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Lankayan Island, located
within the Sulu Sea, 80km off the northeast coast of
Sabah, Borneo takes Eco Tourism to another level.
Stunning white sandy beaches surround the small four
hectare island. Palm and casuarinas trees form the
interior and sparkling turquoise waters lap the shore.
One resort operates here under the same management and
ownership as Sipadan - Kapalai Dive Resort in the Celebes
Sea and Sepilok Nature Resort near Sandakan.
Comprising 19 luxury-detached chalets, each on the beach
with balconies over looking the ocean, open air buffet
style restaurant, dive station, turtle hatchery and
conservation centre, the resort oozes peace and
tranquillity.
Reef Guardian
SIMCA was established in December 2001 when the Sabah State Government declared the region be protected under IUCN (The World Conservation Union) Category II.
Four main components exist under the program
To help fund SIMCA visitors to the island are asked to pay 20RM (approx £3.00) conservation fee per day of their visit – a small price to pay for such excellent work.
Scuba Diving Lankayan
There are many dive sites within the park, all within 2 - 15 minute speedboat ride from the resort. Most are submerged reefs starting at approx 7-11m sloping 24m to the sandy sea bottom floor.
Once submerged the diver feels he has re-visited yesteryear!
Large healthy corals dominate the surrounding reefs, hundreds of schooling fish can be seen on every dive. Colourful Snappers, Surgeonfish, Parrotfish, Wrasses, Damselfish, Butterfly and Anglesfish are in abundance with larger Black Tip Reef Sharks, Marble Rays, Bamboo and Leopard Sharks not an un-common sight.
For the macro lover this is a paradise found ! Nudibranchs are plentiful, Crustaceans including Boxer, Squat and Saw-blade Shrimps, Lobsters and various crabs, Cuttlefish, Octopus, Frogfish, Pipefish and the somewhat rarer Giant Jawfish and Seahorses.
Note however that due to the areas proximity to large river run - offs on the mainland visibility can be quite poor in times of heavy rain. Averaging 10-15m but as low as 4m with occasional 30m days, its quite hard to predict the conditions.
One of the two boast was an illegal fishing vessel from Hong Kong whose cargo was confiscated and the boat purposefully sunk - great retribution ! Home to Giant Grouper, the occasional Turtle, Jacks and Giant Trevally, its a great dive and adds variety for the diver.
On the top reef six Broadclub Cuttlefish gathered for mating, large Peacock Mantis Shrimps scuttled between coral blocks and harems of Anthias were kept in check by their dominant male.
Non Diving Activities
The resort provides a satellite TV room and there is plenty of environmental information to research within the conservation centre.
Turtles
Reef Guardian personnel patrol the beaches at night and protect any laying turtles from human disturbance. When eggs are laid the nests are removed and bought to the hatchery for incubation. Hatchlings are released immediately into the sea and guests can put their name on a board to be woken should this event happen during their stay.
Eco Resort
Running a truly Eco Friendly resort is not cheap and the forward thinking efforts of owner Ken Chong, management and staff should be highly commended.
We as part of the dive community should support their conservation and environmental contributions by visiting their establishments. They give us hope that the diving industry and coral reefs have a future on this planet.
To view more images of Lankayan Island, please visit our Dive Trip Photo Album.
Should these images tempt you into visiting either with us on our next trip or independently, please contact us and we'll put you in touch with the resort directly.
You can find all our upcoming trip dates posted on our News and Events page, or if you prefer to be notified by email, just drop us a line and we'll add you to our Dive Trip Mailing List.
