Boonsung Wreck • Khao Sok Lake Diving • Khao Sok Cavern Diving • Cavern Speciality Course

Khao Lak is the best starting point for diving day trips, snorkelling day trips and liveaboard diving trips to the Similan Islands. Its close proximity to the Similan Islands and Phuket Airport are the main factors that helped put Khao Lak on the map in the first place. The departure pier is only 15km from Khao Lak meaning less time to get to the boat and also the shortest possible trip to the Similan Islands.

If you are travelling around Thailand, Khao Lak is only a few hours from most popular destinations in the south of Thailand and only 1 hour from Phuket Airport.

quick links:

• Similan Diving
• Similan Liveaboard
• Khao Lak Liveaboard departures

Khao Lak Local Diving

As well as the Similan Islands, Khao Lak offers some great local diving. You do not always need to travel to the Similan Islands to experience some of Thailand's best diving. There are three wreck dive sites not far from Khao Lak, the Boonsung Wreck, the Premchai Wreck and the Sea Chart Wreck as well as lake diving in near by Khao Sok National Park.

BOONSUNG WRECK

Over 30 years ago, a tin mining vessel sank just off the coast of a small village called Bangsak, a few kilometres to the north of Khao Lak. Lying at only 18m on the seabed, the Boonsung Wreck has become the best wreck dive site in the area and surpasses the Similan Islands for quantity and variety of fish life with almost as much macro fish life as Richelieu Rock, although due to its close proximity to the coastline the visibility can be somewhat reduced.

For many years the wreck retained its original form, lying undisturbed on the ocean floor. The wreck, along with much of the Khao Lak coastline was effected by the 2004 Tsunami. Unlike on land, the Tsunami actually improved the dive site, spreading a lot of the old vessel's super structure over a wider area. There is now much more to dive around and the extended site can support a larger number of divers than the old form.

The wreck is suitable for all experience levels. The maximum depth of 18m makes the site suitable for open water divers and junior advanced open water divers. If you wish to save money on the PADI Open Water Course then the wreck is suitable for open water dives three and four. Due to its age it is not recommended to penetrate the wreck.

DIVE THE BOONSUNG WRECK

Thailand Dive and Sail offer a true Thai adventure to the Boonsung Wreck. Our Thai longtail boat departs from one of Khao Lak's most beautiful beaches, taking only 30 minutes to reach the wreck site. The day starts at the leisurely time of 9:00am with hotel pick-ups and tea or coffee on the beach before heading out to the wreck site. After two dives and a delicious Thai lunch we arrive back at the beach around 3:00pm. Here you can enjoy a post dive beer or fruit shake whilst we complete log books before returning to your hotel with ample time to prepare for your evening activities in Khao Lak.

More information about Thailand Dive and Sail's wreck trips and also dive site information and photos.

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KHAO SOK LAKE DIVING

Khao Sok Lake, known locally as Cheow Lan Lake is located in the heart of Khao Sok National Park, which starts approximately 95km from Khao Lak. It is a huge 165 square kilometre lake, surrounded by the famous limestone mountains of Khao Sok, the best that you will see in Southern Thailand. The lake was created in 1982 by a power company who wanted to use the dam as a source of electricity for the South of Thailand; Ratchaprapha Dam was built across the Paseang River, and Cheow Lan Lake was born. Previously the area had been beautiful rainforest covered mountains and valleys, much like the national park that is remaining today. There were villages that were evacuated, leaving behind remnants of community life: houses, temples and schools. Diving in this lake in Khao Sok is a unique experience; here you can literally explore hidden worlds under the water and see the interesting wildlife that has now taken residence.

Today Cheow Lan Lake offers the most stunning scenery in Southern Thailand. Dramatic Limestone karsts jut out from the lake, more than twice the height of those you will find in Phang Nga Bay. Lush green rainforest surrounds the water, rich with birds, wildlife and beautiful tropical plants of all varieties. Rare animals can often be seen including bears, tapirs and gaurs; not so rare, but very shy creatures might also be spotted, such as hornbills, gibbons and eagles. Khao Sok National Park is a magical place and Cheow Lan Lake is perhaps the best part of it, combining all aspects of jungle life you might ever wish to see.

Diving in Thailand usually brings to mind the Similan Islands and the Surin Islands, however, with Thailand Dive and Sail it is also possible to experience the spectacular underwater world that Cheow Lan Lake has to offer. In this sunken part of Khao Sok National Park you will find remnants of what was in the valleys before they were flooded. It is possible to dive around the old forests and entrances to underwater caves. The best way to experience diving in Khao Sok Lake is on an overnight trip. A visit to Khao Sok National Park is not complete without staying overnight in a floating raft house. Enjoy lake diving at a relaxed pace whilst experiencing one of the most beautiful areas in Thailand.

The best way to experience all that Khao Sok and it’s lake have to offer is to stay for a few days, perhaps one or two nights on the lake followed by a couple of days on land exploring the jungle. Thailand Dive and Sail offer Khao Sok Lake Diving as an overnight or multi-night trip. Read more about Thailand Dive and Sail's Khao Sok Lake Diving.

If you wish to stay longer in Khao Sok we are happy to arrange other activities with our partner tour company who specialise in Khao Sok land tours, Green Andaman Travel (also based in Khao Lak). Suggested activities that you might want to try include Elephant trekking through the jungle, trekking by foot to find the elusive Raffelsia Flower or taking a relaxing rafting trip down the Sok River.

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KHAO SOK CAVERN DIVING

The limestone rocks that surround the lake are full of underwater cave systems which you can experience without having to complete a full TEC-diving course. Your instructor covers everything you need to know to dive safely in an overhead environment. No need for twin-sets and other cumbersome dive equipment as the dives never penetrate further than the light zone. Your instructor will conduct a thorough briefing covering the use of a guideline, communication and gas management. Once you are under the water, before entering the cavern there is a final equipment check and sharing air drill.

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CAVERN SPECIALTY COURSE

The PADI Cavern Diver course covers the knowledge and techniques of cavern diving and describes the dangers involved with cave diving. The Cavern Diver course consists of four training dives, to be conducted over at least two days. In addition there are academic topics, an equipment modification workshop and line practice land drills. There is no manual, so no boring reading followed by reviews or exams. Just relaxing discussions and practical exercises over lunch or a coffee looking out over the serene jungle listening to the sounds of birds.

In our academic sessions we will cover topics such as:

• Conservation
• Landowner relations
• Terminology and geology
• Cave types and formations
• Cave entrances
• Silt
• Chemicals, gases and related terminology
• Environment hazards
• Equipment considerations
• Guidelines
• Communication
• Psychological considerations
• Stress
• Accident analysis
• Emergency procedures

During our dives we will practice the following skills:

• Equipment checks and S-drills
• Propulsion techniques
• Buoyancy control and body positioning
• Guideline and reel use (tie offs, placements)
• Communication and signals (light signals, hand signals, touch contact)
• Emergency procedures (Light failure, loss of visibility, out of air, lost diver)
• Gas management (turn around pressure)

Prerequisites for the Cavern Diver Specialty Course are 18 years of age and PADI Advanced Open Water or equivalent. Student to instructor ratio is 2:1. Cavern diving is defined as any dive conducted within the light zone of a cave. The light zone of a cave is defined as that part of the cave from which natural light illuminating the entrance is visible at all times.

Please Contact us for more details.

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