Anilao Dive, clear water and an abundance of marine life!
Anilao Dive
Anilao is synonymous with diving.
The entire stretch of the north western coast of the Calumpang peninsula is dotted with numerous dive spots that are teeming with a huge diversity of marine life.
In fact, the dive spots cater to every level of underwater adventurer.
For example, Maricaban Island provides excellent opportunities if you are interested in underwater photography. The water here is crystal clear and the currents are mild.
For snorkelers, they have the Layag-Lagay dive spot which is located at the northwest corner of Caban Island. This area is well-known for the large Spanish Dancer nudibranches.
For the hard core divers, they have Mapating Rock. The current here is fierce which will no doubt provide more challenges and excitement for experienced divers.
These are just a small selection of dive sites that are available for visitors to explore. Other dive sites that are worth a visit are:
Arthur's Rock/Dead Point
Bahura
Beatrice Rock
Bethlehem
Bonito Island
Caban Cove
Darly Laut
Devil's Point
Eagle Point
Kirby's Rock
Koala
Ligpo Island
Mainit Point
Malajibomanoc Island
Merriel's Rock
Red Palm
Red Rock
Sepok Wall
Sombrero Island
The Cathedral
Twin Rocks
Our Anilao Dive Expedition
We arrived at the resort in Anilao around 1 pm. After having a quick lunch, we settled in and relaxed to recuperate from the two (2) hour journey to get here.
The cool breeze certainly helps you to unwind as you can see from the picture of Dive Master Abet crashing out on a hammock under the trees.
It’s worthwhile noting that getting into the hammock can be tricky and you require a certain technique to jump in otherwise you will find yourself tumbling onto the ground (Speaking from personal experience!).
After the afternoon break, Dive Master Abet wanted to hop over to Sombrero Island (a 30 minutes boat ride from the resort) together with Nestor, the caretaker of the resort, for a dive.
Although I wasn’t part of the diving team, I managed to tag along for the ride to the diving spots. The initial part of the boat ride was uneventful as we traveled along the coastline.
I managed to capture glimpses of some of the other resorts that were dotted along the coastline.
We were halfway through our journey when we decided to take a detour from Sombrero Island as the water was getting a little bit choppy for the outrigger to handle due to the wind.
Our revised destination was Manit Point, located near the north western tip of the Calumpang Peninsula. The average depth of Manit point is around 15 to 30 meters with fairly strong currents. The marine life that you will find here includes Snapper and Pufferfish. There is also a cave at around 7 meters where you can find Whitetip Reef Sharks resting.
According to Divemaster Abet and Nestor, the water visibility was excellent around the Anilao dive and there were shoals of Jacks around.
It was a pity that we couldn’t get our hands on an underwater camera during the trip otherwise it would have been a sight to be beheld.
By 4.30pm, we wrapped up our diving expedition and were headed back to the resort.
Overall, it was a great experience to be able to savor the natural delights of what Anilao dive has to offer.
Check out these links for more information on Anilao Batangas: