Another call for a dive trip - Mataking
A dive trip I will have to pass as November is one busy month. The trip planned on November end will cost RM2500 for 6days 5nights. So ,where is Mataking? An island in the Celebes Sea.
Celebes Sea
The Sea is in the form of a huge basin, and plunges as deep as 6,200 m.The Celebes Sea is a piece of an ancient ocean basin that formed 42 million years ago in a setting far from any land mass. The border between the Celebes and the Sulu Sea is at the Sibutu-Basilan Ridge.
The Celebes Sea has somewhat attained an international notoriety for its pirates who prey not only on small time fishermen but also giant container ships. Nowadays, these pirates have high-tech weapons and equipments and ride on high-speed motorboats.
Mataking
A Malaysian island known for its beautiful landscape and its underwater richness. Mataking is located on the east coast of Sabah not far from the more renowned island of Sipadan and Mabul. It is one of the latest additions on the diving map of Sabah and is fast becoming a divers haven due to its largely unexplored diving sites. Located to the north of Mabul Island, Mataking is about 3 times the size of Sipadan and is only a 40 minutes boat ride away from the town of Semporna on mainland Sabah.
Just take a look at this breathtaking aerial view.
Oh how I miss this!! Always wanted to go here!Too expensive - probably need to go private practice to maintain my hobby! He!He!
November 1st, 2006 at 4:19 am
That’s beautiful. You should go to relax your mind from domestis stress!
November 1st, 2006 at 8:32 am
Woi.. no need that excuse to go to private one leh!!
Breathtaking is the right word for it, man.
November 1st, 2006 at 8:48 am
wahhhhhhhhhh…superb place….err…bernard..if go private practice..can afford more diving trips…hehe…hor george hor?…
November 1st, 2006 at 4:29 pm
eve - ya lor got more money then more diving in more places and more pictures with bigger camera and etc. etc.etc
November 1st, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Looks nice, but it leaves a big hole in your pocket.Think twice before you decide.
November 1st, 2006 at 4:31 pm
ya Paga isn’t it enchanting .. they postpone the PTK course again so maybe i can go for this cause i may have to skip Pulau weh dive for the stupid PTK. Haiyah! so lembab one KKM. Go private like bernard - no such headaches!!
November 1st, 2006 at 4:33 pm
yes mom, a huge hole like got shot by a bullet.. left bleeding for many months !!
November 1st, 2006 at 4:36 pm
In picture three, you can see a strip of beach connecting Mataking besar and Mataking kecil — you can actually walk across and you know what the beauty is — if a shot is taken with you in the middle - it would look like you are walking on sea with Celebes sea on one side and Sulu sea on the other. Sounds good! Fantasticlah.
November 2nd, 2006 at 1:21 pm
It is beautiful. You should go while you can.
November 21st, 2006 at 6:40 pm
Hi Dr.George, you dont have to stay in Mataking Island if you want to dive there, better option is to stay in Semporna and do a day trip. There are so many islands and dive sites around the east coast of Sabah. Mabul is also a good place to dive. My favourite is Roach Reefs Resort off Tawau, if you are into macro like nudibranch, that’s the place to dive.
February 3rd, 2007 at 9:03 pm
Thanks Anil sorry for the delay in response