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Sunday, January 18, 2015

Dive trip, Les Village January 2nd 2015

This is another should I say, 'exploratory' diving :D, although the sites is already common for diver and snorkeling activities, but it is no way common to the diver community.
You may try asking 100 divers and I bet no one will know Les Village, not to mention diving @ Les Village :D.

To the degree that this dive spot will compete with Tulamben or Pemuteran, the nearest and more famous dive spot, I would doubt. Because the visibility is 10m or so and the macro creatures were not as rich as Tulamben sites.
I should be honest with you in this :)....

But the attraction of Les Village was not aimed mainly at diving / snorkeling, the concept is more a tourism, retreat area. They have the benefit for the fresh fish they could gather from the sea, then close distance to mount Agung creates a calm, cool ambience.

There is also a near by waterfall, that you can reach by cycling or car (about 3km uphill, then 500m walk). Along the way you can stop by a local fruit market, and benefit from the fresh and cheap fruit price. Try to compare the Mango price of Rp.7.000 - 10.000 rupiah per kg. Or less than one USD per kg. You can also find banana or rambutan at this market.


Location of Les Village....

How you find Les Village ? it could be easy but it could also be hard hahaha...

Les Village is at the north coast of Bali, in the regency of Buleleng (there are 9 regency in Bali, and Les is at the eastern part of Buleleng, almost into Karangasem regency) and in the Tejakula municipal.
Map of 9 Bali Regency..


You can search Internet, and this link should help a lot :
1. Desa Les Holiday.
2. Dive Voluntourism.

There are some activities to spend in Les, mainly about nature :
1. Learning how to catch fish for aquarium, the fishermen uses net instead of bom or poison.
2. Learn how to make salt. (Organic Salt Farming).
3. Learn how to plant coral, first how to snap then to plant coral.
4. Walking or cycling to Pura, the Hindu temple, nearby, to citrus or clove plantation.
5. Walking or cycling to Les Waterfall.
6. Have a not-too-expensive Balinese massage.
7. Diving, Snorkeling or just relaxing at the beach. Its also a good place to practice Yoga :D.
8. Eating fruit or freshly served fish.


If you want to go to Les, I would suggest you rent a car from Denpasar (Dps), through Ubud and the villages road there. Or if you come from Gilimanuk port, go straight to Singaraja, and then another 45minutes - 1 hour to Les. The maps from Singaraja is as follows, you can use your own google map and use the destination name below to find your own route.

Google map of Les Village, use 'Sea Communities, Segara Lestari Villas' to locate in your google map.


Our main activities there is diving and cycling / walking to the Les Village.

The Segara Lestari villas would provide you with guides and diving equipments you will need, all you need is just a diving license and make appointment with them.


I would say there are only 2 main dive spots here all of them were not too healthy compared to other more famous dive spots, Tulamben and Menjangan.
Les village is more like Pemuteran or Lovina in coral condition, just being started for coral conservation and tourism area.

A Blue Dog-faced pufferfish, Arothron nigropunctatus.














Glossodoris hikuerensis.
Ghost pipefish, Solenostomus paradoxus
























an Odontodactylus scyllarus, Peacock Mantis Shrimp. Les holds a lot of this shrimp.


 And the conservation dive point would contains hundreds of acre of this concrete / artificial reef.




Turtle like artificial reef.


Adopt a coral program.




Briefing before dive, by Made Kerta



Going back after diving, pass the traditional salt farm


Hovering over the tube coral... healthy environment of Les Village.




































After 2 dives, in the afternoon we just go to the famous waterfall in Les, claimed to be the highest waterfall in Bali.... Its just a short 3km drive from the main road, to this parking lot.
You can cycle and even walked your way up at no time.

Les Village Waterfall parking Lot.

Leave all vehicle, cycle here, and walk another 500m, and there you go... the rewarding, cool and breath taking Les Waterfall.

The path to the Waterfall...


Les Waterfall




































more info and photo to come... :D.


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