When I first thought about living in Japan for a few months my initial reaction was no way, where am i going to dive?! But very quickly i came to realise what the southern islands of Japan really have to offer.
Japan is made up of more then 6,800 islands so it undoubtedly has some amazing beaches and incredible dive sites. The summer heat brought up from the equator is ideal for a getaway from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo and the international airport at Naha makes Okinawa an easier island to get to. If you look on a map, Okinawa and the islands of the south are closer to Taiwan and China then Tokyo.
I ventured to Okinawa and dove the Kerama Islands located 1 hour boat to the west as well as the USS Emmons wreck.
The diving was majestical, many dive sites were comparable to some of those on the Great Barrier Reef. The visability was closer to 25m for most days with the water temperature being a comfortable 28-29*c. With blue skies and sunshine on the surface the underwater realm was beaming with light and colour. For most dives the current was gentle and we averaged a depth of 20m; keeping an eye out for passing reef sharks, turtles and even a school of Barracuda.
Unfortunately there are no fishing laws in Japan, anyone with a boat can go and fish and take back any size or number of fish. This meant the number of fish has drastically reduced over the last few years and it is taking a serious toll on the underwater environment. There are no marine parks or sanctuaries which doesn’t leave any area for fish to escape and reproduce. As divers we noticed this damage and it was rare to see any larger fish or large schools of fish.
The coral on the other hand is beautiful. A mix between hard and soft with mainly sandy bottoms the bommies are full of life with many anemones housing many different types of Amphiprioninae (a.k.a. Clownfish) and other schools of reef fish. All over the Kerama’s the dive sites differ, however many had some incredible swim throughs and tunnels, my favourite being Labyrinth.
If your heading to Japan, make sure you get to the islands in the south, diver or non diver, they offer a beautiful tropical escape with diving, snorkelling and surfing!
Kelissa Brockett 