BLUE News
Winter Wonderland
Photo: Red Sea Waterworld
Stories of big animal encounters throughout the Red Sea traditionally kick off
in the spring months, but the 2010 season has started surprisingly early with
increasing reports of dolphins, whale sharks, mantas and even dugongs as far
north as the Sinai resort of Taba.
In early February this year, talk of the town in Taba was of sightings of the rare
and elusive dugong. Andrew Day, general manager of Red Sea Waterworld Taba
Heights said the dugong was spotted about 50m from the shore outside the front
of the Radisson Blue Hotel.
Photo: Reda Juerg Messikh
‘The news generated huge excitement,’ he said. ‘As soon I got the call from Taba
Heights, I jumped in the car and drove down there. Although it was only a brief
glimpse, you can see [picture shown] that it was defi nitely a dugong. There was
always talk of them being around this area because there is a lot of sea grass.
There is a Bedouin camp further south along the coast where one was spotted
last year. I have been here six years and seen a lot of turtles in the sea grass, but
this was the fi rst dugong I have seen.’
Divers from Nesima Dive Centre in Dahab had a whale of a time in the water in
early March when the same shark visited the same group of divers in completely
diff erent areas of the Sinai resort within two days. Whale shark sightings this far
north are extremely rare, and almost unheard of so early in the season.
Gamal Haline was heading south to Gabr El Bint when the whale shark, estimated
to be between 3m and 4m-long, appeared for the fi rst time. ‘We saw it very close
to the surface and the captain came in close,’ said Haline who has been diving in
Dahab for 20 years. ‘The next day I was diving in the north at the Blue Hole with the same group when the whale shark appeared and swam
around us for about 15 minutes underwater. It was defi nitely the same shark. The guests I was diving with were obviously very happy.’
But that wasn’t the fi nal spot. While the story was being recalled to staff based at the dive centre at the seafront in Dahab the afternoon
following the Blue Hole sighting, a whale shark fi n was seen a few hundreds metres away. Although Nesima’s offi ce-based team only caught
a brief glimpse of the shark from the surface, it was thought to be the same one.
Elsewhere throughout the Red Sea during 2010, there have been plenty of reports of dolphin pods, manta rays and a variety of sharks
cruising by divers. One Camel Dive Club instructor, Jim Potter, who has been diving in the area for nearly ten years said he was couldn’t
quite believe it when he saw a 5m-wide manta cruising Jackson Reef in Strait of Tiran close to his group of divers in early March this year.
Director Scorsese sets sail in Sharm
Sinai Yacht Charters said it was thrilled to welcome one of Hollywood’s most famous Oscar-winning directors on board its sailing boat for a
luxury cruise around Sharm el Sheikh. Martin Scorsese, famous for directing such fi lms as Goodfellas, Casino and The Departed, fl ew to the
Red Sea to take time out from Hollywood chartering the 15m-long luxury catamaran Universe Lagoon on New Year’s Eve. ‘Martin, his wife
Helen, and daughter Francesca enjoyed the peace of true sailing, snorkelling the reefs in the Strait of Tiran, and the hospitality of the yacht’s
professional crew,’ said a spokesperson for Sinai Yacht Charters.
www.sinaiyachtcharter.com.
16
www.cdws.travel
Issue 5 March - April ‘10
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