We signed up for a 12 day diving tour around Bali with Blue Season Bali. All I can say is they set the bar very high with our first accommodation at The Menjangan. It is an eco jungle resort that is way above the normal pay scale we would sign up for. But what a lovely treat.
A beautiful welcome as we were shown into our room.Fresh Balinese coffee over the water while choosing from an exceptional menu.
The service and facilities were fantastic. The only thing better than the resorts customer service and food was the quality of the dive staff at Blue Season Bali. We have only met the staff at this location so far, but once again they have set the bar very high. Our dive master was Komang, a skilled and understanding leader. He allowed us our own individual quirks as long as we stayed within the guidelines he set out. It has been a long time since I felt as relaxed and comfortable while diving. The other wonderful surprise was Jenny, the manager and instructor at this location. Her professionalism and efficiency was a pleasure to experience. You may be picking up that I really enjoyed our time here. You would be correct.
The dive shop at The Menjangan. Good people doing an exceptional job in a rather isolated location. This company is fortunate to have Jenny and Komang on their team.Part of the mangroves along the shore here. Because this is a National Park the shoreline is mostly still mangroves, which are an essential part of maintaining the ecosystem here. This was part of the view from the restaurant.
The resort is located on the island of Bali however the diving takes place around the island of Menjangan which is a short boat ride away. Everything is situated in the West Bali National Park.
This small alcove and beach was where we stopped for lunch on one of our days of diving. It was a wonderful view to take in while eating and relaxing.There are several companies that do their surface interval and lunch at this location. The Park Rangers were on hand to make sure everyone had the appropriate park passes. I am guessing they have bigger problems than park passes to attend to at times.
The boats we dove from were an interesting change of pace as well. From what we understand when the government declared this area a National Park it effectively put a lot of fisherman out of work. Part of the solution was that tour operators are not allowed to bring in their own boats. Everyone is supposed to use the fisherman’s boats for tours, snorkelling, and diving. It makes for smaller groups which is nice, but it can get busy when the dive gear is moving when the water gets rough. All part of the adventure and a reasonable partial solution for the fishermen I am sure.
This Barking Deer (Muntjac) was cautiously checking us out as we ate.Not hard to figure out why this dive site is called Anchor Wreak. The anchor lays in about 5 metres of water, then the bottom slopes gently downward with plenty of coral and fish to investigate.We found this Indonesian flag attached to a buoy line.
We passed by this Hindu temple on Menjangan Island while returning from one of our dives. We saw several boats with worshippers being dropped off at the island to attend the temple.As we were in the Park in September we were able to see the effects of the tail end of the dry season. Apparently this area is a jungle most of the year, but after several months of the dry season it takes some imagination to see a jungle here.For our final dinner at The Menjangan we were treated to a lovely sunset and a small herd of Barking Deer. I am not sure what they were foraging for in the salt water but they stayed out there nearly an hour.A final shot from the restaurant as the day slipped away. If you ever come to Bali, take the time to visit the West Bali National Park. It is a long (4 hours) drive, but worth the trip.
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