In Search of Mantas: Nusa Penida

One of the great things about having Des here is that he pushes the pace on certain issues. I was keen to go to Nusa Penida but feeling so content at Amed I might not have done it. However, Des wanted to pack as much as possible in his short 10-days which means Nusa Penida was a must.

We set off from Amed in a bright yellow inside and outside taxi which made me feel like I was in a yellow submarine. After so much time underwater I’ve got that wavy feeling even when I’m on land.

We stopped for a Lewak coffee - amazingly smooth but eye-wateringly expensive. I guess most people have seen ‘The Bucket List’ and therefore know what lewak coffee is. For those who don’t, its made from the beans left behind by lewaks - wild mongoose. The other coffee flavors and tea varieties included in the taster offered were amazing. I loved the avocado coffee which sounds foul but is surprisingly good.

We sat on deck of the fast boat to Nusa Penida - the island views are wonderful and away from Bali I started to see that Bali is just one of nearly 10,000 islands in Indonesia. On arrival at the busy port, the word you see and hear more than any other is ‘Manta’. We had booked a double dive for the following day, the first of which was named Manta Point. Our hopes were high.

First impressions of the island were not that great. The one road which circles the island is lined with a scruffy bunch of temples, hostels, warungs (cafes) and dive shops. It’s bustling but very humble and a bit shabby.

Our hotel - a last minute swap by our AirBnB host - was on the north-east side of the island on a cliff top. It wasn’t quite the resort I have a particular horror of - glitzy and all-inclusive - but a little bit like that with a mini golf course and resort-type feel. Our bungalow was lovely, however, and the view across the Bali sea to Lombok was stunning. We hired a scooter and set off exploring. The afternoon weather looked threatening but we set off nonetheless. Diamond Beach had been recommended and so we climbed through the jungle roads. A quick but furious storm forced us to into a tea shop for shelter, but we were on our way shortly once the rain eased up. Diamond Beach is miles from anywhere and charges for entry so we were slightly astounded to see so many people. There are two beaches and access is down very (very) steep and uneven steps - probably 1000 ft below. Diamond Beach is spectacular with white sand and clear blue water with diamond shaped islands just off shore. However, due to dangerous currents, swimming is forbidden. We decided to enjoy the beaches from above and the wonderful views across to Lombok and back to Bali. Just off the shore, I saw large seven dark shapes moving around in the water. It was hard to be sure but they looked like smallish manta rays. Apparently mantas are a common sight there so its highly likely.

We set off on our scooter the next day ready for our diving. The dive shop - DPM - was the other side of the island but only took about 20 minutes to get there. A super professional outfit, everything was done well and efficiently. Before 8am, we were out with our Divemaster, Fiki, on a boat heading towards Manta Point. As well as mantas, we were hoping to see the vast Sun Fish (Mola Molas) which are common around Nusa Penida.

The waves and currents were intense from the minute we back rolled off the boat and our small group of 5 was suddenly among 5 or 6 other similar diving groups. Our guide, Fiki, took us through the rocks to a regular manta cleaning station. The water was murky, but it wasn’t long before the unmistakable shape of a huge manta approached overhead. The stillness in their movement is hard to express and the silky flight could never be described as ‘flapping’. Another moved into position for a clean, and another, and I felt quite overcome with gratitude to share space with such beautiful beings. Vast, gentle and silent, they reminded me of time I’ve spent with elephants and how humbling it feels. Whatever spiritual notions anyone has, its hard not to feel in the presence of a power much greater than ourselves when swimming with manta rays. As my friend Nicole says, Mother Nature and all of her beauties.

A smaller eagle ray swam much closer to us once we’d moved away from the manta cleaning station. It was in much clearer water, and while not the epic scale of a manta, absolutely beautiful with its delicate white spotted back and long tail.

We have seen the whole Instagram culture all over Bali, the obsession with swings (what is that all about), getting the picture over all other considerations, and how quickly the moment is consumed and the next moment demanded. It’s an insatiable and slightly awful thing to witness. Des is a photographer but we don’t do the whole selfie thing which is not about capturing a scene or a feeling but about something else entirely I don’t understand. Unfortunately, the mantas were the same. One couple on our boat took snaps with the manta in the background, oblivious to the impact on the other divers or the mantas themselves. Maybe I’m a bit judgy about this, but it is intrusive at times, and it certainly was on the manta dive. Maybe that’s why I loved seeing the eagle ray so much - no one was desperate to take a selfie with it so we could just enjoy it peacefully gliding by.

Our second dive was much less dramatic but in my opinion much more enjoyable and beautiful. We jumped off the boat in a bay which was protected from the currents and home to a diversity of coral that was spectacular. Coral means fish, of course, and the water was thick with ‘em - all sizes and colors. When you spend as much time in the water as we do, its not about just spotting the big ticket stuff like mantas, but also about seeing behaviours and ecosystems. This dive, just south of the harbor, was like a marine life identification book with every size, shape and color of fish represented. A turtle dug furiously in some broken coral, intent on getting to the creature beneath which the turtle could hear or smell, or sensed in some special turtley way. Using flippers like a dog would use its paws, the turtle got hold of the thing finally and peeled off the coral before swallowing it down in great, satisfied gulps.

One of the divers on our boat said she’d found the dive boring - ‘Nothing to see.’ Amazing, I thought, how differently we all see the same things. It was one of the best dives of my life.