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Dive Info

Friends Trips - May 2005 - Similan Islands - Thailand

The Similans "Friend's Trip" May 2005 was a usual success with great diving and great company. May is the end of the scuba diving season in the Similan National Park Islands (Andaman Sea) and hence this is a quiet time. There is a spot of rain here and there but better to have a few drops of rain than many other dive boats at each dive site - all of the dive sites that we visited we were the only dive boat there.

The "Friend's Trips" are always superb with all traveling together; we had a slightly late start due to a delay on the Air Asia flight that we were catching but this was not a problem - we simply had a little time to grab a couple of beers at Don Muang (Bangkok) airport before flying down to Phuket.

The attendees of the "May 2005 trip were (Click the names for individual pictures)...Jeremiah (veteran of this trip), Alan B, Sarah L, Linda Fleming (Congratulations for being a new instructor - check April/May IDC 2005 here), Sue H, Doug B, Rosie (2nd trip), Carl M, Phil T & Lizzie, John D, JT, JJ and PJ :-) - the two main divemasters on the boat were "Khun Aae" and the old captain "Khun Poo" - both superb divers - they rack up an astounding 700 dives per 6 month season - they have been diving for 25 years combined and yet still young men; do the math and figure the amount of dives they have between them!!! 

Diving the Similans always takes a certain pattern due to the logistics of the trip. We took the usual route but changed a few of the dive sites due to weather conditions - no one will deny that the diving was still awesome. The first dive day was the 18th of May starting with "Annita's reef" followed by "East Of Eden" and then the famed boulder city of "Elephant Head Rock". As soon as we were back on the boat all took a vote (100% unanimous) that we'd return to this dive site before the end of the trip. Before the night dive at "Beacon Reef' a few of the guys and gals took turns to show their water ski-ing prowess (or not as the case might be :-)

I won't say much more about the dive sites as covered before but just to state that we also visited "The Hideaway", "Beacon Bay", "Koh Bon" (Some saw Manta's and Carl got a nice pic), "Koh Bon Bay", "Richelieu Rock", "Koh Tachai - Twin Peaks" (Manta & Leopard Sharks on the first dive and Devil Rays and more Leopard Sharks on the second). The last dive was at "Boulder City" (Really this should be named "Shark City" as they were every where! As mentioned I shall not say any more of the dive sites - let the photos of the wonderful Similan island trip speak for them selves :-)...needless to say that we had a night in Phuket, a nice meal and a little of a dance on return to port :-).....enjoy!

JT and Phil having a little Karaoke session at the airport - pity we could not hear the music guys! :-)	Are the beaches beautiful enough for you? This is what we wake up to every morning and see all day.	Sue and Rosie relaxing on the boat in between dives.
Garden Eels - you have to be very stealthy to catch these on camera.	One of the many beautiful turtles that we saw.	Giant Moray Eels really cannot get much bigger than they come here - wonderful yet scary!
Zebra (Leopard) Shark free swimming - great to watch with the Remoras after it.	Batfish come in schools. Many of the dive sites have them - they are wonderful to watch.	Carl was lucky to get these shots of the wonderful rays.
Thanks again Carl.	The black banded sea snake - purportedly the most poisonous snake known to man.	Linda enjoying some relaxing time on the boat.
Clown Trigger fish are so wonderfully coloured - photos do not do them justice.	No trip would be complete without a Nemo (and family) shot :-)	The guys relaxing with a game of cards of an evening.
Linda is on the boat with "Poo" waiting for her water-ski-ing turn.	This is the most we saw of Phil's water-ski-ing :-) Sorry Phil!	Another Giant Moray free swimming - approx 2.5 meters long.
Jeremiah free falling into bliss.	A lone Nemo.	If only I could get the colour to truly represent all of the beauty!!!
Trigger fish come in all shapes, sizes and colours.	Phil and Lizzie on the bow of the "Ra-Rueng Chon" ship wreck doing their Titanic impression.	Sue, Phil, Carl and Lizzie enjoying Carl's photos of the day - he's much better than!!! - Darn!
Music Maestros at work hooking up an I-pod.	Lion fish aplenty in the Similans.	Another Zebra shark.
A Manta Ray courtesy of Carl's photo prowess.	Jeremiah navigating his way through "another" "swim through".	There are great "swim throughs" and passages between the huge boulders in the Similans.
Banner Fish or Moorish Idols? :-) - look it up.	Some of the guys on a safety stop at the end of a dive - always meters in depth for at least 3 minutes!	Friends getting back on to the boat after a dive.
We took a nice Italian meal in Patong, Phuket on returning to shore.	The night we had in town coincided with the FA CUP - Sue was happy (an Arsenal fan :-)	After 4 days at sea of course we hit the local disco to use our legs for dancin' instead of diving :-)

As I say at the end of each trip an really mean it is that it is not only the diving that makes our "Friends Interns Trips" that special, it is the guys and gals on the boat also - many thanks to all of those that came along - it was a pleasure to have you all aboard. My very special thanks to Linda also for assisting with the organization of the trip - a job very well done indeed. Cheers Guys :-) 

Will you be joining us on the next intern Similans trip?

• Friends Dive Trips (Dive trips for buddies and interns).

  • Friends Trip report March 2004

  • Friends Trip October 2004

  • Friends Trip August 2004 - Puerto Gallera, Sabang - the Philippines.

  • Friends Trip March 2005

  • Friends Trip May 2005

  • Friends Trip November 2005

  • Friends Trip May 2006

  • Friends Trip November 2006

  • Friends Trip Phi Phi, Thailand, Feb 2007