Menjangan & West Bali · Indonesia · Wall · Reef
Temple Wall
Rich soft coral in 5 to 7 m under the island's temples
Photo: Chafidwahyu · CC BY-SA 4.0
On the east side of Menjangan, below the temples that give the site its name, the shallow ground is thick with soft coral in 5 to 7 m - shallow enough that it is recommended for snorkelling as well as diving. It carries a long macro list: giant frogfish, pygmy seahorses, scorpion fish and flounder, with hawksbill turtles over the coral.
Where it is and how deep
8.0923° S, 114.5268° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The temples on the shore above give the site its name and its landmark, so you can pick the line of the dive from the boat before you get in. The shallow ground is the draw: rich soft coral in only 5 to 7 m, shallow enough that the site doubles as the island's snorkelling stop and shallow enough that a dive here can run as long as your interest does.
Work slowly and it becomes a critter dive. Giant frogfish sit still and well camouflaged, pygmy seahorses hold onto the fans, scorpion fish and lion fish wait on the coral, and flounder lie in the sand patches between. Moray eels are in the holes, snapper and trigger fish move along the edge, and hawksbill turtles come over the shallow coral.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
- Frogfish
- Pygmy seahorses
- Macro critters
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good |
Season follows Menjangan & West Bali: Divable all year thanks to the lee of Java; Apr–Nov is driest, and the wet season only affects surface conditions.
Photos from Temple Wall
Chafidwahyu · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dive videos
Pemuteran Bay - Temple wall and Close encounters · Under the surface on YouTube
Sources
- Temple Wall — Scubago (SSI MyDiveGuide)
- Diving Menjangan Island: Full Review & Tips — Divezone
- West Bali National Park — Wikivoyage
Photo credits
- Dive boats moored in clear shallow turquoise water below the temple shrine on Menjangan's cliff, reef visible underwater. by Chafidwahyu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Dive boats anchored off Menjangan Island with the cliffside temple visible among the trees above the shoreline. by Chafidwahyu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In The Logbook
- Frogfish: species, behaviour and where to diveMacro & muck · 12 min read
More dive sites in Menjangan & West Bali
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Sea fans and frogfish on a wall, a 150-year-old wreck below
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Reef
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Wall
Steep wall from 3 m to 45 m, running east into hard coral
Wall
Sea fans down a 40 m face between two of the island's classics
Sand slope
Sand dunes full of garden eels, with eagle rays overhead
Sand slope
Coral blocks scattered over sand between 10 m and 20 m
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