep, and pulling in a lot of hungry fish. Big schools of deep-bodied and twin-striped fusiliers plunged down the walls, shimmering in the sunlight. We followed them down about 30 metres looking for pygmy seahorses in the plentiful fans.
In terms of colour, Suzy’s matched End Bommy pink for pink, whip for whip, feather star for feather star and fan for fan. There was no luck on the pygmy front, but there was so much else to take in I was glad not to be distracted from it. Raga pointed out longnose hawkfish in the fan where he sometimes found seahorses. It looked quite chuffed to me, like it’d just had a nice snack. Nearby a Harlequin sweetlips was enjoying the attentions of a cleaner wrasse.
I found it hard to pick a wide-angle shot to photograph. There were a plethora of possibilities and the best way to get a cracking image is to pick one and take it many times, varying the angle slightly, trying different settings, and seeing if a colourful fish might swim into the frame. I was a fat kid in a cake shop trying to fill my boots. At 30 metres my time at the photographic buffet was soon gone though, and I moved up the wall, conscious that I needed to save some nitrogen credit for the top of the bommy, 13 metres below the surface. Above me the dark silhouettes of hundreds of sweetlips swirled, looking for their lunch, and a large emperor darted into a pack of fusiliers. A few choice expletives of wonder passed through my mind as I marvelled.
My reverie was broken by Roy banging on his tank above me. Up at 15 metres, merrily sitting on a small shelf on the bommy, was one of a photographer’s most sought-after subjects, and a Loloata special: the lacy scorpionfish (aka Merlet’s scorpionfish, Rhinopias aphanes). Covered with skin tags that mimic the algae or soft coral and crinoids of its immediate surroundings, its colouring is a maze-like camo pattern with white spots under each eye. This decoy eye enables the predator to watch its prey without detection, lying wait, ready to spring its ambush. The first few spines of the lateral fins have evolved into a sort of articulating toe with which they hook into the substrate and pull themselves along. By flopping about the bottom, other fish will discount the movements as flotsam or a wounded fish and come in close to investigate. The two white decoy spots below the eyes are distracting enough to mislead the prey. And as the unsuspecting fish approaches to investigate, the Rhinopias carefully watches, gauges the distance, and then all at once, drops its jaws and inhales the fish so quickly it actually pulls in a mass of water, creating a strong vacuum, making it impossible for the intended prey to escape.
The Rhinopias safely captured on my SD card, I glanced at my dive computer. An ominious “1” stared back at me. Time to go shallower. I passed the throng of lined sweetlips and hovered six metres above the top of the bommy, frustrated at not being able to get close enough to snap the fish, but enchanted by the action all around. Round the other side of the bommy a large school of silvery batfish swept back and forth, also looking for a feed. The place was buzzing. Loloata’s dive site description for Suzy’s says “superlatives cannot describe this dive site”. I concurred and wanted to go back.
I would have to wait, however, as Roy and Raga had more sites to show me. The MV New Marine is a fishing trawler sunk as an artificial reef close to the resort that has swarms of juvenile barracuda patrolling around it and lionfish hanging around the winch gear. It makes for an easy afternoon dive, as does the wreck of a Boston A-20 Havoc that crashed during the Second World War, and the great muck diving site in front of Lion Island.
The signature wreck dive though has to be the MV Pacific Gas. A 65-metre long gas tanker than was sunk in 1986, her bow sits at 15 metres deep, the top of the bridge is at 25 metres, and the rudder sits on the sandy bottom down at 44 metres. Descending down the mooring line to the bow, the bridge and cabin section look massive with a diver to provide some perspective. The mast and bow have some great corals, including a small fan hosting ornate ghost pipefish; there are resident lionfish and leaffish, and barracuda are common visitors.
My pygmy seahorse photography fix had yet to be sated, so a dive at Quayle’s reef was planned during which I spent my time with two fish. A Barbigant’s pygmy seahorse and a rockmover wrasse; both difficult species to record. The latter moves around back and forth in an apparently haphazard manner as if washed by the current, and the pygmy seahorse presents a challenge due to the fact that it is both rare and tiny. At up to 25 mm tall, the knobbly, slightly pot-bellied Barbigant is the daddy of the pygmy seahorses, but the individual at Quayle’s was more like 15 mm, shy, and probably a bit ticked off by the not so hot buoyancy control of the two divers who went before me. Still, with no-one else left in the queue, I could take my time and wait for the angle I wanted, a front-on view to show the mouth. I ended up watching this fascinating creature for 20 minutes, kneeling in the sand.
Pygmy seahorses are the only fish where the male become truly pregnant, nurturing the eggs in a brood pouch for at least 10 days and the female stays with her man for the duration of gestation. Males can even get stretch marks and although not mates for life, a happy couple can re-mate within 30 minutes of the male giving birth to their young.
Having seen one of the smallest fish in the ocean, Raga thought I needed something bigger. Down on Big Drop, we paid a visit to a big Pacific goliath grouper (Epinephelus quinquefasciatus). It reaches a length of 2.5 m and can weigh as much as 360 kg and to get this big it feeds on crustaceans, other fish, octopuses and young sea turtles. Definitive study into their reproductive behaviour has yet to be conducted but it is believed that like rest of the grouper family they are protogynous hermaphrodites, where all juveniles are female, the largest female in a territory become male when the resident male dies. Being this big, the fish wasn’t fazed by our presence and sat on the bottom as we pulled up alongside. Comparing it to Raga just behind it, our fella was around two metres long, yet another very impressive find.
On the last day we returned to Suzy. I mean Suzy’s Bommy. I no longer think or her / it as a large lump of rock covered in coral. All the fish were still there, with a couple of stonefish to boot, and the corals were just as captivating. I have always been a diver who avoided “going into deco” (building up a level of nitrogen in the body that makes a safety stop compulsory), and had managed to be a good boy for over 1500 dives around the world. Suzy bewitched me and took my deco cherry. I did not want to leave her. In my mind the bommy has taken on her own persona and aura, she is an underwater goddess of marine diversity and health. Sometimes I dream about her and I get a funny feeling in my chest. I’m in love with a bommy called Suzy.
Papua New Guinea travel: PNG is three hour’s flight time north of Australia, six hours from Singapore, and has weekly and twice weekly direct flights from a range of destinations like Manila, Cebu, Bali, Sydney, Cairns, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Within PNG, the best way (and often only) way to get around is by air either with Air Niugini or Airlines of PNG. Best of PNG put together tailor-made dive trips that can also take in the best Sing-Sings (cultural festivals) on the PNG calendar, trekking up Mt Wilhelm or the Kokoda Trail, and Sepik River expeditions. www.bestofpng.com
Exciting news is on the horizon at the beloved dive resorts, Magic Resorts Philippines!
On January 2nd 2005, the journey of Magic Resorts began, when Magic Island opened its doors as one of the first dedicated dive resorts in Moalboal, Cebu. Now, as we look forward to 2025, a significant milestone is on the horizon: Magic Island’s 20th anniversary!
In preparation for this momentous occasion, the resort has recently upgraded their facilities, including renovated bathrooms, ensuring a fresh and modern experience for their guests. The stage is set for a fantastic celebration!
To cherish and celebrate two decades of incredible diving experiences, Magic Resorts will be offering a special 20% anniversary discount to all guests celebrating with them at either Magic Island or its larger sister resort, Magic Oceans in Anda, Bohol, throughout the entire year of 2025!*
NOT CONVINCED YET?
To kick off the anniversary celebration, here are 20 reasons to book your holiday at Magic Island in 2025!
1) 20-year anniversary!
Of course the anniversary is the perfect occasion to stay at Magic Island and the anniversary special offers you to enjoy a stay with 20% discount! Whether you’re a seasoned diver, new to scuba, a past guest, or a new to Magic’s concept, this is an excellent opportunity to experience the magic of Magic Island Dive Resort.
2) Amazing marine life
Moalboal has been a top dive destination in the Philippines for decades, and for a good reason. This laid-back town at the Westcoast of Cebu offers unforgettable experiences for divers and non-divers alike. Located in the Coral Triangle, Moalboal boasts hundreds of coral species and unique critters, but also features unique sights that make it a standout dive destination not just in the Philippines, but globally!
3) Enjoy newly renovated bathrooms first-hand!
In preparation for the 20-year anniversary, Magic Island renovated all bathrooms of the bungalows last August 2024! The new, spacious and modernized bathrooms offer the best comfort during your stay. As a visitor in 2025, you’ll be among the first to enjoy these upgraded amenities with a perfect view.
4) Dive with Whale Sharks the whole year around
Magic Island offers the possibility to dive with Whale Sharks throughout the entire year!
Unlike many other accommodations that only offer snorkeling with the Whale Sharks, Magic Island is accredited to dive with them with their own dive masters, tanks and crew.
5) Easily accessible house reef
Magic Island’s house reef is open 24/7 and easily accessible within only a few steps from the dive center. You are welcome to make an unguided house reef dive any time of day with your buddy. The house reef starts with a sloping area where you can find the resident sea horse and blue ringed octopus among other life, whereafter you’ll reach the amazing wall where you’ll find turtles, nudibranchs and much more!
6) Native-style bungalows with Western features
The modernized bathrooms are a great Western feature in the native looking style bungalows. While the bungalows have their Filipino native style look, with Nipa rooftops, bamboo balconies and panels of Amakan (woven split-bamboo), they have Western amenities such as air conditioning and a minibar.
7) Dive the Sardine Ball the whole year around
One of the reasons why Moalboal became famous for divers in the first place: you can dive the Sardine Run the whole year around! It’s not a seasonal sighting like other places and therefore a very special phenomenon (even for marine biologists). You can dive with over a million sardines while staying at Magic Island every day of the year!
8) Unparalleled service
The excellent staff of Magic Island ensures you have the best time possible. The team members have been part of the Magic journey for many years – some even from day one! The outstanding Philippine hospitality combined with their experience are the perfect ingredients for exceptional service. They’ll remember your name and do whatever they can to make you feel at home from day one.
9) Fully equipped dive center on site
Magic Island Dive Resort has its own fully equipped PADI dive center right on site. The dive center is equipped with 3 compressors (providing nitrox as well), 3 Bangka boats, full sets of rental gear, aluminium tanks with Int. & DIN connection, and an in-house instructor to name a few. Walk down to the dive center in less than a minute after your meal in the restaurant and get ready for diving!
10) Mating Mandarin fish on the house reef every day!
The real signature dive at Magic Island is without a doubt the Mandarin dive. Just a short swim from the dive center leads you to an underwater spectacle that’s nothing short of magical. Every day during sunset, the Mandarin fish emerge from their coral hideaways for their mating ritual. These colourful and beautifully patterned fish are a species of the Dragonet that are rarely seen outside their coral homes except during this special time. A great sighting just in Magic Islands’ backyard and a great challenge for photographers!
11) Beyond regular night dives
In addition to standard night dives, Magic Island elevates the experience with unique offerings like Fluoro dives and bonfire dives, providing a completely different dimension. If conditions permit, you can also embark on black water dives, where you’ll encounter the mysterious and seldom-seen creatures that emerge during night time.
12) Go down with a local expert!
The dive team of Magic Island make your underwater adventures hassle-free and fun.
You don’t have to carry your tanks or set up your gear, they will take care of that for you. The team of trained PADI Dive masters is local and know the area better than anyone. With their experience, incredible eye for detail and sense of humour, you will have the best dive experience!
13) More than 30 dive sites in less than a 25-minute boat ride
On one of the traditionally Bangka boats, Magic Island takes you out diving around the whole peninsula of Moalboal. 30 different dive sites are waiting for you to explore, all within only a 25-minute. Moalboal’s highlight, Pescador Island, is only 10 minutes away!
14) Freshly prepared meals in family-dinner style
The dining area at Magic Island fosters a sense of community with interconnected tables that encourage socializing. Enjoy a diverse selection of freshly prepared local and Western dishes while watching the chefs at work in the open kitchen. Dietary restrictions? Just let them know, and they’ll accommodate your needs with care.
15) Wet adventures above the surface!
Aside from diving, Magic Island offers great daytrips to explore the culture and nature of Cebu Island. One of the absolute highlights is a trip to the Kawasan Waterfalls, where you can choose between a relaxing visit to enjoy the fresh water and stunning views, or an adventurous canyoneering experience with hiking, climbing, jumping, gliding, and swimming.
16) Experience Moalboal in peace
While Moalboal is a popular destination, Magic Island provides a serene escape from the hustle and bustle. Tucked away from busy areas, the resort creates a tranquil oasis where you can relax while still being close to Moalboal’s vibrant life.
17) Suitable for each kind of diver
With just 10 bungalows, Magic Island offers a cozy and intimate setting for all types of travelers — whether you’re in a group, a couple, or traveling solo. The rich marine life and accessible diving conditions make it an ideal destination for divers of all experience levels.
18) Unique signature drinks!
The homely bar at Magic Island offers a range of beverages to enjoy while taking in breathtaking ocean views. Don’t miss the signature drinks made with Ube Cream, a local liqueur that won the World’s Best Cream Liqueur title at the 2022 World Liqueur Awards. Experience the true Filipino fiesta spirit with this exceptional drink.
19) Combine with Magic Oceans
You can extend your wonderful stay at Magic Island elsewhere! Magic Islands newer and bigger sister Magic Oceans in Anda, Bohol opened its doors in 2015, offering you the possibility to get the maximum out of your magical dive trip by combining the two locations. The same ambience, quality of serviced and most importantly: an amazing diving experience!
20) Just because you’ll have a great time!
The reasons to visit Magic Island in 2025 are endless, but the most important one is that you’re guaranteed to have a fantastic time. With exceptional service, friendly and experienced staff, an ideal location, and outstanding diving, Magic Island promises an unforgettable experience.
CONTACT MAGIC RESORTS FOR YOUR QUOTE ON AN UNPARALLELED DIVING HOLIDAY!
Email: reservations@magicresorts.online
Website: www.magicresorts.online
Facebook: www.facebook.com/magicisland.diveresort
Instagram: www.instagram.com/magic_island_dive_resort
Diving in Gibraltar is an experience that truly sets itself apart. Situated at the confluence of the Atlantic and Mediterranean, it offers an underwater world rich in both marine life and history. Whether you’re a complete novice or a seasoned diver, Gibraltar is ready to take you on an unforgettable journey beneath the waves.
One of the most remarkable aspects of diving in Gibraltar is the artificial reef project. Over the years, several ships have been deliberately sunk to create vibrant underwater habitats. Among the most popular sites are the Spanish Barges, 482M, and Batty’s Barge, all located in the local favourite, Camp Bay. The Spanish Barges are a series of four wrecks, two of which were sunk as part of Gibraltar’s artificial reef programme in the 1980s. They rest at varying depths, ranging from 7 to 22 metres, making them accessible for divers of all skill levels. These wrecks, now teeming with marine life such as octopuses, conger eels, and nudibranchs, offer something for every diver, whether they enjoy swimming through wreckage or observing how marine species have transformed these vessels into thriving ecosystems.
For those more interested in history, Gibraltar’s waters host incredible wrecks like the SS Rosslyn and SS Excellent. The SS Rosslyn, a Cardiff-built steamer, sank in 1916 after dragging its anchor in a storm. Now lying at a depth of 23 metres, this 350-foot wreck attracts advanced divers eager to explore its remnants. Newer wrecks, like the Seahawk, sunk in 2002, and the Sun Swale, sunk in 2015, are part of Gibraltar’s ongoing reef expansion. These more recent additions are rapidly becoming important habitats, drawing species such as cuttlefish, spider crabs, and lobsters. Each of these wrecks offers divers the chance to experience a fusion of history and nature, with the wrecks evolving into vibrant marine environments over time.
Another must-see is the Seven Sisters Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), known for its rich biodiversity and contribution to the protection of marine species. This area is located close to The Inkwells, where divers can still find remnants of 18th- and 19th-century artifacts, including ceramic pipes, gin bottles, marble fragments, and cod bottles, lending a treasure-hunting aspect to each dive. Exploring this site is like taking a step back in time while being surrounded by a thriving underwater ecosystem.
The diving conditions in Gibraltar are just as diverse as the marine life it hosts. British Gibraltar Territorial Waters is home to a wide array of species, far more life than many other areas in the Mediterranean. This impressive biodiversity is largely due to the nutrient-rich waters that flow where the Atlantic and Mediterranean meet. Divers frequently encounter octopuses—Gibraltar’s charismatic species—along with conger eels, moray eels, thornback rays, and spider crabs. Lucky divers, especially during certain times of the year, might even spot Bluefin Atlantic Tuna swimming through the bay while feeding, as well as many other pelagic species. The sheer abundance of fish and the variety of species make each dive an exciting and unique experience, offering something new with every descent.
Gibraltar boasts its accessibility to diving and a wealth of different dive sites depending on your diving abilities, qualifications and experience. The South and East side dive sites are fantastic boat dives ranging in depths from 14m to 35m + where you can dive on rocky biogenic reefs with a vast array of marine life.
You will need a permit to dive which is easily issued by the Department of the Environment or you can dive with licenced dive operators who will cover this for you. There are also very active local BSAC dive clubs you may wish to get in touch with.
Gibraltar offers a full range of diving experiences for everyone, from first-timers to seasoned veterans. Shore diving is conducted six days a week, and on Sundays, you may venture out on a boat to explore some of the more distant wrecks, such as SS Rosslyn and Sun Swale. What makes diving in Gibraltar so accessible is that all our dive sites are within a 15-minute drive/boat ride, making it easy to fit multiple dives into a single day. Whether you’re taking your first steps into the underwater world with a try dive or you’re an advanced diver looking to explore wrecks and caves, we ensure that each dive is tailored to suit your needs and experience level.
Operations start early, and by 8:45 AM, dive centre teams are already busy preparing for the day’s dives ensuring everything is in place for divers. A typical dive day begins with a briefing that covers the dive plan, safety procedures, and site management, ensuring that everyone is comfortable and prepared for the adventure ahead. Whether it’s exploring historic wrecks or spotting charismatic marine life, each dive offers something special. After the first dive, you surface, switch tanks, and enjoy a surface interval sharing stories of what has been seen before briefing up for a second dip!
In addition to providing unforgettable diving experiences, Gibraltar is deeply committed to marine conservation and scientific research working closely with the Department of the Environment and the University of Gibraltar. Under the water we facilitate the university’s research on projects including coral health assessments and the transplantation of coral species such as Astroides calycularis and various gorgonians. These efforts are critical in preserving Gibraltar’s underwater ecosystems and ensuring that future generations of divers can enjoy its incredible biodiversity. These conservation initiatives are ongoing, and there is regular collaboration with students and researchers on various dive-related projects as they begin the Thesis modules of their degrees.
Dive Charters, Gibraltar’s predominant dive centre is also involved in some octopus research, with a project aimed at increasing the octopus population in Gibraltar’s waters. Working with the University of Gibraltar and the Department of the Environment, they have installed artisanal dens designed to encourage octopus to breed and thrive in the area. These dens have proven highly successful, and divers often encounter octopuses up close in their natural habitat. Observing these intelligent, curious creatures in action is always a highlight of our dives, and their growing population is a testament to the ongoing conservation work.
Diving in Gibraltar offers an unparalleled blend of history, marine life, and conservation. Whether you’re captivated by centuries-old shipwrecks or amazed by the diversity of species that call these waters home, Gibraltar provides a diving experience like no other and we are proud to share this incredible underwater world with divers from all over the globe. Our dedication to safety, fun, and environmental responsibility ensures that each dive leaves a lasting impression.
From beginners to experienced divers, we’ve got something for everyone. With all dive sites just a short ride away the wonders of Gibraltar are waiting for you!
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