Bali

Karangasem Regency

Indonesia

Fantastic coral, sponges and fans

Tulamben bay, approx 500 meters southeast of the Liberty Wreck; close to the temple.

Tulamben Drop-off is also known as Tulamben Wall.

Tulamben Drop-off

This site is an old lava flow from Mount Agung, at the east side end of the Tulamben bay. The dive starts off on a steep sand slope with nudibranches, flounders, goby/shrimp sets. At 12m are sponges with many varieties of shrimp, leaf scorpion fish and crinoids, often with attendant ghost pipefish. Continuing round to the east, the slope develops into a reef with very impressive topography, becoming a vertical wall from 15m and descending to below 60m. Visibility is usually 15-20m (due to the amount of plankton in the water).  The wall has profuse sponges, corals, black coral bushes, gorgonian fans - at 30m there is a sea fan that reaches 2m in width.  You may see white tip and black tip reef sharks, napoleon wrasse, big bumphead parrotfish, some big filefish (including scrawled) and moray eel. Late afternoon is the time to see the wide variety of lionfish.

From southern Bali (Kuta, Nusa Dua, Sanur, Denpasar) drive east via Gianyar town, Semarapura and Amlapura. From Amlapura head north to Culik. Tulamben is about 20 minutes from Culik. Resorts are situated on either side of the road in Tulamben. Those on the right run down to the beach. The drive takes about 3 hours.

Tulamben Drop-Off

Big pelagic dive site: Tunas, sharks, manta rays, barracudas, sunfishes (if lucky)

Southern side of Tulamben. Only 15 min by boat (SE from the Drop Off).

Batu Kelebit is also known as Kelebit Rocks.

Batu Kelebit

This is a muck dive. Crinoïds, Sea pens, mimic octopus, ghost pipefish, harlequin shrimp... A must for underwater photographers!

In the bay near the temple (before the drop-off).

The River

very good for night dives

In front of the original resorts (Bali Coral, Porters).

Coral Garden is also known as Paradise Reef, Patch Reef, Tulamben Coral Garden.

Coral Garden

The USAT Liberty is one of Bali's most famous dive site.

USAT Liberty Glo, a United States Army Transport, was built at the Hog Island emergency shipyard in Philadelphia during World War I, but was completed after the November 1918 armistice. Shortly after the U.S. entry into World War II, Liberty Glo was torpedoed and beached on the island of Bali and is now a popular dive site.

Hog Island Hull No. 517 was laid down as SS Scooba on June 12, 1918 but by the time it was launched on June 14, 1919 it had been renamed SS Liberty Glo. Delivered to the U.S. Shipping Board on August 2, 1919, she was a cargo ship of 5,000 gross tons and 7,825 deadweight tons, 394 feet (120 m) long and 54 feet (16 m) beam. Liberty Glo was the 36th Hog Islander built and one of twelve built as "Type B" troop carriers. (Liberty Glo was not a Liberty Ship, which were a similar concept of vessel built during World War II.)

The redesignated USAT Liberty Glo, remeasured at 6,211 tons, was bound from Australia to the Philippines on January 11, 1942 with a cargo of railway parts and rubber for the war effort when she was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-166 about 10 mi (19 km) southwest of Lombok Strait. U.S. destroyer USS Paul Jones (DD-230) and Dutch destroyer HNLMS Van Ghent took the damaged ship in tow attempting to reach Singaraja, the Dutch port and administrative centre for the Lesser Sunda Islands, on the north coast of Bali. However she was taking too much water and so was beached on the eastern shore of Bali at Tulamben so that the cargo and fittings could be salvaged.

Liberty Glo was one of 58 Hog Islanders that were casualties in World War II.

In 1963 the tremors associated with the eruption of Mount Agung caused the vessel to slip off the beach, and she now lies on a sand slope in 30 to 100 feet (9 to 30 m) of water, providing one of the most popular dives off Bali.

Dive operators commonly misname the wreck "USS Liberty", and it has also been incorrectly referred to as a Liberty Ship, which were a similar concept of vessel built during the Second World War.

Source: Wikipedia.org

Between 10:00 to 14:00 o`clock it`s very crowded there. Groups of japanese divers arrive at this time with busses. The dive-experience of these divers are very low or less. Early morning and late afternoon dives are very quiet, if you stay in Tulamben.

Just SSE of the restaurant.

USAT Liberty Wreck is also known as USAT Liberty Glo, Hog Island Hull No. 517, SS Scooba.

USAT Liberty Wreck

The Liberty wreck is Bali’s most famous dive site. Built circa WWI this cargo ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine off Lombok. Despite attempts to tow the ship to north Bali it was taking on too much water and so was semi-beached at Tulamben. Over the years anything reusable was removed. In 1963, with the earth tremors from the last eruption of Mount Agung, the wreck slid further down the slope where it still lies (as close to the beach as it can be and still be underwater!). 
The Liberty lies approximately 30m offshore almost parallel to the beach on the sand slope, and is suitable for all levels of qualification and experience. The wreck lies in depths from 9-30m. The shallowest part of the wreck, where it touches the sand slope, is at 5-10m. Depth along the middle of the wreck averages 16-20m. The lower edge of the wreck is 20-28m (at high tide). The wreck is 120m long, it is quite broken up but you can still see the guns, toilets, boilers, anchor chain, etc. It is a lovely dive site, possibly the world’s easiest wreck dive. You can also snorkel on the wreck - the highest point of the stern is about 4m below the surface. Visibility is usually 18-25m, lower when it has been raining. There is rarely a current present, at most it will be mild. During the 3 days before the full moon, there are usually waves. The air temperature is 25-32 degrees, the water 26-28 degrees. The wreck is very popular with photographers as it is totally encrusted in anemone, gorgonians and corals. The black sand provides an excellent colour contrast for the incredible variety of marine life, which includes a huge school of big-eyed trevally and over 400 other species of fish. You will see just about everything in any Indo-Pacific Reef Guide book if you dive here. The variety is amazing. Night diving on the wreck is fantastic, especially during full moon. You may see Spanish dancers, flashlight fish, and phosphorescence.



USAT Liberty Ship Wreck

A Toyota wreck and a lot of japaneese divers and snorklers.

In front of the Emerald resort

Emerald bay is also known as Teluk Muntik, Teluk Muntig.

Emerald bay

Slope of rocks and sand. Not very much corals. Lots of small critters (harlequin + other shrimps). Lionfishs, batfish and ribbon eels. Dome-shaped metal structures (Biorock?).

By car from Tulamben main road to shore.

Seraya is also known as Seraya Secrets.

Seraya

Kubu is a 0-star rated scuba dive and snorkel destination in Indonesia, Bali, Tulamben which is accessible from shore based on 0 ratings.

Kubu

There are rare scorpionfish (Rhinopias aphanes), frog-fish and all sorts of other unusual sea creatures. We were unlucky about such scorpionfish, but we've seen someone. The first place, of course, was for scorpionfish – there is their Kingdom here..

The North coast of Bali, the place is near of Amed village, a small bay with a dive hotel on the beach. The bay is private property: if you come from the sea by diving boat, you will be given a ticket, which must be paid later, otherwise it will be a violation of the local laws. You have to pay because the place is popular

Tulamben Drop-off

Snorkeling and Scuba Diving at Tulamben Drop-off