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Snorkeling Trip to Manem Islet
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Manem is an islet near Numfor island. It is a tropical island that is located in Cendrawasih bay (formerly known as Geelvink baai during the Dutch period until 1962) of Papua. I went there on a snorkeling trip on 28 October 2010. I and three Dutch tourists (Wally, Trudy and Lian Schepers) went there by boat. It took around one hour from Numfor (or Noemfoor eiland) to Manem. The islet was very beautiful. Nobody lives in the island. Tropical rainforest covers all part of the island making it an ideal place for nature lovers who want to spend several days of their holiday period camping, swimming, bird watching and snorkeling.
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Pristine coral reef thrive around the Manem island. When I arrived on the beach, I told the boat driver to show me places where there are coral reefs. He asked me to walk to a small cape and said that the corals in the region are very good especially in deeper waters. I saw that it was within 100 meters from the beach. Because it was my first time snorkeling in the area, I asked him to accompany me. I did not wear any floating jacket. I only used my snorkeling mask and snorkel to help me breath in the water. The boat driver pulled a big piece of wood to help him float while guiding me snorkeling in the water.
We began swimming slowly to deeper waters. While taking some photographs, I noticed that my digital camera could not take underwater pictures anymore. I was running out of power. I immediately call my snorkeling guide to stop swimming into the deeper area. We had to return to the beach. When I get back to the beach, I told Wally Schepers that I was running out of battery power. He offered his extra battery but it was not fit into my camera. Our digital cameras were manufactured by Sony. They were digital still photo camera Cyber-shot. But they were from different types. That's why I couldn't use his extra battery. Wally suggested another idea. He offered me to use his camera. I only need to take out my memory card and insert it into his camera. So, I did what he told me to.
After inserting the camera into the underwater camera case, I went to the sea again. This time I asked the boat driver to bring us by his outrigger boat. We were accompanied by two Papuans who worked as boat crews. This time Lian Schepers went with us. We snorkeled for around one hour. While I was snorkeling near the reef wall, I heard some noisy sounds not far from me. Not long after that, I heard people were shouting, "dolphins, dolphins." Because I was busy taking pictures of the coral reef and the ornamental fish that live on the bottom of the sea, I did not pay attention. When I had returned to the beach again, Mrs. (Trudy) Schepers told me that the dolphins were playing close to where I was snorkeling. I took pictures of the corals up to the coral wall of the Manem islet. After that there were no coral reefs because it was very-very deep beyond the wall.
The underwater pictures that you see in this article could not have been made without digital camera waterproof case. I bought this case from an online camera store. It was manufactured by Dicapac - a Korean company and can withstand water pressure up to 10 meters. The part that covers the lens is made of polycarbonate. This material provides a clear view of the subjects that we want to shoot. It is compatible to various types of camera. The type of waterproof camera case that I used was WP-410. If you are interested in visiting Numfor islet and Manem island for bird watching, snorkeling and other eco-tourism activities in the region, you can contact me Charles Roring via my email: peace4wp@gmail.com, I will be happy to be your guide. Please, read: Snorkeling Tour Package in Manokwari bay
As a nature lover and travel writer, I provide guiding service to tourists who want to travel around the Manokwari regency and Numfor island as an effort to help the local Papuan people get alternative jobs from the eco-tourism industry. I hope that through this project, Papuan indigenous people will not easily be tempted to cut trees in their beautiful tropical rainforest, will not shoot birds for unreasonable cause, and will not destroy coral reefs.
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Travel Guide Manokwari
The following articles are my recommendation, stories and experience when guiding foreign tourists who come to Manokwari of West Papua to enjoy the beauty of its natural scenery and the hospitality of the indigenous people. This website is aimed at promoting eco-tourism in the region to create jobs among the indigenous people and awareness among us about the importance of protecting and preserving tropical rainforest that is now facing extinction due to rapid deforestation.
Happy Traveling
Charles Roring (click to e-mail me)
Tourist Guide
If you want to read more stories about travel in Manokwari of West Papua, you can see my other blogs at the following addresses:
Papuan Art and Culture Stories
My personal diary on Manokwari Eco-tourism activities
