Dive Sites of Pulau Weh

This easy but beautiful dive follows the contours of Rubiah Island, from white sandy bottoms with dramatic castle like structures formed by black granite, to a gentle slope covered with hard coral bommies where an assortment of reef fish, stingrays, giant clams and turtles are found. Shallow up to the edge of the island and the soft coral gardens or continue through fields of garden eels and onto more dramatic rising structures. Will you see the honeycomb morays sitting in a crevice or swimming freely, chased by their cleaner wrasse..? Flying gurnards, ghost pipefish and leaf scorpion are among the more rare species often spotted here. The comical clown trigger fish, along with all of Pulau Weh’s favourite reef fish are to be found here.

A perfectly controlled place to start your scuba diving adventure. This dive site is a sandy slope with fringing hard corals, go a little deeper and find staghorn fields. Rubiah jetty has plenty to offer, there are lots of the usual coral reef fish lion, scorpionfish, blue spotted stingrays, trumpet fish, puffer fish. There is also several artifical reefs placed at Rubiah Jetty dive site. You can fly high on the swings and have drive to KM Zero on a scooter. The coral grows on these reefs and provides food and shelter for the marine life found here.

Follow the slope from the northern tip of Rubiah Island through dramatic giant granite boulders and find endless gorgonian sea fans and an embankment of soft coral whips. Nudibranchs, stingrays, many varieties of moray including honeycomb, schools of snappers and fusiliers. If the often strong current is not against the dive, try to cross the channel and end the dive at Arus Baleh with big nose unicorn fish chasing your bubbles, otherwise return to the shallows of Rubiah Utara with painted rock lobsters and pygmy snappers.

Widows Current or sometimes called Arus Paleh – Bastard Current. A pinnacle breaking the surface between the islands of Rubiah and Seulako, with a deep channel to the south and a shallow channel to the north. Hang on a reef hook and watch the fish battle the current as it flows through these channels or black tip reef sharks cruise through. Descend into masses of fusiliers flashing by as hunting blue fin and giant trevallys rip through them, or schools of big nose unicorn fish chasing your bubbles for a tickle. Both the eastern and western slopes are full of reef fish, moray eels and corals. Blue ribbon eels and black juveniles are more easily found on the western slope. In the deeper parts of this dive site giant sea fans cover the floor of the channel and beyond. Flocks of devil rays are seasonal, reef sharks and giant grouper are more frequent sightings. In the sheltered shallow water enormous porcupine and puffer fish rest away from the current with colourful anthias.

A series of overhangs, full of shining small glassfish, large batfish and sea fans topped by corals and reef fish. Before arrival to these caves the slope from Seulako Island will treat you to oriental sweet lips, ribbon eels, porcelain crabs under the skirts of large anemones and much more. Layers of anthias, red tooth trigger fish and surgeon fish will dash back to the shelter of the corals when blue fin and giant trevallys are hunting. Reef sharks can be seen near the shallow channel before the caves when the current is stronger. Nudibranchs, octopus, leaf scorpion fish, lionfish and morays are all regulars here. Waiting in the shallows is a light show of fusiliers flashing as they turn and run from their hunters.

The slope of Seulako Island makes this an easily managed drift dive, and it is sometimes possible to make a full circuit of the Island. Start the dive with hard corals at the south of Seulako and as you drift to the north there are seemingly endless soft elephant ear corals and anemones, many morays and spotted stingrays and large yellow box fish. Resident reef sharks cruise around, but the best must be the devil rays that often gather here in groups sometimes in excess of 20! Giant grouper as well as marble reef rays can also be included as regular visitors. Varieties of sweet lips chill out under large coral bommies covered in Christmas tree worms.

Occasionally impossible to see the reef through the fish, this dive site is densely populated! Descend down the first wall and divers have already lost count of how many morays there are, and what a variety! Dwarfed by giant gorgonian sea fans, drift along the deeper walls and around this impressive pinnacle surrounded by rich marine life. Reef sharks are usually spotted hanging out close to the connecting dive site Shark Plateau. In strong currents barracudas, bigeye trevally and reef sharks will come up from Shark Plateau. Huge dogtooth tuna stalk the site solo, while packs of large blue fin & giant trevallys divide and conquer the reef fish. Nudibranchs, octopus, anemones, lion fish, many varieties of sweet lips, including the giant, are resident. Giant frogfish can be found on the deep walls, flocks of devil rays too many to count, and seasonal manta rays.

Experienced divers will enjoy this deep water, strong current dive, descending into the blue onto the top of the plateau through schools of barracuda and bigeye trevally. The never ending depths down the sides of the plateau are covered in sea fans and on the top of the plateau sprout barrel sponges and hard corals. Giant groupers, reef sharks and rays such as manta, eagle and devil will be the entertainment as the dive extends to connect to Batee Tokong and finish the dive surrounded by stunning reef fish.

The dramatic underwater peninsular, formed by giant granite boulders, is the centre piece of this dive site. The southern side is a flat sandy bottom with large coral bommies home to many varieties of reef fish and stingrays, moving slowly deeper you can find yourselves surrounded by garden eels. Drift down and along the slope looking for ribbon eels, honeycomb moray eels and lionfish. At the tip of the peninsular look under the boulders for harlequin and oriental sweetlips. Lucky divers can be rewarded by manta ray, bumphead parrotfish and turtle sightings. This dive can be started from the wall on the northern side of the peninsular, offering almost endless views on days with good visibility.

Twin pinnacles rise from a seafloor covered in giant sea fans, forming a canyon between them. Divers drift over rippling sea fans towards a swim through at the northern pinnacle. Snow-like pale blue & yellow and white soft corals soften the edges of this stunning seascape. The canyon has more than its fair share of reef fish, schooling banner fish, unicorn fish, gold saddle goat fish falling down the cliff like walls inside the pinnacles, barracudas, trevally, snappers, emperors, octopus and nudibranchs are usual finds. Looking down the eastern slopes of the pinnacles divers may see devil eagle or manta rays flying up from the deep. The west faces are sheer and form an amphitheatre where often turtles and large napoleon wrasse can be sighted. This channel leads the dive back to the shoreline where the boulders are topped by stunning table & other hard corals. Schools of tangs and surgeon fish feed in the shallows making colorful rainbows when they move on. Zebra sharks can be found sleeping in the deep sandy areas and mola molas have been sighted on an annual basis when the deep water runs cold.

This dive site offers schools of huge barracuda, tornadoes of bigeye trevally, napoleon wrasse and rare hammerhead shark sightings. Vertical walls starting at 25mt descending to more than 40mt cut a half moon shape dive site which the current can rush around. The walls are covered in sea fans and corals. Swirling up from the depths and up these walls come literally hundreds and thousands of bigeye trevallys forming a tornado. Creep into the centre of them and fly together. Although not for the faint hearted, this dive site can really deliver. Rest in the lee of a boulder and watch the barracudas make light work of the pumping currents, judge the strength of the current by the rise and fall of the clouds of trigger fish and fusiliers. Rice-terrace like formations shape the shallower part of this dive with hard corals where milk fish, swimming morays, lionfish, nudibranchs, octopus and various reef fish are found in abundance. Maybe drift into the ball of jacks while performing a safety stop. Eagle rays and marble rays are also often sighted, along with Napoleon wrasses.

This tiered sloping dive site is formed by large granite boulders which break the surface. Black snappers enjoy the current which is often strong at the shallow tip of this granite peninsular, while blue fin trevally hunt fusiliers. Follow the reef back towards the sandy bay and look for electric rays and giant groupers. In the shallow coral garden reef fish, stingrays and shrimps are plentiful.

A favorite for the macro hunters, Gapang beach dive is a white sandy slope with fields of staghorn corals and clusters of hard corals. Seek and you can find many unusual fish species hiding in the corals or disguised. All of the usual reef fish are here such as lion fishes, parrot fish, various trigger fishes, shrimp fish, puffer fish and many more. Along with shrimps, crabs octopus and cuttle fish. Special treats for you are rare scorpion fish rhinopia, frog fish and sea horses.

Anemones and corals cover the walls of these two pinnacles. The drop off will lead you to a field of garden eels and coming back to the shallows are schools of sleek unicorn fish and many varieties of reef fish. Look into crevices filled with glass fish and find twinspot lion fish and many moray eels. Large stingrays bury into the sand with only their eyes and tails visible. Look up at the right time to see devil and eagle rays passing by.

Take a turn round this gentle sea mound. Under the hard coral and rocky overhangs hide spotted stingrays and moray eels including the frimbriated variety. Eagle rays can be sighted on the shallow reef top where many anemones sway and octopus stand tall. Look up as large barracuda can be circling overhead and rivers of blue streak fusiliers flow by. Schools of sleek unicorn and red tooth trigger fish surround divers in descents and ascents. Try to spot the resident leaf scorpion fish.

This underwater hot spring is a unique diving experience. Bubbles flow out from cracks and fissures in the sea bed at this shallow dive. Enjoy the warmth close to the source, but hold your nose at the surface against the smell of sulphur. A surprising amount of fish have adapted to the strange environment, five-lined snappers, map puffers and small groupers.

This is a planned stage decompression dive and therefore is only open to divers with high certification and experience levels. The Sophie Rickmers was a WWII German ship scuttled to avoid capture by the Dutch. The wreck lies upright and intact with a healthy coral and marine life. Giant grouper and marble rays are often sighted, schools of inquisitive bat fish follow divers on their tour, and deep water varieties of reef fish teem all over the wreck. Watch where you touch as there are many large scorpion fish. With visibility often up to 40mts this is a spectacular and memorable dive full of drama and excitement.

This strong current dive is for experienced divers only. A deep walled pinnacle which is approached by a deep water drift entry. Fly through the depths and you can be rewarded by sightings of eagle rays and napoleon wrasse, barracudas and reef sharks and rare sightings of thresher sharks. Drift around the pinnacle and climb into the sheltered shallow water of the dive where far and wide are impressive table corals and stunning reef fish.

This site has all the usual suspects found while scuba diving in Pulau Weh. In addition, the small cave central to this dive site has many interesting macro sights and plenty of nudibranchs. Garden eels stretching out of the sand to feed at the start of the dive and the whip corals at the end give this site a nice symmetry.