www.sharmadventures.com

July/August 2010

 09.08.2010 Location: Ras Za'atar, Ras Mohammad No. 412

Dive Time: 62mins Max. Depth: 30.7m

This was also a morning dive and we did it as Nino wanted to show Hatem a rare species of ghost fish. As it happened he did indeed locate it but as there was a Japanese melee way above us we stayed put at around 28m. I don't like getting caught up with a large group underwater so we stuck to our own plan. This is a lovely wall dive for the first 20mins and reminded me a little bit of Shark Observatory. Lots of Gorgonians and a beautiful florescent pink anemone which I had never seen before. A Napoleon sailed above us in shallow waters on the coral garden. Lots of very pretty coral pinnacles which allowed for ample photos and videos. To finish the day off we got sight of a very large turtle which had just surfaced for air as we were on the way back to Travco. A really lovely day on the boat with two delightful children who were snorkelling with their dad. Aubrey and B snorkelled together and a great finish to a fantastic holiday.

 09.08.2010 Location: Anemone City, Shark and Yolanda Reef No. 411

Dive Time: 61mins Max. Depth: 27.8m

A pod of Humphead dolphins on the route out from Travco proved to be a sign for how the rest of the day would unfold. There must have been around 7 in this group and they enjoyed playing around the boat and showing off their aquatic skills! We were on "Delfinus" but this wasn't to be confused with the Delfinus crew of maybe 5 or 6 years ago. The crew didn't interact nor were they particularly helpful, however the rest of the paying clients were lovely. We were guided by Davina who had guided us before and she was just great. Dropped in deeper than usual on Anemone and unfortunately missed most of the clown fish and anemones which gave the reef it's name. Anyhow the route to Shark reef is always interesting as it's a steep drop off. The jacks and snappers were still hanging in the blue and as we progressed around onto to Yolanda the visibility was dramatically cut down. Hatem later told me this was due to the high water temperature and consequently there was an eerie yellowish colour through the water. Davina was forced to surface early as one of our divers was low on air so Dave, myself and a Russian photographer made our way over the Yolanda wreck where Dave found a huge stone fish and I got sight of an eagle ray. Also saw yet another crocodile fish. Finished the dive after an hour underwater which was just great!

 06.08.2010 Location: Jackson Reef, Tiran No. 412

Dive Time: 56mins Max. Depth: 22.4m

Dived the opposite side of Jackson in hope of seeing the famous hammerheads. Finned out into the blue for a good 15mins but nothing! The reef on this side of Jackson is absolutely beautiful and conditions today allowed for us to visit this side of the reef. It was teeming with wildlife. As we approached the end of the dive a small group of snappers were hanging shallow and as I was filming them Matty got sight of a white tip reef shark further down the reef. What a way to finish a diving holiday!!! It was great. We met a lovely Scottish couple, Dave and Aubrey on the boat and it was a lovely day out. Sharm at it's best today. Thanks Matty for being a great diving buddy and let's hope we can dive together soon in the future...Vanuatu, Truk or Maldives????

 06.08.2010 Location: Jackson Reef, Tiran No. 411

Dive Time: 50mins Max. Depth: 27.7m

A day on the boat doesn't get much better than this! An early start yes but worth it to avoid the queue at Sharks Bay Jetty. Onto dive boat New Age with a super crew and first dive was the conventional route on Jackson. Managed to get a little deeper and further down the reef due to lack of current on first part of the dive. Consequently saw a large shoal of Banner Fish which was really lovely. Plethora of small wildlife on the route back with a classic view of the large salad coral from below. Just a perfect way to complete Matty's final day of diving. Fantastic dive guide Davina just let us be and was super chillaxed!

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Chris Carney's Gear

Apex regulator with Scubapro octopus & console (pressure, depth gauge & compass)

Buddy Explorer BCD

Harness weightbelt with separate pockets.

3mm shorty wetsuit for summer, 5 mm full & 2.5mm vest for Spring

Proear mask

Oceanic split fins

Uwatec Aladin Sport computer

Fuji Finepix digital camera & housing

3ltr pony cylinder with BCD attachment

Geographical Location

Sharm el Sheikh is situated on the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula. Geographically, it lies along the Red Sea coast with Dahab, Nuweiba and Taba to the north. If you continue south along the coast road through Sharm el Maya the road takes the route to El Tor, the Sinai's administrative capital or braches off towards Cairo and the Suez canal. Sharm comprises of many districts and has now 3 main areas: Sharm el Maya (Old Sharm), Naama Bay and the newer development of Nabq. The coastal region ranges from Tiran in the north to Ras Mohammad in the south and both these areas are National Parks. Read more about the dive sites in the "Diving" section of this website. The international airport lies north close to the Nabq National Park and not that far from the spectacular Tiran coral reefs of Jackson, Thomas, Gordon and Woodhouse (incidentally named after the 19th century British cartographers). Tiran Island which lies just off the coast is strictly a no go area which is a military base owned by Saudi Arabia. The mountainous area to the back provides several opportunities for desert riding and the New Year Day camel races, which is excellent fun! Lying between Sharm el Maya and Naama Bay are the residential areas of Hadaba, El Noor, Delta Sharm, Roysat and El Rabwa to name a few. Most of the hotels tend to be situated along both sides of the main road (Peace Road) through Naama Bay but with so much development taking place the hotels can now be found in Nabq and Old Sharm. When I first visited Sharm in 1997 and stayed at the Tropicana Tivoli in Hadaba there was very little built but now the residential area of Hadaba with it's own shops and community has developed at an alarming rate. The capital of Sinai is El Tor. This is the administrative capital of Sinai and more than 90% of it's population work in the government buildings. Residential & work visas can be purchased here and it's a good idea to go early in the morning as it's a first come first served basis. I had to go to El Tor recently to sign over power of attorney for my lawyer here in Sharm and it took all morning. The town itself contains government buildings and apartments for it's workers. I had lunch there a few years ago and although it looks a bit like a one horse town the food was great and cost less than £3.00 for 2 of us!

Sharm El Maya

Sharm el Maya is situated south of Naama Bay. It's at the end of Peace Road which takes you through Naama Bay, past the districts of El Noor and Delta Sharm. Historically it was the first development and it still retains much more of a traditional Egyptian atmosphere compared to Naama Bay. The Tiran Centre, a shopping mall, had to be rebuilt in 2005 as a result of the terrorist attacks which blew the front part of the Mall open. There are plenty of shops particularly jewellry, household products and a very good diving shop called "Beyond Limits". I managed to purchase 2 proear masks there in 2006 and thank goodness as I was able to continue diving once my ears had recovered. There are plenty of restaurants but be advised that most aren't licensed. You can however purchase booze from several outlets including one opposite the first market entrance. The restaurants in the Tiran Centre are licensed but those in the market aren't. The Red Sea Restaurant and Sinai Star are both excellent fish haunts and very reasonably priced too. Please see the "Food & Drinks" top tips for more information. It's also worth mentioning that you can purchase cheap fruit and vegetables in the market. There are 2 market entrances and it's more or less on a rectangular grid with lots of back street bakeries selling the most wonderful flat breads at ridiculously cheap prices. My nephew Jack just loved mooching and searching for the cheapest bread when he first came out in 2004. Unfortunately the chicken slayer has long since gone which is a real pity as I use to pick out a couple of live birds, do the rest of my shopping and pick them up on the way back to Hadaba. They were the sweetest chickens ever and were a treat on my BBQ! They killed all the birds as a result of bird flu and no marks for guessing what they did to the pigs as a result of swine flu! Hence, the wonderful pork ribs at the China House are no longer on the menu! You can catch a bus from Naama Bay to Old Sharm for 2LE and don't pay more than 20LE for a private taxi.

Naama Bay

If you catch a mini bus into Naama Bay you can also call it "Marina" as most of the drivers refer to it as that. You will either love it or hate it! Naama Bay is where most of the hotels are situated and it's usually very busy particularly during the summer months. There are two main streets which are both pedestrianised (not the case back in 1997) and are teeming with restaurants, shops and Shisha Bars. You will find most of the Egyptians serving you are men as they work in Sharm but have wives and families elsewhere, mostly in Cairo. Sharm is wholly dependent on tourism and as a result most of the workers can be quite aggressive sellers and it does wear you down after a while. They are amazingly adaptable and most have a working knowledge of English, Russian, Italian, German and French. There are plenty of bars and restaurants and most are licensed but are a bit more expensive than down town Sharm. The famous "Camel Bar" is situated on the main street and has an open area at the top with soft lighting which is great for chilling if you are in a group. In the evening the open area restaurants have spectacular lights to attract tourists and I noticed this holiday some have dancers to attract the punters. The Hard Rock cafe will cater for western tastes but during the summer months you may have to queue to get inside as it's very popular. Naama Bay has plenty of cash machines and money changers and it's best to shop around for the best exchange rates. One of my favourite haunts is the Lido at the Iberotol. The bar serves great cocktails and in the evening the wooden decking provides a great view of all of Naama Bay, spectacularly lit up. They have just recently installed a rather large flat screen which shows most of the big European soccer matches and will be a bonus for soccer fans during the world cup this summer 2010.

Nabq

The area of Nabq has only been developed since about 2003. It is situated north of the airport and past another residential area of Montassa. There are hotel complexes and apartment developments and has the advantage of being perhaps a couple of degrees cooler due to the prevailing winds which are common in this area. The island of Tiran is close by as are the fabulous coral reefs of Gordon, Thomas, Woodhouse and Jackson. Further north is the National Park area. It's possibly a good 30 mins by car from Naama Bay but is now developing rapidly and is self contained with shops, restaurants, apartment complexes and hotels. A lot of apartments have been sold to holiday makers and there is a growing market here of buy to rent. At this time of writing 2 bedroom apartments can be bought for about £45K with access to the beach and swimming pools. I don't have a lot more information regarding Nabq as I simply don't venture up there when I'm in Sharm. I shall take a look when I'm next out in July 2010 and update this page then.