Earth is beautiful above and below the water. Luckily, diving technology has improved dramatically in recent decades and today we can dive and snorkel without missing any part of the beautiful submarine world!
There are many great dive sites and many of them are in Asia. Sumatra, for example, has several. West Sumatra is part of Indonesia and the Sunda Islands. Within the group there is a small volcanic island called Weh or also known as Pulau Weh. The volcano is still active and one can reach the island in two hours by ferry from Banda Aceh. It was precisely the volcanic activity that separated this little island from Sumatra in the Pleistocene.
The Weh island is in the Andaman Sea and its capital is Sabang. It is famous for its rich ecosystem and there is an area of 60 square meters on land and in the sea around the island that have been declared as protected areas. Coral reefs are inhabited by a variety and richness of fish and this is where the divers arrive. The coral reef is incredible but what’s even more so is the interesting variety of aquatic life and fish!
The 2004 tsunami affected the area and its ecosystem but soon there was a program to replant the mangrove that was destroyed and life returned. Moreover, in this protected Weh Island has been discovered an area that has a rare kind of shark that’s only registered as many as 21 or 23 specimens.
People arriving for diving usually shop around Gapang Beach which is also popular with backpackers, or beach Anoi Itam which features black sand. The white sandy beach is Iboih.
Photos: Ludovic, Paul Boscher, Antoine Vittecoq, Gorka Nelson Artano, Lee Harrison.
