Dive Sites Of Krabi2nd Edition

Thanaporn Boonyanon

Stewart Whitfield

The 2nd edition of “The Dive Sites of Krabi” has

been expanded to include more maps, including a

section for the cave diving community, more

photos, and more information about the area in

general.

Underwater mapping is an imperfect science at the

best of times. We have tried to make all the maps

as accurate as possible but please be aware the

depths may vary with the tide, and navigation is

often made difficult by poor visibility and

strong currents.

The authors of this guide have spent the better

part of the last decade diving these sites out of

Ao Nang. Some of the sites listed may be known by

different names to those diving out of Phi Phi,

Lanta, or Phuket.

All of the photographs, with one or two

exceptions, were taken in this area by the

divemasters and instructors that work the sites.

If there is anyone out there who would like to

see their photos in the next edition then please

contact us via our website.

We hope all who use this guide appreciate the

quality of diving in this area, promote safe

diving, avoid touching or collecting anything

from the reef, and do their utmost to preserve

the reef for the next generation of divers.

Starfish by Yumi Endo

The Deep South

Watch Out For Speedboats Here

Shrimp and Gobies All Over The Sand

Here

Beautiful Shallow Coral Up Here

Big Groupers Always Here

Funny Coral Here

Blac

ktip R

eef

Shar

ks

The Cave

The Wall

The Chimney

The Deep North

Sting Rays18m

16m

12m

8-12m

12m

8m

10m

18-20m12-14m

8m

18m

10-12m

14m

5m

10-12m

18-22m

10m 12-14m

18m

18-20m

5m

5m

5m

5m

Juvenile Tigertail by Uwe Rupalla

Koh Sii is by far the most popular of the local sites, and the island is often crowded with snorkelers as well as dive boats. The deepest parts of Koh Sii are at the north and south ends, and here the fringe reef drops to a

little over 20 meters. Like all the local sites, the island is surrounded by healthy hard coral, though many places

on Koh Sii offer beautiful soft coral gardens that rival anything on Phi Phi.

There is a large cave here that you can enter on the surface, and it’s fun to start your dive here by descending and

then exiting through the narrow archway at the back of the cave. Dont try that if the conditions are surgey! The

north east side of Ko Sii is a long wall that stretches for 80 meters, (I measured it once), and it is here that you

have the best chance of finding Tigertail Sea Horses - in fact the opposite photo was taken on the wall.

The pinnacles at the southern end are usually home to a large school of Big Eye Snapper and also a school of juvenile

Barracuda. Large resident Groupers also live here but they are very shy and normally only the lead diver sees them.

Be particularly careful of boats when surfacing here - always put up an SMB, or surface on the buoy line that your

boat is tied up on.

Maya Corner

Swim thru 18m

Swim thru 14m

Deep Pinnacles 16-22m

Wall

18m

20m

18m

18m

16m

18m

12m

16m

14m

8m

16m

Turtles always!!

Froggy used to live here

Look for Sea Horses

Watch out for speed boats when surfacing in the bay!!

Beautiful Sea Fans

Check for Mantis Shrimpin the sand

South To Maya Corner

Maya Corner is the name given to the dive that takes you into or out of Maya Bay to the north. There are two beautiful swim-thrus very near the true corner, and these are clearly marked on the map opposite. They are

normally crowded with many different species of fish, and are dripping in soft coral inside and out.

After the swim thrus, continuing out of the bay, there is a handful of deeper pinnacles with very healthy coral

coverage, lots of pelagics, and Bpow and I both dived with a Whale Shark here in October 2008.

The reef that continues on towards Maya Nui is a sloping hard coral reef that hits the sand anywhere between 12 - 18

meters. There are plenty of pinnacles and boulders off in the sand, and these are normally covered in soft corals.

Maya Corner is home to many of Phi Phi’s Hawkesbill Turtles - I have never dived here without seeing at least one, and

often up to six different individuals. For many seasons there was a Warty Frogfish here that probably became the

single most photographed fish in Thailand. Funny how I dont have a picture of him - if anyone wants to donate one for

the next edition, please send me one.

Many rare species have been sited here over the years, including the elusive Harlequin Shrimp, Robust Ghost Pipefish,

Whale Sharks, and even Eagle Rays.

Ghost Pipefish By Yumi Endo

Bida Nai is the smaller of the two Bida Island, but by no means the lesser dive site. The southern side is a beautiful hard coral garden that slopes from the surface down to the sand at around

18 meters at its deepest point. The east side is similar, though much of the shallower areas are

carpeted with Anemones. Off to the south east lies a large garden of Staghorn Coral, that eventually

gives way to a distant pinnacle known as Fantasy Reef.

The north and west faces of the island are vertical walls that hit the sand at around 20 - 25 meters,

sloping away to over 30 meters in the deepest sections. The wall sections of Bida Nai are awesome,

with large schools of pelagics often lurking in the blue. Soft Coral coverage is very good here, all

the way from the surface to the sand.

Providing the current is negotiable, you can easily circumvent the island in one hour, though an hour

can also be spent just exploring the fringe reef of the southern side and the beautiful Fantasy Reef.

Ghostpipe on Red Seafan by Yumi Endo

Bida Nai

GPS Co Ordinates98.45.934E 07.39.389N

Hin Bida ia a little visited dive site about one kilometer past the Bida Islands. It's a very large reef that

rises from the sand at about 25 meters all the way to the surface. One side has a field of Staghorn Coral that goes

on forever - don't go out there, you'll get lost!

The reef itself resembles a splayed, three fingered hand, and it’s the fingers and sandy patches between that offer

the best coral and most fish life. Leopard Sharks are very common here and are often found resting on the sand in

the deeper areas of Hin Bida. For those of you who are unsure what Fire Coral looks like, It’s everywhere here - the

brown coral, (actually it’s not a coral), with tiny white hairs. Dive guides remember to warn your divers about that

in the briefing.

Something worth looking out for here are the Cuttlefish, particularly the Pharaoh Cuttlefish, which are considerably

bigger than the other more common species found throughout the Phi Phi sites. They have a very distinct blue and

white pattern over their body, and can often been seen courting.

Hin Bida is also home to the only angry Triggerfish in the whole area..... he will attack you so be ready when you

see him!

Cuttlefish by Sammi

GPS Co Ordinates98.46.034E 07.39.238N

20m

20m

20m

16m

16m

12m

12m12m

16m

14m

6m

Reef breaks surface on a low tide

Stag Garden

Chromodoris fidelis Cromodoris annulata Hypselodoris bullockii

Cromodoris geminus Jorunna funebris Dermatobranchus ornatus

Halgerda tesselata Ceratosoma trilobatum Nembrotha cristata

Nudibranch means ‘naked gills’, and in most species the gills are indeed outside the body as in the picture

above. Hardly a dive season goes by without finding a new Nudi that I have never seen before. At the moment my

favourite place to find cool Nudibranches is on the artificial reef at Viking Bay. They are of course found on all the

dive sites in this guide, and you dont need to look for long to find one. The species in the above photograph is one of

the more common in this area, and is often seen tailgating its prospective mate.

On those days when the vis is down, a great dive can still be had searching out these brightly coloured critters. The

local islands close to Ao Nang are teeming with Nudis, as is the wall section of Ao Nui, the collapsed wheel house of

the King Cruiser, and the previously mentioned Pyramid at Viking Bay.

Risbecia pulchella

Dive Sites Of Krabi2nd Edition

Thananporn Boonyanon

Stewart Whitfield