In June/July 2014 I enjoyed a ten-day Indonesian liveboard trip with Ron Hunter and his Quest Tours group aboard MSY Seahorse.
After Biak Island, the Fonokabi and Sewandei Islands and Tanjung Ayemi and Busurua we reached our ultimate destination and the undoubted highlight of the trip: Tanjung Yaur, Cenderawasih Bay on the north coast of West Papua.
At Tanjung Yaur, Cenderawasih Bay, whale sharks turn up in great numbers attracted to nets of anchovies that hang beneath bagans or fishing platforms. Many of the nets are in a poor state and the whale sharks can enjoy a free lunch vacuuming the anchovies through holes in the nets. It is undoubtedly the best place in the world to observe and photograph whale sharks and proved to be my best ever underwater experience. I had never been in the water with more than one whale shark at a time. But then I had never been to Cenderawasih Bay before. Even as I got into the water for the first time two whale sharks swam by me. Soon there were eight around the bagan. It was sensory overload. Simply incredible:.whale sharks everywhere. And the longer I spent with them, the more I began to respect them. I could be completely surrounded by large whale sharks bumping each other to get to the anchovies. At the same time, seemingly aware of my relative fragility, they would each carefully arch their bodies to avoid hurting me. I knew they were sometimes called the Gentle Giants of the sea. Now I realised why. My dive buddy, Peter Brown even turned whale shark feeder, hand feeding some of the whale sharks with anchovies.
All in all, I enjoyed eleven magical dives with the whale sharks of Tanjung Yaur, Cenderawasih Bay. Eleven dives I will never forget.