Destination: Kanawa Island, Indonesia

High on my list of things to do while I was in this part of the world was to check out the one and only Komodo Dragons. To do this I had to catch a flight from Bali to the island of Flores. Off the northeast coast of this large island there are many islands poking up through the calm waters that make up the Komodo National Park. Three of these islands have resident Komodo Dragons living on them. But before I got to one of these islands Heidi and I decided to check out an island right on the outskirts of the national park, called Kanawa. There is a small 'resort' on the island and that is it. At low tide you can walk around the entire island, you can kayak, snorkel, hike to the top of the island, or go scuba diving. After getting over a bit of the stomach flu and some ear problems in Lembeh, we were both ready to jump in and see the underwater life here.

The diving here was easy and superb. Komodo is known for its big fish sightings but we were pleasantly surprised to find all kinds of small wonders right off the coast of Kanawa Island. A rare yellow pygmy sea horse, about the size of my pinky nail was one of our first big finds. Weird nudibranchs, pipefish, lionfish, and anemonefish added some fun subjects to photograph. The coral was beautiful. There was soft coral everywhere pulsing, making the entire reef look alive with movement. And every once in a while I would come across the most vividly colored giant clams.

Large angelfish, giant trevallys, stingrays, and hawksbill sea turtles filled out the large animal sightings. We would get a much larger animal a few days later in Komodo Park!

 We had a nice but very basic bungalow with a very well done mosquito net. The place did have one restaurant but it was hardly more than bland fuel to help you make it though the day. But the location and ease of exploring the underwater world blew me away. Not to mention the sun would rise over the water directly in our open doorway. What a way to wake up!