5 Ways To Have A Clear Head and Ears To Enjoy Your Diving Expedition

Here at our Dive Center - we dive an awful lot, it’s important to take care of yourself properly. It’s extremely important to take care of your ears. It’s not any fun to sit back on the boat for a diving expedition while everybody else is enjoying some dive time.  Is that something you really want to do? Of course not!

One of the biggest issues that can affect your enjoyment of diving is congestion. After all, the stuffiness in your head causes you to feel less than spectacular for doing anything… much less diving. When you’re congested the inflamed mucosa within the tubes causes the opening to shrink, and it’s harder for you to get air in and equalize pressure. And, if the mucus is sticky, it keeps the openings clogged, making it next to impossible to open up the tubes.

However, there is some hope!

There are several ways in which to contend with a stuffy head and have fun during your diving expedition:

Flush Your Ears Out

There are many kinds of nasal irrigation systems you can use that will clear your head. Some commonly used systems include:

• Ayr Sinus Rinse
• NeilMed’s Sinus Rinse

These systems can flush the sticky mucus out, clearing out irritants that cause the mucosa to inflame and arouse the cilia to work better in maintaining clear passages.

A study of 100 divers that had ear-clearing troubles found that 69 percent used the nasal irrigation and saw improvements. 60 percent said they used oral decongestants on a regular basis, but would take less or none at all after using the nasal irrigation system. Yes, it sounds gross; but think of the immediate improvement you’ll feel from using it. 

Why do the irrigation systems work better? They work instantly and don’t cause any stinging sensation. They work because they mechanically rinse the crusted or thick mucus out in places that are hard to reach. They also decrease the swelling within the mucosa, allowing air to freely move in and out.

Hydration

When you’re dehydrated, mucus will become thick and clump up. Therefore, you need to drink a lot of water, which you can tell you’re doing when your urine is clear, so the mucus will thin out and be less sticky. This also ensure the Eustachian tubes function properly.  Most boats allow people an unlimited amount of water during the trip.

Avoid Any Dairy Products

Dairy products have a tendency to boost the production of mucus, which is why you should not consume any two or three days before your diving expedition.

Steer Clear Of Additives

Additives can cause migraine headaches and lead to congestion and hearing issues too. Steer clear of chocolate, red wine, cheeses and other foods that include MSG or nitrites several days before you go diving.

Take Medication

While this method should be proceeded with caution and not last for more than three to five days, you can use 60mg of Sudafed or other pseudoephedrine product to give you a clearer head. Sudafed and products like it do have side effects.

If you go diving, it can cause your heart to race and may even cause men to be unable to pee. It’s imperative to know how your body will handle the medication before your diving excursion.

Another important note about using these types of products is that it can lead to nutrition absorption and boost your chances for oxygen toxicity.

Our Komodo Dive Center is not exactly in the heart of civilization, and we need to make sure we all stay safe and sound.

Read Full Story...

Komodo DayTrip: Diving in Paradise

Komodo Island is a paradise for divers. Because so many very best spots here. And also rich festival of fish. Already many people praising and admiring the beauty of the marine park Komodo Island. There are so many activities that can be done while in Komodo and want to enjoy the beauty of the sea at Komodo Island. Komodo Liveaboard an activity favored, because we seemed to be a Pirate or The Trully adventure. And the Komodo Liveaboard also, you will be able to enjoy so much enjoying the experience as much Spot Diving along with fellow "Pirates". One place that can be recommended is the Wicked Diving. That can make your dream come true to enjoy the beautiful Dive in Komodo.

 

Read Full Story...

What We Saw During Our Crystal Rock Dive

One of our favorite dive sites - Komodo Dive center insider tips!

We wanted to beat the crowds, so we woke up early to check out Crystal Rock. What makes Crystal Rock so popular and famous? There are many reasons but the key reason is that it provides “crystal-clear visibility”.  It’s got a mild current, and allowing people like ourselves to explore the site, which includes checking out the amazing coral encrusted pinnacles, at a pace people are comfortable with.

Just behind the main rock, we saw a large school of surgeonfish and long fin bannerfish.  Think of it has a safety stop in life’s aquarium. It had large pool of white tip reef sharks to boot. This is Komodo!

Of course, this isn’t all the things that Crystal Rock has to offer. Other things can be seen as well such as macro critters like hairy squat lobsters that can be seen along the barrel sponges and the ever-so-rare pygmy seahorse.  We happened to see a really bright seahorse. That was so cool! We didn’t think the dive could be any better, but we were wrong.

We found huge trevallies in a feeding frenzy in the shallow waters. They dove into their prey – several white-tipped sharks – leading to a large amount of activity before we even knew it. Everybody had a great time on the dive.

Since this was not enough - we chose to do some more dive sites as well!

Our final dive day consisted of The Lighthouse – we thought we’d see a beautiful reef loaded with life. What we didn’t expect to see what the four manta rays that were swimming over our heads. We also saw a black tip reef shark and pygmy seahorse. It was a reminder that anything could happen in Komodo. We spent the remainder of the day talking about the dive. 

We also enjoyed the Gili Lawa Darat with another group of Australians in the “Extreme Beach Cleans”. The sunset along the hilltop allowed us to relax, even while we did some yoga poses on the cliff edge. We began a second day of diving at Siaba Kecil, perhaps the quickest drift dive in the whole Park. The reef sped past us. And, in the dive’s latter half we were able to relax in style, gently drifting along the coral garden and watching the hawksbill and green turtles.

Heading back to our Komodo Dive Center - as the sun slowly sank below Komodo Island, we all sat back, relaxed and enjoyed stories of this amazing day. And planned for our next ones too! 

Read Full Story...

Shark Education Of The Komodo Area: What People Can Learn About Our Region

Everyone from our Komodo Dive Center are serious about shark education in the Komodo area. All during August on the SY Jaya, Wicked Diving transforms its guests into SSI Shark Divers.

Guests can go through an array of informative briefings and dive with all kinds of creatures to get an up close look at the fascinating species of manta ray. We offer Special Manta Ray education trips, providing our passion and knowledge about the underwater world – something we were born to do.

On top of that, we’ve collected some important sightings information that adds to the Shark Savers’ Shark Count program. With our guests, we’ve been able to add to sightings from more than 60 separate dives in August. Think of Citizen Science at its very best. 

The majority of folks – water babies, snorkelers and divers – understand the threats sharks face, but it never hurts to have a reminder, which is something we often hear from our guests. We’re proud to hear this message is being going further than our storytelling and guest blogs, especially coming from guests who live in countries where shark products are consumed or where shark fishing is common.

Like any big issue in life, people have the power to make the changes that are necessary to keep the world a great place.

Currently there are very few comprehensive management programs for sharks anywhere in the world, yet many species are listed by the IUCN as ‘near threatened’ to extinction.

Wicked Diving offers a unique opportunity to benefit the local community, improve the world around us and have a great diving vacation! We use 2% of all income to support local projects that support the local community, marine research or marine conservation (or all three!). When you dive with Wicked, you make a difference.

Departures from our Labuan Labuan Bajo dive Center happen throughout the year and you can join these at anytime. Please contact us for more information!

Read Full Story...

Komodo Dive Center: Liveaboard Trip Report

Our twice weekly live aboard departed from the Komodo Dive Center on a clear morning with plenty of happy guests. As always, pre-trip briefings, safety orientation and a big breakfast was enjoyed by all!

The first part of the trip include an stunning initial dive along North Point. The reef along Kanawa is highly known for the macro life, allowing us to spot lionfish, flatworms, nudibranchs, moray eels and a host of other fishes. It was certainly a great start to the Komodo escapade. This set the tone for the rest of the trip and the happy guests!

On the second day, we managed to explore a few more of the Park’s famous most dive sites. We first checked out the Cauldron, which is well-known for its large first, amazing coral garden and fast drift. We were able to see a hawksbill turtle and white tip reef shark, which made everyone have high expectations. The Cauldron didn’t lead to any disappointments.

At the beginning of the dive, some folks were lucky to see the rare pygmy seahorse on a sea fan. They were also around the “Fishbowl” of the Cauldron, which included an array of fish such as giant trevally, surgeonfish and midnight snapper. 

Another spot on our excursion was Castle Rock, which allowed divers to explore an incredible area. You see, this spot is known for people being able to see sharks, and it certainly maintained its reputation. We hovered on the edge of the slope and came across several white tipped reef sharks that circled around us while they played in the currents.  We also saw a school of mackerel and dogtooth tuna, as well as the elusive pygmy seahorse and the leaf scorpionfish among the coral.

We drifted along the central rock area, diving into the feeding frenzy where giant trevallies were eating neon fusiliers. That was how we ended that dive!

Our final dive took us to Crystal Rock, named for its often crystal-clear visibility. We were among the rocks when we saw white tips swimming around the blue and, suddenly out of nowhere, we were shocked to see the biggest shark we’ve seen all day. It’s not often to see an excessive number of grey reef sharks – a real treat for everybody there.

The next day of the dive, we checked out Mauan, a beautiful, colorful coral reef that should be best enjoyed at a slow pace. We also seen hundreds of neon fusiliers in the area. Plus, the current allowed us to check out the green turtles, banded seasnakes and huge puffer fish.

We ended the trip with an amazing sunset, a huge meal and a great new friends. OF course we invited everyone back to join us again to Dive Komodo.

Overall, all of it made for an exhilarating dive trip through Komodo National Park!

Read Full Story...

4 Types Of Sharks You Could See in Komodo

Visitors to our Dive Center many think a shark is just a shark. Gray or white, and something to be feared in the water. Now granted, sharks have been known to attack humans. So, a fear of them is generally justified.  However, here’s what you should understand: there are more to sharks than meets the eye and what you have heard. In fact, there are all kinds of sharks including but not limited to: 

• White Tip
• Black Tip
• Gray Reef
• Brown Banded and Tawny Nurse

A Look At Each Shark Species

White Tip Reef Sharks

These sharks, which are extremely slim, get their name for two reasons: they have a white tip on their caudal fin and dorsal and are seen living near the reef.  During the daytime, they hide themselves in crevices. The really young can rest under the table corals. They breathe using the buccal pumping method, meaning water is actively being pumped over the gills. Of course, the white tip reef sharks can also be seen swimming along the reef slope.

Black Tip Reef Sharks 

This sharks a little different from the white tip reef sharks in that they’re much stockier. They are generally seen along the ocean’s sandy bottoms and reef slopes. In order to get a glimpse of these sharks, people must keep a watchful eye, as they blend in fairly well with their surroundings.  The little baby black tip sharks are often seen in shallow water, near the beach. In order to protect themselves, they stick to mangroves. These sharks are identified by their black tips on both the caudal fin and dorsal, have a light gray color to them and get reach up to two meters long.

Gray Reef Sharks 

These sharks are generally seen less frequently, as they tend to stay in the deeper slopes of the ocean. These fat sharks, which have black edges on their pectoral fins and caudal fins, usually travel much farther than the black and white tip reef sharks.

Tawny Nurse and Brown Banded Sharks

These sharks reside at the bottom. They’ve got tails that provide them with stability, more so than the other types of sharks. One common shark seen around Karang Makassar is the bamboo shark, which can measure up to 1.18 meters long. The Tawny nurse shark can grow to more than three meters.

Sharks feed on various bony fish, crustaceans and cephalopods such as parrotfish, snappers, lobsters, shrimp and squids.  Many of the sharks seen are on the IUCN Red List for Vulnerable or Near Threatened, mainly geared toward the Shark Fin Soup, which is offered in China.

When it comes to the ecosystem, sharks play an important part. If an excessive number of sharks are removed, it means there’s a plethora of fish that’ll eat the plankton. And, when there’s not enough plankton, then there’s not enough oxygen being generated.  Most people don’t realize that 80 percent of the oxygen people are breathing in is generated from the ocean.

Sharks are a key part of the ocean’s ecosystem and certainly the highlight of anyone’s visit to our Komodo Dive Center. We offer daily trips, liveaboards, courses and so much more.

Read Full Story...