I was visiting a friend in Sanur Bali and decided to do some diving in the Amed area, known for its muck diving. I contacted Puri Wirata Dive Resort and Spa and started the 2 hour drive from Sanur to the resort. Breakfast is included in the price of the 1 bedroom condo for 42.00 a night. The room is huge with a king size bed and a nice balcony. They serve lunch and dinner at the resort but I explored the surround area for different dinner options. Italian, local food and French was available, wonderful, all in walking distance.

I stayed at this resort in Nov 2013 for a week of diving. I would give it a 4 star and was very happy with my stay. Their on site dive team are wonderful and very knowledgeable about finding critters that you are looking for. All shore diving, but the guide will help you with your camera. I was interested in muck diving and was not disappointed with what the area had to offer. Big shout out to (Gede) Libra Pogot my dive guide. On one dive site I found 5 ornate pipe fish, had to change the lens to accommodate the group for my return dive. All dive sites are between 10 minutes to 1 hour from the resort, and I opted to stay away from the resort for the 2 morning dives. The third dive was after lunch and I asked for dwarf seahorse areas each day, I was never disappointed. We used a new truck for transport and I rode in the front with the driver.

Underwater Critters: numerous nudibranches and flatworms, pipe fish, frog fish, eels, dwarf seahorses, seahorses, cuttlefish, harlequin shrimp, boxer crab, white manta shrimp, gold and peacock manta shrimp are just a few of my highlights from the week.

Nitrox was free, and each dive was based on a package price. It was very affordable. The packages include all the gear if you want to use theirs instead of packing yours. I used their BCD.

I suggest you bring hard sole bootees for your fins because you will have to walk on slippery rocks and it will be a lot easier.

Did I mention they have 2 swimming pools? You cannot go wrong staying here and diving with their professional team, Bali Reef Divers.

To get to the Lembeh Resort you will need to fly to Manado airport, then you will be picked up by the resorts van for a 80-90 minute ride, then a very short boat ride and you have arrived. I traveled to the resort in Oct of 2013, all transfers went smoothly and all luggage arrived with me. I decided to rent a BCD from the resort, it was in great shape and fit like a glove. I placed all my scuba equipment in the locker provided, and then I went to the camera room to unload my equipment. Wow, what a nice room dedicated to the underwater photographer! Lots of room for your camera, electricity and room to store extra stuff under your table.

The rooms are lovely with air-conditioning and all the amenities you would use at home, blow drier, alarm clock,shampoo, soap, etc. The food was outstanding and varied each day, they also can accommodate special diets. Wine and beer was also available for a cost and snacks are available during the day by the swim pool. The laundry service is at a very low price, so don't over pack.

This was my first time with muck diving and the guides were wonderful explaining the correct way to dive, so when I entered the water I looked like a pro. Most of the dive sites were 15-45 minutes away from the resort on nice size boats, so I never felt crowded. The dive staff are so helpful, and very careful with your equipment. Nitrox is available and can be purchased in your dive package when you book your trip. You have to look beyond the rubbish in the water, and many different critters became apparent to me. Some live in the rubbish, a leather slip on shoe was the home to a coconut octopus, a sprite bottle supported a blenny and half a basketball contained a Devil Scorpion Fish.

My favorite dive sites were Nudi Falls, Hairball 1 thru 3 and Tek 3. Frogfish and unusually nudibranchs was my goal for the week but what a surprise when I kept finding many types of Octopus. The list of small critters I found during my stay is too long to post, instead I think you should experience the muck diving yourself, then we can compare our lists.