Raja Ampat March 2019 Snorkel trips

Even though I’ve been to Raja Ampat a dozen times my enthusiasm and appreciation for the region just grows stronger with each trip. The beauty and diversity of the coral and marine life is simply staggering.

I ran two back to back trips in Raja Ampat. Those who went on both trips can attest to the fact that each time you jump in the ocean, even at the same snorkel site, it’s a whole new world.  There is no such thing too much Raja Ampat.

The Blue Manta liveaboard was divine. The cabins that rivaled first class hotel rooms. The enormous shaded sundeck outfitted with huge sunbeds to flop on was the perfect place to gather and watch the setting sun.  And the crew pampered and charmed us with their good humor and willingness to help us at every turn.

But of course the star of the show is the marine life and were we ever wowed. In just ONE snorkel we saw Wobbengong sharks, octopus, a seahorse, a flying gunard and cockatoo waspfish. That’s crazy good!

But that’s not all. A first for all of us, at dawn one morning we swam with dolphins who were swimming under fisherman’s platforms called bagans. We were entranced as we watched them frolic and swim around us. We could even hear them vocalize.  Every once in a while they did a freeze frame and just seemed to stop and and look at us over.  I think we all swooned over the eye contact with such beautiful and intelligent creatures.

The list of remarkable sightings continued.  At one site we counted 60 bump head parrot fish.  We were also fortunate to see a walking shark, mantas, a wall of bat fish, barracuda, squid.

I am filled with a huge sense of gratitude for being able to experience the magnificence of the undersea world AND
so grateful to have such enjoyable, interesting, intelligent AND fun traveling companions. My heart is full.
Wendy Simon
March2019