Batuputih

Batuputih is not only the gateway to wonderful Tangkoko National Park, it’s also a great place to go snorkeling, diving, or dolphin watching. Lea, the local guide and divemaster (find her contact info below) with whom we booked a snorkeling and dolphin watching tour, promised us that, if we’d go, our boat would be the only one. We didn’t want to go if there’d be a whole lot of boats practically chasing a few dolphins like, unfortunately, it happens in other places (Bali, for example).

Dolphin Watching

Since it had been raining the whole night and we couldn’t start as early as planned, it wasn’t sure if we were going to see any dolphins at all. But we did, and not just a few, but “thousands!”, as Lea cried out when the animals started jumping out of the water. Thousands may have been a bit of an exaggeration but there were many, many dolphins; I never even dreamed of seeing so many in one place. It was fantastic, they swam around the prow of the boat, jumped, went away, and then came back again to swim with our boat – simply amazing.

Snorkeling

When we felt we’d seen enough dolphins (although, can you really ever get enough of watching those beautiful creatures?) we went snorkeling in a bay with nice corals and lots of fish and then finished our tour on a white beach with grilled tuna for lunch. One day in the forest, one day at sea. Perfect.

Contact Info

Contact Lea (Marchellya Halir) by phone (+6282292222119 / +6285397272407) or by email (lea_diver@hotmail.com) or just head to the Tangkoko Safety Stop Resto & Cafe. She offers diving, snorkeling, and dolphin watching tours as well as guided jungle walks in the national park.