Diving in Tulamben

Having lived on the Great Barrier Reef for nearly two years, waking up to turtles and watching sharks under the stars, exploring gorgeous coral reefs and whale spotting in the winter, Ramiro and I truly thought we’d seen the best of the best as far as the deep blue was concerned.

Our week in Tulamben, however, showed us that we still have a lot of marine exploration to do.

I almost regret that we took our SSI Open Water Diver course in Tulamben, home to the USAT Liberty wreck, which has lain dormant at the bottom of the ocean since 1963, more than 21 years after it was torpedoed by the Japanese Navy.

Almost, but not quite.

Simply put, the Liberty is a sprawling underwater metropolis like nothing I’ve ever seen before. How can any dive we embark on in the future stand a chance at competing?

The rusted, skeletal remains of the ship have been overtaken by colonies of vibrant, intricate coral, home to an array of marine life, from nudibranchs to nemo himself.

Resting on a diagonal on the seafloor, the 120-metre-long body of the ship allows for scuba diving depths of anywhere from five to 30 metres. We were blessed with crystal clear visibility, calm water and hardly any other divers for our first dive of the week.

It would be unfair to proceed without recognising the fact that our experience would not have been the same without the wonderful team at Scuba Tribe Tulamben.

We were truly looked after from the moment we arrived until the moment we left. Our instructor for the week, Theo, was incredibly flexible with our lessons, rearranging our schedule on the days we weren’t feeling great and ensuring we were completely at ease with being in the water before progressing to deeper dives.

The Balinese staff at the resort were also incredible: some of the kindest, friendliest people we’ve encountered. From the dive master who accompanied us on our fun dive to the guys working in the restaurant, everyone we came across had a huge smile on their face and always asked how our dive was on any given day.

We were treated to some of the most delicious food we’ve had in Bali: all local, home-cooked fare, including a traditional Balinese barbecue on our second night, which was, without a doubt, the best meal we’ve had on the island.

A traditional plate of Gado Gado, a vegetarian dish complete with curry, tofu and tempeh.

All of this is not to mention the unbeatable value for money. We paid a grand total of A$1,428.59 (£689.15) for both of us. That covered the course (which included four dives, plus all pool skills), five nights of accommodation, all meals, and transport to and from our next and previous destinations.

For two travellers who are #OnABudg, it doesn’t get better than that.

I cannot sing Scuba Tribe Tulamben's praises highly enough, and I truly could rattle on for hours about how incredible our experience was. I hope with all of my heart that we have the opportunity to return there when we eventually take our Advanced Open Water Diver course.

But back to the diving.

One of the perks of diving in Tulamben is that the Liberty wreck dive site can be accessed right off the shore.

No sitting on a rocky boat in a wet stinger suit for hours on end or fighting the current just to get back on board. Just a five-minute walk (or a two-minute lift on the back of the Scuba Tribe truck, if you’re lucky) and you’re off.

The entry point is unsuspecting. To the untrained eye, it’s a long stretch of black pebble beach that wraps around the coastline in a tight hug to the Pura Tegeh temple, which sits at the end of its own mini-peninsula. Calm, feeble waves lap gently against the rolling rocks, a mirror image of the horizon reflected in the still water.

The calm water againt the rocky shoreline.

It’s the buzzing shoreline that gives away the secrets hidden beneath.

Divers scramble up the rocks, clutching their dive buddies in one hand and their fins in the other as they traverse their way to the short, wooden tables sporadically placed up and down the beach.

There’s the dull ‘clunk’ of empty gas cylinders amongst the chatter, and the wooden tables creak as divers perch atop them, either to alleviate their backs from their Buoyancy Control Devices (BCDs), or to don them, ready to enter the water.

Ramshackle stalls are abuzz with locals selling identical navy t-shirts with a print of the Liberty wreck and a bold, red ‘TULAMBEN’ scrawled in big letters, while dive resort staff busy themselves with helping their clientele in and out of their dive gear.

Getting into the water is no mean feat, particularly with a 20-kilogram gas cylinder on your back and nothing but flimsy dive shoes between your feet and the sharp pebbles below.

But, with Theo’s help, we made it to the water. Floating on our backs, we kicked out just far enough to make our descent. Mouthpieces in and fins ready, we hit that magic button on our BCDs and slowly drifted beneath the surface.

It’s like the world just switches off.

The only noise becomes the sound of your own breath. Everything is just blue. Blue, blue, blue everywhere you turn.

For a first-time diver, the ascending pillars of air bubbles being expelled by the other divers in mesmerising stalagmites are a sight to behold in themselves: the only clue that there’s any other human life nearby.

Approaching the Liberty, I had the distinct feeling that actually I’d quite like to live in the ocean forever and ever and ever. But we’re just intruders here, watching the fish and the rays meandering about their business, pecking grubs and algae off the coral, all doing their bit to keep the marine ecosystem pushing along whilst we stare on in awe.

The wreck itself is like the ocean’s answer to those grass walls you see cropping up in trendy hotels and restaurants. Just coral, coral and more coral as far as the eye can see. Hard coral, soft coral, brain coral, table coral. You name it, the Liberty has it sprawled across its walls somewhere.

If I wasn’t so mesmerised, I might feel like I was in some kind of nautical remake of The Last of Us, the way the coral had totally overtaken its host.

Nudibranchs wriggle amongst the coral colonies, their purples and turquoises iridescent in the filtered sunlight. Scorpionfish and lionfish hide in alcoves, priming their spines ready for their next strike. It’s a functioning society of diverse marine life, all on board the battered bones of the USAT Liberty wreck.

Kicking out behind us, we continued our circumnavigation of the ship, discovering new life forms everywhere we looked. It was hard to believe that the beautiful fire coral, bright red and branching from the side of the ship like a Japanese maple, was capable of inflicting such vicious burns on those who dare touch it.

Squeezing through a rusted, open square of metal, careful not to scrape anything for fear of hurting ourselves (or worse, the coral), we entered what was once the Liberty’s control room. The helm remains intact, free of coral colonisation and looking like a good scrub might have it fully functional again. It’s not quite like going back in time, but it certainly is surreal. How many conversations have happened in this very room? What must it have felt like, the last time this ship was asail, having just been torpedoed and worried for your life?

It’s easy to forget that you’re actually there to learn a skill, not just to observe, so the rude awakening from Theo was much appreciated when he tapped his wrist with two fingers: international diving language for ‘how much air do you have left?’

A quick check of our pressure gauges revealed that, unfortunately, living in the ocean forever and ever and ever would not be an option.

So we began our ascent. And with each metre floating upwards grew my devastation that I would never get to have this experience for the first time ever again. But how lucky we are that this happened right at the start of our journey. Now we know that we simply have to see the rest of the world in the context of what the ocean has to offer, and we simply can’t wait to make diving a priority as we move forward in our travels.

Who’d have thought that this small, unassuming town on the north-east coast of Bali would be home to one of the best dive sites in the world?

Are there any dive sites that have left you absolutely blown away? Let us know so that we can add them to our bucket list.

Catch you next time!

All our love,

Eloise and Ramiro Xxx

Two happy, newly qualified divers. Tulamben, Bali.