PULAU HANTU INTERTIDAL EXPLORATION
Mosaic Crab. Image by me.
One fine day as i was scrolling through instagram, i saw this ad for intertidal exploration. I got excited as i recalled the times i went to explore shores during low tide when i was younger.
I read up a bit more and I signed up for a trip alone with Untamed Paths.
The whole deal was $140, for about 3hours excluding ~2 hour boat ride to and fro. It was WORTH IT.
To prepare for the trip, we had to wear water shoes (see last pic for reference) and bring a torchlight and my NRIC for customs. I also made sure my phone was fully charged so i could take some pics! Sorry for the low quality pics though. I brought a very noob torchlight and phone cam seemed to have deteriorated after several years.
We set off from West Coast Pier at around 6.45pm. Saw a gorgeous sunset and enjoyed the sea breeze on the private boat.
When we reached the island, it was already dark with visible stars above us.
Our guide, Dennis, was very careful and gentle - letting us know when to stop and which areas to walk so that we can spot the animals.
There were other guides there as well (we were broken up into smaller groups).
From left to right: stone fish, sea cucumber, squid, volute laying eggs, elysia leaf slug, coral sp
An otopus. Video taken by me.
Speaking of animals, we saw some young sharks that swam around us pretty quickly. They were curious about us! It wasn't scary at all. I found it so cool to see a shark greeting us up close. Couldn't take a picture because they were too fast.
We saw several nudibranchs, toadfishes, frogfishes, stingray, a comb jelly, common seastars, shrimp, mosaic crabs, squids, octopuses, sea cucumbers, a stonefish, a false clownfish, many huge corals and anemones.
Honestly, so glad to see the corals thriving!
There is only ONE toilet on the island. Should do your business at West Coast first.
I got a headache from dehydration because i was tooo engrossed and i didn't bring enough water. You'll be there for 3-4 hours so hydration is important.
we had to be knee deep in water for a while. The tide will slowly lower.
It's good to pack light and bring a really strong torchlight to help you see where you're treading. There are hard coral below and sometimes it can cause you to lose your footing.
There're the dreaded sand flies too. Ugh. Sorry, there's no way to fend them off than to wear some leggings probably. Even if you were to apply some repellent, it will wash off and i don't think it's good that the chemicals are being washed into the water where the poor creatures are.
If you're easily afraid and panicky, you might not enjoy this experience as much. They do have intertidal explorations on the main island too. You can cheggiout here >>> https://www.theuntamedpaths.com/
Wear thick water boots for protection!!
I was a little tired after a while as it was getting late into the night. Also, i was bending down a lot and craning my neck to see the animals. I think i reached home at around 11.30pm. I could sleep really well after a hot bath. 😊
So, I went to this trip alone, joining other strangers. Most of them went with their family/ friends/ significant others. But I made some friends there and it wasn't as scary or intimidating. It was exhilarating to be on an island, in the dark of night, and seeing things you don't really see in our Singapore city.
