Llantrisant Sub-Aqua Club
www.llantrisantdivers.com



In June 2003 a group of fifteen divers from the club travelled to Egypt for a diving trip to the far south of the Egyptian Red Sea.

We flew from Gatwick to Marsa Alam, a region and a town on the east coast of mainland Egypt then undertook a two hour journey by bus down the east coast road to a place called Hamata about seven kilometers north of the dive camp at Wadi Lahami which is located just north of the Ras Banas penninsular.

From here we boarded MV Coral Princess and headed off for the far South to a region known as St. John's Reef.

The pictures below were taken during that trip.

The chart on the right shows South Eastern Egypt and the location of Wadi Lahami, Fury Shoal and St. Johns Reef.

We headed south towards the Sudanese border for the first half of the trip to dive the various reefs that make up St. Johns Reef then we headed north to dive the reefs of Fury Shoal.

The maps below show the areas we visited and some of the sites we dived during our trip.

 


Coral Princess

M.Y. Coral Princess is a steel hulled, twin screw motor yacht. She is 30 metres long and has berths for fifteen passengers. She has ideal specifications for long-range dive cruises, with water desalination and comprehensive navigation & safety equipment.

The ample aft deck is thoughtfully laid out for ease of kitting-up and the spacious transom is ideal for water entry when not using the zodiac tender. The salon is air-conditioned, as is the comfortable twin berth cabins, all of which have en-suite facilities.

Coral Princess Sinks!

Coral Princess, capsized and sank in open water near Jackson Reef in late November 2009, with the loss of two diving guests from Spain.

The two Spanish tourists are still missing in the Red Sea after their dive boat sank off Egypt's Sinai coast.

The married couple were the only two not to make it off the boat when it sank. It is believed that their bodies are still in the boat, which now lies hundreds of metres below the surface.

The fourteen other Spanish tourists and seven Egyptian crew were all rescued.

According to survivor reports, the sad reality for Coral Princess was that the Egyptian captain was the first to abandon ship.

This incident was followed in mid-December with the loss of Emperor Fraser, one of the Emperor Divers fleet, on Dunraven Reef, near Sharm El Sheikh.


Coral Princess


The Team
Lyn Eade, John Moroney, Peter Swarfield, Ceri Jones,
Billy Whizz, Huw Jones, Peter Rees, John Greig.
Colin Smith, Jeff Canning, Mac Webber,
Viv Griffiths, Phil Dewhurst, John Upright,
Dicky Taylor.

The quayside at Hamata where we boarded Coral Princess at the start of our charter. Coral Princess is the boat on the right.

Looking back at the jetty from on board Coral Princess. The town of Hamata with its mosque can be seen in the background.
The fore deck of Coral Princess  
Tying on to the reef
 
Chart showing the dive sites

Life on board in between dives

A hard day's relaxation in the sun!

.Hattam - Our dive guide for the trip.
 
The DO on tour.
 
Bliggy

The President resting his eyes
 
A rare smile from Shoni
 
Dicky Taylor

The crew preparing to tie on to a reef.
This particular reef has a shallow lagoon in the centre.

A crew member in the water tying up to a mooring on a reef.

One of the many superb reefs we dived during this charter.
Many of the reefs in this southern section of the
Egyptian Red Sea are in superb condition.

Another superb example of a coral reef in the far south.

Loading up the Zodiac ready for another dive

A full Zodiac on its way to the dive site
   

Our transport to the bar

The bar at Wadi Lahami

In the Bedouin Tent

At the Coraya Beach Hotel
   
Marsa Alam Weather
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For more information about Red Sea Charters

contact:


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email: info@oonasdivers.com

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