Pete’s adventures in Salalah part 2

Our first diving trip.  Gavin and myself had negotiated a rate with a local fisherman which was really cheap compared to the local dive shop. This was to take us to the sites we had checked out earlier from the car.  We arrived at  9.00am with Mr and Mrs Tippy and lots of gear including spear guns.  He zoomed us along in his skiff to a place we had spotted under a cliff. 

As soon as we entered the water we saw two massive Eagle Rays and hundreds of large fish. What a great place.  Sheila, Brian and myself were scuba diving whilst Gavin went free diving. (he doesn’t need tanks).  There were lots of fish to see and catch.  After my air ran out I went snorkelling with Brian and caught even more fish.

This was our haul which included large crayfish.  We threw this fantastic hermit crab back into the ocean as Gavin said it wasn’t very nice to eat!!!!.  We started to fillet the fish on the quay just as the Harbour Master came down to tell us we all had to move our boats NOW, as a big ship wanted it’s birth back. Some of the crews were away sightseeing and shopping so I negotiated a delay of three hours which meant we all had to be moved by 5pm. 

We all moved to the anchorage just inside the breakwater.  Unfortunately the holding there was not very good and as the wind blew up in the night (the strongest we had seen since our arrival) lots of boats dragged including ours.   We were woken up by some independent sailors shouting at us that we getting to close. The next day the big boat left and we were able to return to the dock.

The following day we headed east towards the Yemeni boarder.  We had been told how spectacular the scenery was and we weren’t disappointed.  Our first stop was at the location of some blow holes.  They weren’t active the day we were there as the sea was flat calm but I can imagine them being very exciting when they are working. We saw some amazing fish life from the top of the cliff which we hoped would be a taster for our snorkelling trip later.

We wound our way through some stunning countryside until we reached “the road”.  This was a dirt track that lead 1500ft down to the beach.  I was driving so at least I had the steering wheel to hang on to.

We eventually got to the sea.  The views and beaches were fabulous and we were the only ones there.

We called this mushroom rock and it’s where we set up for the afternoon.

The sea life was abundant there with lots of Cray fish (lobster without claws) and tons of large fish.

We still had loads of fish in the freezers so we concentrated on catching Cray’s.  We got four large ones just enough for the evening meal.   We will going back there soon.

The next day saw us chilling at the Hilton Hotel.  I have joined the health club along with lots of other crews which gives us access to all the amenities on offer.  We even have wildlife to look at.

Part 3 coming soon.

Pete