Highlight reel
Here is the TL;DR video highlights from a dive in Singapore:
Singapore below sea level
I was fortunate to earn a spot on the Dolphin Explorer, Singapore’s largest* and friendliest* dive boat for [half-]day trips.
(* Note this was my first and only boat diving experience in Singapore, thus far.)
We persevered thru steady monsoon rains to Pulau Hantu North, where a small tidal channel provides regular curiosity and entertainment for local underwater enthusiasts.
Near-urban diving
Singapore is reputed to be among some of the world best diving metropolises in which to discover fantastic photography subjects in very murky waters–as beautifully painted in the recent short, ‘Murk,’ lived and produced by the ebullient Coastal Natives team.
Having cut my teeth in similarly reputed murk meccas as Seattle and Sydney, I was excited to experience the thickest devoted SCUBA waters within a couple degrees latitude of the equator.
Rainy season surprises
The local overnight air temperature was rumored to have dropped as low as 22ºC, standard deviations below the normal range of 26-33ºC.
Local divers’ teeth nearly chattered in the mild ‘wind chill,’ and half of them arrived in drysuits–myself included! My tropical drysuit experiment would be a relief, in such hospitably foul weather. The sea water temperature had even dropped to 27ºC!
On this day the dive site delivered favorably within its famous ≤3-metre visibility, with a particle size such that torchlight could be seen, before the divers holding them magically appeared.
What we see
Enough tidal currents wash thru this site that the poofy dusts of megapolitan developments and world-leading port operations are unable to settle on its sandy slopes. A range of various hydroids, corals, sponges, crabs, nudibranchs, shrimps, small fish, and other organisms this find it habitable enough to take up residence.
Here are stills from the video above, with links to species observation records on iNaturalist.org:
iNaturalist.org Highlights
Please also give the following experimental alternative interface to the iNat API a try, to browse highlights in the Singapore region: natmap.justinthedeeps.com
Current Weather
Here is a Windy.com widget for the current weather in Singapore: