BITUNG & THE LEMBEH STRAIT

Bitung, on the north eastern peninsula of Sulawesi faces the Moluccas Strait and a stretch of sea that includes the island of Lembeh, a paradise for divers. There were several options for our day in Bitung. I went to the Kungkungan Beach resort, one of the top resorts for ‘Muck’ diving, with four others. We did three ‘Muck’ dives which were fascinating as we uncovered various tiny critters including the pygmy sea horse, snake eels, frogfish and the flamboyant cuttlefish. Charles went on a day trip, heading out to Tomohon, an important town in the Minahasan region, for a local market. Then on to Lake Linow, a sulphur lake with thermal activity of fumaroles, steam vents and mud pools, famed for its colour changes from deep blue to turquoise, green and sulphur yellow. Then a visit to Woloan village, famous for making traditional ‘knock down houses’ which can be transported and reassembled anywhere in the world.(It was noted that the houses lacked insulation so would not be suitable for many countries.)   Other passengers went on a morning tour of Sawangan Village and a late afternoon trip to the 8800 hectare Tangkoko Nature Reserve. The reserve is a haven for endemic flora and fauna including the black macaque monkey, cuscus and tarsiers, the smallest primates in the world. Click to enlarge any thumbnail My thanks to Jamie Watts for the underwater photos.