Lembeh, Indonesia — NAD Lembeh Resort

NAD - NOMAD ADVENTURE DIVERS. Could it live up to its name? Well, Folks, let me say this right up front. This report will provide you with almost no negatives to consider. Our two-week stay at the NAD Lembeh Resort could not have been more wonderful. So, where to begin? Let's start with that very first impression that one gets upon arrival.

After long and arduous days of travel ...

• Plover to Madison, Wisconsin, USA
• Madison to Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
• Minneapolis to San Francisco, USA
• San Francisco to Jakarta, Indonesia
• Jakarta to Manado

... we arrived in Manado where we were met by NAD Resort staff at Bitung Harbor. After a short, beautiful boat ride from the Harbor we arrived at the Resort, nestled between two hills inside a tranquil bay. It is a sight like this that breathes new life into weary travelers.

We were treated to a cool drink as Serge, Manager of Dive Operations, provided an overview of the resort layout, schedule, dive op, meal routine, and checked dive certifications. We then retreated to our air-conditioned rooms where our bags awaited us.

We explored the grounds before dinner and were delighted to find all kinds of nooks and crannies where one could find a comfortable place to be in solitude or to mingle with other guests and staff.

The dry, Camera Room provided ample space and electrical outlets, high work tables, and towels where one could set up and store camera equipment. Similarly, the computer room was lined with high tables, stools, two computers, outlets for personal computers, a resource library, and lounge furniture.

Next on the agenda - dinner. The dining room is open air with a long table capable of seating all guests. What a wonderful opportunity to meet the neighbors and share stories of the day's diving. A menu announced the specialties available for us at each meal, and food was served buffet style. Each meal was a delicious adventure of flavor and color and cuisine; the quantity and variety satisfactory to even the pickiest eater.

The diving

So with all of our physical needs met to great satisfaction, let's talk about what we're all here for -- the diving! Lembeh Island is known for its muck diving and vast array of critters. So, here is the one shortcoming that might be perceived by some. You will generally not be diving colorful reefs, and you will not likely encounter large pelagics. In Lembeh, you dive the ocean bottom, and you meet the small and smaller ocean critters. It is a macro photographer's dream -- and I didn't wake up for two, glorious weeks!

Boarding our dive boat, Stargazer, we enter a covered area with cubbies for personal belongings and baskets under the seats for our dive gear. Camera rinse tanks are nearby. Each diver has a personal gear basket which is toted to and from the boat by the dive staff. Following each dive day, gear is rinsed and hung/placed carefully for drying. Boat towels are marked with your room number; fresh water, tea, coffee, fruit or pastries are available. As you pass through this covered area, there is open deck space, a tank and gear-up station, and an area where the staff assembles and prepares to meet your every dive need.

At the dive site one of the guides offers a thorough dive briefing which is accompanied by a site map. Dives are generally 75 minutes in length, followed by a full hour surface interval. There are two morning dives and an afternoon dive. Night dives and shore dives are also options. Each group has its own dive guide, and we fell in love with our Joni (pronounced jah-nee). Always a bright smile and witty comment, Joni had the eye of an eagle. I swear he could spot a 1/2-inch critter 3 meters away! I sometimes could not keep up with his spotting. Still photographing one incredible creature, he was off finding another. He also took great joy in helping me to finesse my strobe when I was struggling with lighting. Free instruction - you can't beat that. The visibility was generally good, and there were no significant currents. After a week of incredible dives and sightings, I figured that we had seen it all. But each day brought yet another new critter. It was so amazing that I have to share the list with you. A slideshow of pictures follows this report.

The critter list

• Three Blue-Ring Octopi
• Orange Frogfish
• Napoleon Shrimp
• Humpback Scorpionfish
• Banggai Cardinalfish
• Robust Ghost Pipefish
• Foot-long Pipehorse
• Porcelain Crabs
• Variety of Cleaner Shrimp
• Harlequin Shrimp Pair
• Bubble Coral
• Razorfish
• White Devil Scorpionfish
• Bannerfish
• Grey Shaggy Frogfish
• Red-Lined Sea Cucumber
• Starfish Shrimp and Shell
• One-Inch Sepia Cuttlefish
• Wonderpus Octopi
• Seahorse
• Red-Banded, Purple Bodied Shrimp
• Box Crab
• Map Puffer
• Tiger Shrimp
• Spotted Sweetlips
• Varieties of Lionfish
• Lemon Goby Pair
• Spinecheek Anemonefish
• Black-Saddle Snake Eel
• Black-and-White Mantis Shrimp
• Lembeh Sea Dragons
• Stargazer
• Bubble Decorator Crab
• Boxfish/Cowfish
• Skeleton Shrimp with Eggs
• Leechhead Slug
• Coconut Octopus that tires of us, gathers two shell halves, sits on one, and pulls the other over its head!
• Crab wearing Upside-Down-Jellyfish
• Mantis Shrimp Charging Camera!
• Map Puffer with Eggs
• Siagiani Hairy Squat Lobster
• Fimbriated Moray
• Long Nose Shrimp
• Hairy Shrimp
• Pygmy Cuttlefish 'Zapping' Food
• Nudibranch Eggs
• Upside-Down Jellyfish
• Giant Yellow Frogfish
• Skunk Clownfish
• Network Pipefish
• Crown of Thorns Starfish
• Mantis Shrimp With Eggs
• Coconut Octopus
• Ghost Pipefish
• Hairy Cowry
• A Rainbow of Tunicates
• Whip Coral Shrimp
• Basket Star
• Slender Filefish
• Black-Finned Snake Eel
• Ribbon Eel
• Warty Frogfish
• Sea Cucumber Crab
• Feather Stars Feeding
• Orangutan Crabs
• Golden Cuttlefish
• Anemone Crabs
• Galathea Elegans Squat Lobster
• Big Eye Soldierfish
• Fang Blennies
• Reticulated Starfish
• Snapper Juvenile
• Hairy Frogfish
• Flounders
• Halimeda Crabs
• Fingertip Dragonet
• Red Night Shrimp
• Flamboyant Cuttlefish
• Cockatoo Waspfish
• Burrfish
• Snowflake Eel
• Pygmy Dragonet
• Ghost Pipefish with Eggs
• Flame Helmet Snail
• Coleman's Pygmy Seahorse
• Harlequin Snake Eel
• Juvenile Flying Gurnard
• Trailing Nudibranchs
• School of Striped Catfish
• Crocodile Flathead
• Mandarinfish
• Juvenile Golden Cuttlefish
• Bargibanti Pygmy Seahorse
• Mimic Octopus
• White Painted Frogfish
• Barramundi
• Walking Crinoids
• Napoleon Snake Eel
• Moorish Idols
• Clark Anemonefish
• Tube Anemone
• Big Eye Goby
• Sand Perch
• Red Cushion Starfish
• Feather Pen
• Toby
• Tomato Anemonefish
• Juvenile Ribbon Eel
• Stargazer with Lure Out
• Yellow Shaggy Frogfish
• Rare, White Halimeda Pipefish
• Cardinalfish at Mouth of Anemone
• Decorator Crab With Fire Urchin Atop
• Friendly, Large Cuttlefish
• Tigertail Sea Cuke With Shrimp Pair
• Ornate Ghost Pipefish Pair
• Golden Puffer
• Black-Spotted Puffer
• Sweetlips Juvenile
• Orange Scorpionfish
• Banded Pipefish With Eggs
• Yellow Crinoid Shrimp
• Tiger Shrimp Pair

Nudibranchs

• Chromodoris kuniei
• Chromodoris annae
• Chromodoris fidelis
• Chromodoris magnifica
• Flabellina exoptata
• Halgerda batangas
• Halgerda okinawa
• Jorunna parva
• Nembrotha
• Tambja gabrielae
• Janolus
• Tyroli
• Ceratosoma
• Chromodoris rudiani
• And more, too numerous to mention

And this, my Friends, is a list of only those creatures that I took photos of and can identify or describe! Just another glorious day in paradise. But I can't end this report without introducing you to the rest of the leadership team that makes NAD-Lembeh so very special.

You've met Serge (above), Manager of Dive Operations, and delightfully sassy, Jack-of-All-Trades. Then there's always-smiling and efficient Linda, Office Manager. And the heart of the resort - Owner/Operators, Simon and Zee. I was so impressed with how this young couple manages and operates NAD. Everything runs like a well-oiled machine. The Resort is well designed and well cared for, and they have never-ending ideas for additions, improvements and upgrades. They are available to each guest and respond quickly to any need or request. The relationship between Simon, Zee, their Managers and other staff seems based on a sense of family and mutual respect. They are engaged with guests and work side-by-side with staff whether the project be preparing for dinner, building a new dock, or planting flora.

Perhaps this next observation best depicts who they are as people and managers: NAD-Resort hires two shifts of kitchen staff so that their employees can work reasonable hours and attend to their families as well as their careers! You don't see this type of consideration often; and as a workers' rights activist, that warmed my heart. The other heart-warmer is daughter, Bella, just eight months old at the time of our visit and the apple of everyone's eye. Thanks to each of you for an outstanding trip. I can't wait to return.

VivianMarch 2012