During the 2013 season from August to October Delos was lucky enough to sail the awesome waters of Raja Ampat, in the far eastern portion of Indonesia.
We took some notes and photos and want to share what we learned in the form of this simple guide.  View More

Raja Ampat has one of the world’s largest tropical marine ecosystems and an outstanding biodiversity of fish and coral. It’s located in the north-western tip of Indonesia’s Papuan “Bird’s Head Seascape,” and lies in the heart of the coral triangle. View More

Since beginning this trip I’ve been humbled by the amazing things I’ve seen, both above and below the water. This planet we live on has so much natural beauty to explore. In California, I was able to dive in massive kelp forests, in Mexico with giant manta rays, in Bora Bora with enormous Lemon Sharks, and in Costa Rica, on a Costa Rica fishing charters – I just love the outdoors, there is so much to explore, and so many memories I am ready to create. For now, I am coming back with memories that will last a lifetime. That said, the best part of the entire trip was, undoubtedly, getting to watch whales. Honestly, for that, California is a great location– whale watching california is an activity that can be enjoyed by all of your friends and family, ensuring that you all have fun together in this beautiful place.

How cute are these guys? (Bohol Tansiers)

Watching whales and sharks in their natural habitats is always good fun! Something that had always eluded me was interaction with Whale Sharks. Not because I wasn’t looking for the opportunity, mostly because it’s just not that common. But it has always been fascinating to me. I mean, the Internet is full of interesting videos and pictures of Weird Looking Sharks and whales. What could be more exciting than interacting with them! So when we found ourselves only a day’s sail from Oslob in the Philippines I jumped at the chance. We left the Chocolate Hills and Tansiers behind and set sail southwest, towards the big island of Cebu. Without much information and not wanting to pay the outrageous prices for a guided tour we decided to do it on our own. Using the GPS coordinates from Google Earth we sailed all day to Oslob. Oslob Whale Sharks are in Oslob, right? Wrong. After a dinghy expedition to the beach through breaking waves and lots of blank stares from the fishing guys I finally got some better information. Apparently, the Whale Sharks were not in Oslob, but in another village 10NM further south. Strange.

Delos safely moored at Sumilon Island.

With 10 miles to go and less than 2 hours of sunlight left it was going to be close. I hate anchoring in the dark. We motor sailed as fast as we could to Sumilon Island, and were directed by some friendly local dive guides to the only mooring on the island that could handle a yacht. With the twilight creeping in we were now moored in the lee of this tiny island. It turns out we hit the jackpot as these very friendly guys also gave us all the info needed to find the Whale Sharks.

It was such an amazing experience we decided to do it twice! I hope you enjoy the footage.