Reef Sharks in Lombok’s Gili Islands
Reef sharks are relatively common in the Indo-Pacific and we get excited every time we see one around the Gili Islands! Here at Two Fish Divers Gili Air, there is nothing we like more than seeing a shark gracefully swim passed us! Sharks are curious and often seem to look at us as though we are underwater “aliens” visiting their home. Black tip and white tip reef sharks are the most common reef sharks seen around the Gilis, although we do not see them as frequently as we would like. Sharks are a critical part of the underwater ecosystem and have a very unfair reputation among humans due to popular myths propagated by Hollywood movies. Shark attacks on humans are remarkably rare and, like other marine creatures, are most likely to attack humans either to defend themselves or mistaking people for food (for example, a surfer paddling on the surface may be mistaken for a seal). In fact, humans pose an extreme danger to shark populations while humans are more at risk of getting struck by lightning than being attacked by a shark! Sharks need our protection in order to keep our oceans alive, and you can learn more about this by taking our AWARE Shark Conservation Specialty Course! You’ll learn all about the importance of sharks to the ecosystem and what we can all do to help protect them.
The holiday season crept up on us and Gili Air got a bit busier with holiday travellers. We welcomed the lovely Bezuidenhout family for several days of fun diving with our team after two of them completed their Advanced Open Water course at Two Fish Divers South Lombok with instructor Dom. We always love to see a family diving together!
Thunder and lightning storm over the Gili Islands
We’ve been getting a little bit of rain in the afternoons, which is much needed to cool things down. The rain doesn’t usually last more than an hour, but it brings with it some incredible stormy views! We managed to catch this thunderhead (picture above) as the lightning occurred.
Chris and Rowan joined us from Sengiggi for some fun dives to practice some photography and we hope to have them back soon and share some of their photos! We have also had the pleasure of welcoming Diya and Max to Gili Air to begin their PADI Junior Open Water Course! They are staying with their family in Sengiggi and making the day trip over to us to complete their certification. Diya and Max attend school in Shanghai, where the school operates dive trips to Thailand each year so we are excited to get them trained and certified so they can join their friends on the trip next year!
The new year is almost upon us and we are looking forward to exploring the dive sites around the Gilis and Lombok, training new PADI Divemasters in Gili Air and welcoming people from all over the world to experience the beautiful diving Indonesia has to offer!
If you’d like to join us or would like more information, fill in the form below and we will get right back to you!
