When I found out that I would be returning to the Maldives, the thing that excited me most was that I would be able to once again do some truly unbelievable snorkelling.
On my previous trip to the Maldives I had been amazed and astonished by the variety and sheer abundance of ocean creatures that could be seen just a few metres from the shore. I will admit, the coral in these reefs is far from being the most colourful I have ever seen (Timor-Leste gets that trophy) but there is nowhere else in the world where I have seen sharks, stingrays and turtles – all in less than an hour!
So, it should not be surprising that once I arrived at Kandolhu, throwing on some flippers and donning a snorkel was pretty high on my list of priorities!
There are thousands and thousands of reefs in the Maldives – many of which are extremely shallow. This is great news for people who don’t scuba dive, because it means that they can still view a huge amount of wildlife using only a snorkel.
Whilst exploring the Kandolhu house reef, I spotted loads of colourful anemones swishing around with the sea currents. I love these anemones, they just look so soft and squishy!
I also saw a veritable tonne of these strange fellas!
When you look at them from the side, they appear quite skinny…
…but from above they look relatively wide!
They were also some of the most curious fish I have ever come across. They would swim right up to my hands and face to check me out, and wouldn’t flinch or swim away when I got closer to them.
If anyone knows what species of fish these guys are, please let me know in the comments!
Another thing I love about anemones – you never know what treasure is hiding inside!
Some may appear to be uninhabited…
…whilst others are home to beautiful little clownfish!
There are just so many different types of fish living amongst these reef systems, you never know what you will come across next!
Speaking of not knowing what you will come across next, there I was, enjoying my snorkel and the incredible aquamarine wonderland on offer, when all of a sudden, out of the blue, I came face to face with this stunning creature!
I had not known it, but apparently the North Ari Atoll is renowned for having a pretty substantial population of sea turtles! In fact, I later discovered that on this tiny house reef alone there are about 8 turtles who have settled in and made it their home!
I ended up floating around on the surface for quite a while watching Mister Turtle moving around amongst the coral.
At the time I wasn’t quite sure what I was waiting for, I just knew that I needed to stick around.
Then, after only a little while, Mister Turtle began to move away from the coral, and seemed to be looking towards the surface.
Then, all of a sudden, up he went!
After a few breaths, off he went back down to the safety of the coral. I have since learned that sea turtles need to feel very safe and comfortable in order to move to the surface and breathe, so it was an experience that I feel extremely privileged to have had.
Then, just as soon as I had said goodbye to Mister Turtle, another turtle appeared, seemingly out of nowhere!
This one looked a fair bit smaller and had a much cleaner shell, so I’d hazard a guess that it was a much younger one.
After a little while I found myself coming up towards a jetty, and I honestly never expected to see such a massive school of jackfish, but there they were, circling around without a care in the world.
I had only seen jackfishes once before, near El Nido in the Philippines; these ones were a bit smaller than their Filipino counterparts, but were still impressively large – much more than this next picture conveys.
After leaving the jackfishes and the shade of the jetty, this absolutely gorgeous white-tip reef shark swam right underneath me!
I absolutely adore sharks, in fact, when I was little I dreamt of growing up to become a shark specialising marine biologist!
As a result of being a shark enthusiast from early on in life, being close to sharks doesn’t scare me or frighten me in the least!
I could immediately spot that although this shark was a good 1.5m long, it was a harmless and chilled out white-tip, nothing for anybody to be scared of – just to be excited by!
Seriously, how magnificent does he/she look?!
Once I could feel my sunscreen wearing off and my pale skin starting to singe, I gently swam back to the jetty so that I could get out, dry off and seek some shade; however, just as I was going to exit the water, I spotted this little octopus curled up right next to the jetty stairs – pretty cool right?
Later that night I returned to the water to do a little bit of night snorkelling!
Now unfortunately it was so dark that my camera was unable to take any really good shots – especially of anything moving quickly – but the snorkel itself was absolutely amazing.
I spotted a stingray, a whole bunch of sharks, a sleeping turtle, a few pufferfish…
…a ridiculous amount of teeny tiny fish that were attracted to the light emanating from my torch…
…a sleeping parrotfish…
…and even a moray eel!
I had returned to the Maldives so hopeful that the snorkelling would be just as good as I remembered, and unsurprisingly, I was not disappointed.
I love the Maldives!
THE LOWDOWN
Getting to Male: Flights arrive to Male from most major airport hubs – with most frequent flights arriving from Singapore and Colombo
Kandolhu Resort & Spa: A duplex pool villa will set you back around $746 USD/night on bed and breakfast basis – click here to learn more
Camera: Images captured with a Nikon Coolpix S31
Remember: Don’t be afraid of sharks in the Maldives, they are harmless!
You had me at “when I was little I dreamt of growing up to become a shark…”
Great photos, as usual.
S
Thank you so much! I have just invested in a better underwater camera, so hopefully the shots I get on upcoming travels are even better!
Looks like so much fun.
It definitely was!
HI
Great picture and great writing!
Thanks for sharing!!!Amaizing thoughts!
Thanks so much Melania! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
What a dream opportunity! Great photos and I definitely learned a thing or two!
Awesome to hear! Thanks Savannah 🙂
Its incredible that you got to see turtles !!
I think so too! Sea turtles are so amazing!
Stunning! Sea turtles really are marvellous creatures…
Great pictures, great post 🙂
xx Eliane
They really really are! Thanks for reading and commenting Eliane xx
Maybe the skinny fish are cornetfish, or coronetfish. Their mouths look like a trumpet fish, but they are thinner in the back and fin area. I did a google search for skinny trumpetfish. It’s always amazing the wildlife you can see whenever you take the time to look for it.
Hmm, I will definitely look up all those types of fish!
All these photos are stunning!!
Thank you so much! It helps when the subjects are so bloody photogenic haha
Amazing photo’s! I love snorkelling and looks like you have seen some amazing fish and turtles 🙂
x
I definitely have. The Maldives are an amazing place for snorkelling and diving.
Wow! You are brave going into the water when its nearly dark! How ling have you been travelling? Bee-autiful sea creatures!
The Maldives don’t have any predators so the water is very very safe! And I have been travelling since I was a teenager!
Beautiful pictures
<3
Wow thank you! This is going on my travel bucket list pronto 🙂
Awesome! It definitely deserves a spot there!
Wow! That was amazing. Thanks again for your usual inspiring story and photos. I love you stories.
As always, thanks so much Tim. I don’t always reply to comments straight away, but I read every single one and they definitely keep me motivated to write!
I think that the long skinny fish are pipe fish.
And I finally figured out how to express my feelings regarding your travel blog. When I read your stories, I always feel like I am with you, and that you are my personal travel guide. You have a way of writing such that I just feel as if I am standing beside you while you are describing the things we are looking at. Thanks for always making my day.
Aww Tim you are gonna make me cry with comments like this! That absolutely means the world to me, no word of a lie. I SO look forward to keeping you with me and bringing you along on every single travel adventure in my future. Much much much love <3
Thank you. Perhaps one of these days we can get together on an adventure.
That would be amazing! Where are you based and where are you headed next?
Well I live in Utah near Salt Lake City in the US. I have no big trips planned now other than a fall trip to the Pacific Northwest.
Well, if you ever get down the southern hemisphere, definitely let me know!
That would be wonderful. I have always wanted to see Australia and New Zealand. That darn work thing gets in my way a lot. I am an investment advisor, so I have a lot of responsibility and tend to work long hours. You are my virtual get away.
I feel you, it may not look like it but I work an absolute tonne, it’s all so I can get time off in return!
I had no idea. Good for you that you are able to strike that balance. I admire you and your work.
You got some amazing pictures from snorkeling I am hoping to go and do some diving but you mentioned it being very shallow at parts, are there good dive sites?
There are definitely great dive sites on the outer reefs, the Maldives is awesome for both snorkellers and divers!
Very beautiful, I’ve never been snorkelling at night before! What camera did you use?
Just a little Nikon point and click – it works but isn’t the best man for the job… I have just upgraded to a Canon 🙂
That is quite a menagerie! I would be among those who would have to stick to snorkeling, so these reefs would definitely be enjoyable.
They absolutely would be! I think it is time for me to get my dive cert though!
So I asked a friend who scuba dives and has a docorate in marine biology about the unknown fish. This is his answer:
“There are two different fishes that look generally like that in the Maldives; one is a trumpetfish (like we see in the Caribbean), and the other is a cornetfish (also related to the ones we see in the Caribbean).
Because the trumpetfish changes color, that doesn’t help. The key field mark is the tail. Trumpetfish (Aulostomus chinensis) has a normal fishy “rayed” tail; smooth flutemouth (Fistularia commersonii) has a long almost liner tail. These are also called “bluespotted cornetfish” or “smooth cornetfish.”
So, I am comfortable saying these are smooth flutemouths (aka cornetfishes).”
YOU ARE THE BOMB! Thank you so much for your detailed answer, I really really appreciate it!
I love these sea-life photos! Excellent shots. Now I’ve got “Under the Sea” from the Little Mermaid stuck in my head.
Hahaha you just wait Wade! I spent the last week in Tonga swimming with Humpback Whales! Stay tuned!
Thanks for sharing. I too love the under water world . It seems so peaceful down there.
It is so amazing, I would love to be reincarnated as some sort of sea creature!
I can quite understand. There is a type of peace and tranquility down there. It’s like being in another world.
I should clarify my reply. I admire that you have the drive and discipline to spend so much time working and then you have the energy and motivation left to pursue your passions so vigorously. I think that shows through in your stories. That is probably why I love to follow you. That passion you have is just amazing. Thanks for inspiring me.