Golden Dawn
The 80-foot luxury liveaboard Golden Dawn has a firmly established reputation for providing some of the best quality diving experiences in Papua New Guinea. Equipped with a sophisticated stabilizer system, Golden Dawn allows premium comfort for a maximum group of twelve divers. The dedication of the crew to satisfy the demands of dive enthusiasts is well-known, and offers first class cruises to some of the most exotic reef diving and marine life in the world. Taking advantage of the best weather and diving conditions in Papua New Guinea, Golden Dawn changes location throughout the year, offering a unique and unforgettable diving experience. Because of the diversity of dive locations, the Golden Dawn has two rigid hull inflatables which allows Golden Dawn to stay in a suitable anchorage yet still provide the ability to move ten divers around with great ease. However, when conditions allow, diving can be done directly from the Golden Dawn.
Amenities
Golden Dawn is a luxury liveaboard dive vessel catering to experienced certified divers doing ten to fourteen day trips to some of the most remote parts of Papua New Guinea. Golden Dawn can comfortably accommodate up to twelve passengers in six air-conditioned cabins; five with twin berths and one master double cabin. The spacious lounge area is also air-conditioned and includes a television and VCR.
Diving
Golden Dawn's annual schedule of dive destinations moves to different locations in the country to take advantage of the best weather conditions in different regions. This allows the kind of varied and unparalleled diving that is consistent with Papua New Guinea's reputation. Dive sites include the Eastern Fields/Coral Sea, Wewak, Madang, Kavieng, and Milne Bay, and are available in six to fourteen night itineraries.
The Eastern Fields/Coral Sea itinerary operates November through to December and April through to May - prime time for this area. On these cruises, you will find the waters of the barrier reef system around Port Moresby teem with beautiful flora and fauna to satisfy the keenest sports diver or the most dedicated underwater photographer, with Mantas, Sharks and Turtles.
Divers have encountered the rare Great hammerhead as well as his smaller Scalloped brothers and Whale Sharks are sighted annually as far in as the capital's main harbour! The more exotic treats include the Lacy Scorpion fish (Rhinopias aphanes and his rarer brother R. fondoza), Leaf Scorpion fish, Stone and False Stonefish, Crocodile fish, Pygmy sea horse and Tasselled Wobbegongs, Epaulette and Leopard Sharks. The waters here are moderate in visibility but excellent for close-up photography.
This area of the Coral Sea is rarely troubled by the cyclone's passing by on their way to the southern latitudes leaving the coral in pristine condition. Being close to the eastern approaches of the Torres Strait (the name for the passage of water between Australia and Papua New Guinea) gives this area the currents that attract the pelagic marine life such as schools of large Dog Tooth, Yellow fin, Blue fin Tuna, Spanish Mackerel and Wahoo. Eagle and Manta rays can be found patrolling the walls, as well as schools of horse eye jacks in their balling formations and schools of spiraling Barracuda. On our shark dives Grey reef Sharks and their elegant brothers the Silver tips are frequently encountered. The Great and Scalloped hammerhead shark will often make an appearance when you least expect it! You will enjoy dive sites like "Carls Ultimate", where the marine life is so rich and diverse that it is not uncommon for divers to do 12 dives and still ask for more. The small and the unexpected should not be left out, with species of Nudibranch and Flatworm we have not been able to identify as yet! Many different types of Shrimp Goby, Blennies and clouds of Anthias and Fusiliers are to be found while diving.
During June through September, Golden Dawn offers Northern Papua New Guinea with trips running from Madang and Wewak. Trips departing Wewak for the Ninigo and Hermits definitely produce the biggest variety in big animals. Common sightings of Grey Reef Sharks, some Silver Tips and then a plethora of rays, which include the Eagle Rays, Cow Rays, Mobula Rays, and Manta Rays. A big hit is the swim with a pod of a thousand Dolphins in Dolphin Pass. Another memorable site "The Dive" has thousands of pelagic fish against a dramatic back drop of reef. One or two WWII shipwrecks that are near the island of Kairuru may also be explored. Time has changed these wrecks into large artificial reefs, providing homes for an abundance of marine life. Many species of scorpion fish can be found camouflaged against the hull; ghost pipefish and frogfish have also been sighted. Visibility at most sights is superb at 100-150' (30 - 45m) while at others its marginal at 40 - 60' (12 - 20m) - due to their locations, such as near Wewak or the inner lagoon. Water temperature is wonderful at around 82 - 84 deg F (28 - 30 deg C) so skin suites or 3mm suites are more than adequate. There are three main Island groups visited and all three are different in geography and equally stunning, the people at inhabited islands are very friendly and the beaches visited are picture post card material.
Madang departures go to the islands some 70nm east. The coastline and surrounding islands offer some truly great diving. The islands of Bagabag, Crown and Long with their tall volcanic peaks and their superb fringing reefs feature one newly discovered site "Julien's Reef", is on par with "Carl's Ultimate", and is rich with corals and large schools of barracuda and mackerel and other pelagic species. The number of hammerhead sightings on this itinerary have been numerous and tiger sharks have also made appearances. The night anchorages offer truly classic Milne Bay type muck dives in the rich volcanic sand. Snake eels, inimicus, turtles and cuttlefish are commonly sighted.
Diving in Kavieng presents yet another diversely different dive destination in Papua New Guinea Known for it's pelagic splendor the strong incoming currents act as magnets to the schools of trevally, barracuda, grey reef sharks, eagle rays and reef fish. During outgoing tides, low lying channel islands clad in mangroves, provide havens for juvenile fish species and other exquisite macro critters. These islands also provide excellent calm safe anchorage's for the Golden Dawn.
A number of world class wrecks are dived, remnants to the 2nd WW. For example in Three Island Harbour, there is the Sanko Maru and a Japanese Mini submarine. These wrecks are some of the best night wreck dives one can experience. A newer wreck, the "Der Yang" at Echuca Patch is a fantastic site for photographic and video enthusiasts with the schools of barracuda circling above the wreck in blue water.
During March, June and October Golden Dawn offers mantas in the southern Milne Bay area. There are a number of varied dives on this schedule, strong current to muck dives, though the main sensation is the mantas at "Giants at Home". Here in shallow water, large coral boulders, with a healthy cover of soft corals are scattered over a sandy bottom. The giant mantas come in to be cleaned by the wrasse on the large bommies. There are at least a dozen individuals in the 9'-12' (3-4m) range and you can get so close you can fill a fish eye lens. Considerable time is spent at this location providing everybody the opportunity to get close to these magnificent creatures. The visibility here is modest as it is full of plankton since that is what mantas prefer. In addition, big sweet lips, groupers, Hump Headed Parrotfish and even Dugong may make an appearance.
The Golden Dawn is an IANTD training facility, and is the first to offer technical diving courses in Papua New Guinea. These courses will allow guests to safely experience the advantages of diving on Nitrox or experience the adventure of diving on the Atlantis 1 rebreather, and range from beginner to advanced courses. Nitrox fills, Nitrox diving computers, and Atlantis 1 rebreathers are available for an extra charge.
Papua New Guinea is situated in tropical latitudes, but the water temperatures can vary depending on the location and the season. The waters around Port Moresby and Eastern Fields are noticeably cooler than other areas due to current streams circulating up from southern latitudes. Temperatures can range between 74-87 deg F (24-28 deg C) so a full wet suit with a minimum of 1/4 inch or 3mm is recommended, as well as a dive skin plus hood.
The waters in Madang, Wewak area and the Bismark Sea tend to be warmer and dive skins and Lycra suits can be used on a lot of dives, but it is still prudent to bring that wet suit.