Tioman · Malaysia · Reef · Wall · Pinnacle
Bahai Bay
Sloping reef and island-side pinnacles, dived off a mooring
Area photo: TMbux · CC BY-SA 3.0
Fifteen minutes north of Juara Bay, a sandy-bottomed bay leads into a gently sloping coral reef down to 18 metres, with rock walls and pinnacles along the island side going to 20. There is a mooring line, and the current is small when it runs at all, which keeps the dive straightforward from start to finish.
Also known as Bahai.
Where it is and how deep
2.8120° N, 104.2084° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Fifteen minutes north of Juara Bay the boat ties on to the mooring over a sandy-bottomed bay, and the dive drops in on the sand before working out on to a gently sloping coral reef. The slope runs down to eighteen metres, and that even, unhurried stretch is where the dive spends most of its time.
Along the island side of the bay the ground changes: rock walls and pinnacles stand up out of the bottom and go down to twenty metres, giving the second half of the dive some vertical structure to follow. A small current is sometimes present, but it is rarely more than a push in one direction. The mooring gives you a fixed point to navigate back to and a line to ascend.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Off-season | Off-season |
Season follows Tioman: Northeast monsoon brings rough seas and closed resorts November-January; calmest conditions and best visibility run May-September.
Sources
- Bahai Bay - Scubago — Scubago
- Bahai - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Tioman
Wall
Boulder-flanked sand trench dropping to about 60 metres
Pinnacle
Untouched hard and soft coral on a rock topping out at 8 m
Reef
Volcanic boulders stacked into tunnels, with a cave at 21 m
Pinnacle
Offshore pinnacle with barracuda, napoleon wrasse and blacktips
Reef
Gentle coral slope to an 18-metre sand bottom, no current
Reef
Sand shallows, coral garden and a sheer wall to 18 metres
Reef
Coral slope from 2 to 18 m with wide monoculture coral stands
Pinnacle
Twin rock islets over boulder coral, overhangs and small walls
Similar dives elsewhere
Table corals and barrel sponges straight off the beach
Ragged-tooth sharks over walls rising from below 30 m
Boulder run with gorgonians and a large swim-through
Coral plateau that breaks the surface, and a ridge out at 30 m