Apo Reef, Philippine Islands
March 12, 2020
The water was glass as we motored toward the lighthouse marking the Apo Reef ranger station. We had sailed (well, motored) throughout the night under the light of a nearly full moon. Our goal - to arrive in the morning so we could fit in a full day of diving. Apo Reef is 90 miles southwest of Puerto Galera. It is designated as a national park, so first thing we had to do was pop into the ranger’s station and pay the fees (US$60 per diver) for a 48-hour permit. There was only one place that we were allowed to anchor, which was quite a distance from where we paid the fees, so instead of anchoring and making the long trek, I pulled Field Trip right up to the reef wall near the station, stayed on board, and manned the ship while everyone else hopped in the dinghy and went in to check us all in. |
| Motoring around near ranger station |
Thirty minutes later, they returned with the details. Turns out, there are members of the Philippine Army stationed on the island with the rangers. Michael reported that they carried guns similar to the assault rifles and pistols he'd seen on Fortnite. It was said they were here for protection. They even made sure to tell us to monitor channel 07 on the VHF and call them if we needed any assistance. What/who are they protecting? And from what or whom? Immediately, my mind leaped to the pirating incidences reported in the Sulu Sea. Sure, we were specifically avoiding the trouble area, but there certainly aren’t clearly defined walls keeping them in one place. Mark, always the voice of reason in response to my ‘awful-izing’, figured they were stationed there to protect the waters from illegal fishing vessels. Right, that must be it. Either way, we were glad they were here and so willing to help if need be. With a forced nonchalance, I turned the dial on the VHF to 07 as we motored to the designated anchorage.
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| Lessons in navigation |
Right away, Mark got busy readying all the dive kits, and I dug into our dive gear to gather all the dive suits and accessories we’d need. So far in Philippines, the water has been a frigid 24-25ºC. Hoods had become a necessary part of our dive uniforms. Michael even wore a shorty over his full length dive suit and still had blue lips when we surfaced!
The water here, though, was surprisingly warm! 29-30ºC! Before descending, the kids flailed around on the surface, so excited for the comfortable temperature. Mark untied the dinghy from the dive mooring, tied the long floating dive line to the dinghy line, and we slowly descended into the clear waters of Apo Reef for the first time.
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| Descending into the deep - Field Trip above, reef beside |
Surgeon, unicorn, and sargeant fish circled us as we swam against a slight current toward the steep reef wall. The water was crystal clear, allowing us to see way out into the blue. The reef rose up to 10 meters then suddenly, dropped into oblivion. Swimming to the edge felt like looking over a cliff into pure nothingness. Michael swam right out into the deep and hovered there, suspended against the backdrop of cerulean. Schools of fusiliers zipped past, then spotted juvenile snappers ambled by followed by crowds of curious pyramid butterflyfish. The coral was not in great shape, but the ample variety of fish species made up for it.
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| Sea of fish in clear waters of Apo Reef |
Eventually, we all kicked out into the blue and descended deeper to explore the reef wall. A large hawksbill turtle literally walked along the coral ledges, nibbling coral and sponges here and there. He wasn’t at all timid or bothered by us being there, so we hovered nearby and watched him for a while. Michael spotted a tiny nudibranch perched atop a piece of hard coral, and Elizabeth snapped a few photos to add to her ever-growing collection. After about twenty minutes at twenty meters, we began our slow ascent back up to the top of the reef where we explored canyons and crevices. At one point, we happened upon two white-tipped reef sharks resting on a sandy canyon floor. Both were probably 8 feet long and only swam slowly away when Mark approached them with his gopro to get a closer shot.
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| Family meeting on the reef |
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| Elizabeth slowly ascending to the glassy surface |
Speaking of strange behaviors, the kids were on a bubble kick during this dive. Each time I’d look over at them, they’d be watching each other attempt bubble rings and compete to see whose was the biggest. The water was so clear, you could watch each bubble float all the way to the surface! I guess that was more entertaining today than the aquarium we were swimming through :)
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