Tulamben Dive Sites

On the Northeast coast of Bali at the foot of Mount Agung (big mountain), lies the famous US Liberty wreck that lies close to the shore. US Liberty was a cargo ship that torpedoed in the Lombok Strait on the 11 January 1942 (during the second world war) by the Japanese. Two destroyers towards the port of Singaraja towed her but she was taking on too much water, so she was beached at Tulamben. 

 

The local people salvaged her cargo. She was left in her present position close to the shore of Tulamben during the disastrous eruption of Mount Agung in 1963, pushed off the beach and broke in half. The stern is somewhat intact, the mid-ship section is all broken and the bow is again in quite good shape. This wreck is a very popular dive site and it gets crowded around the middle of the day, when divers and snorkelers from Sanur or Lovina arrive. Best to stay over night in Tulamben itself and dive there early in the morning (better visibility, fewer people and perhaps you will see the resident large group of bumphead parrotfish).

Dive Sites

The US Liberty Wreck

Entering the water from the black pebble beach can be quite difficult, but after about 30 meters you reach the black volcanic sand. The wreck lays on a sandy slope parallel to the shore, roughly Southeast (stern) to Northwest (bow). Part of the superstructure is close to the surface (about 5m) and can also be reached by snorkelers. The wreck is about 120m long, the deepest point is around 30m and it is nicely covered with corals and sponges. This is not a very difficult wreck to dive on (see my report on wreck diving in the Philippines), there are only a few places where you can penetrate, all towards the bow. When you make your safety stop you can just lie on the sand and observe the animals that live there. Night dives at the wreck are something special but should only be attempted if you are good with your buoyancy! Saw flashlight fish (turn off the lamp), special cowries, nudibranchs and many spider crabs.

Paradise Reef

This dive site lies between the wreck and the drop off. You can started at the drop off (have the Diving Helpers Club carry the tanks there) and went down to 25m to see the cleaning station just slightly to the left of the drop off on the sand. Then head towards to the Paradise Reef. If you are good on air, you can leisurely dive the whole stretch, otherwise you just get out, before you run out of air and walk back. Most of the dive is shallow (3m to 15m). Especially the River is a great place to do so call muck diving and find rare animals such as the harlequin and the robust ghost pipefish, several species of eels and even the mimic octopus, boxer crabs or the harlequin shrimp! If you are lucky you might also see an eagle ray or a couple black tip reef sharks, a big barracuda or Spanish mackerel I It's also very good for a night dives.

Tulamben Drop Off

About 500 m to the East of the wreck and close to the temple, the underwater wall drops to a depth of 60m (the top is around 3 to 5 m), sometimes there is a slight current. There are three coral covered lava spurs that reach down to 50 or 60m but usually you dive at the one that lays to the West of the temple. The other two reefs around the corner are also worth exploring. On the first spur at 30m is a huge Muricella gorgonian fan; it must be over 2m in diameter! Just beautiful!

Klebit Rock

After a short boat trip you reach this dive site Southeast of Tulamben Beach. There are some rocks close to the shore, around which you can dive, and some large reefs a bit offshore. You dive on a slope with nice hard and soft corals and sandy areas in between. You can also choose to do a rather deep dive-to around 30 to 50m to see the underwater plateau. If you are lucky you see big pelagic such as tunas, sharks, manta rays, barracudas and sometimes-even sunfishes. Visibility is usually quite good.

Similarly, information about the best dive sites in Tulamben. Diving is the right thing if you want to see the location of underwater paradise that is located here. Hopefully this article can serve as a reference for the tourists who will plan dives in Tulamben, Bali.

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