Koh Chi, Surin Islands and Richelieu Rock: A Day of Diving in Thailand
Koh Chi and the Surin Islands
19 November marked the first day of our Best of Thailand cruise, and we started our adventure at the Surin Islands, at North Pass.
A mantis shrimp and a very cute juvenile sweetlips were there to greet us…
Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides, commonly known as the harlequin sweetlips, is a species of grunt native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. It is found around coral reefs at depths ranging from 1 to 30 metres.
The reef was also highly populated with moray eels of all kinds. Moray eels, belonging to the family Muraenidae, are found throughout the world’s tropical and subtropical oceans, with approximately 200 recognised species.
Home of the Barramundi…
We were now at the southern part of the Surin Islands, at Yellow Rock, a place where you can find the very rare and shy barramundi. It is a fish belonging to the grouper family.
We jumped in and found a very strong current, which made every movement challenging but also made the dive incredibly exciting. It was amazing to see a school of oriental sweetlips facing the current in a perfect, almost aeroplane-like formation.
All the reef fish that were not strong enough to deal with such a powerful current were peeping their heads out from the reef, allowing us to get remarkably close to them.
Crystal-Clear Water at Richelieu Rock…
We went straight to Richelieu Rock…
Today, the visibility was outstanding. As we descended along the mooring line, we were greeted by a large school of longfin batfish, one of my favourite fish.
We continued around the rock, stopping to take plenty of pictures. The reef was literally covered by huge schools of yellowstripe fusiliers, and before long we found ourselves surrounded by barracudas. They were cruising calmly around the pinnacle while tunas hunted alongside rainbow runners and trevallies.
It was a never-ending dance of fish and movement — beautiful!
