Coron Bay is a well-known recreational diving region in the
Sulu Sea
The Sulu Sea ( fil, Dagat Sulu; Tausug: ''Dagat sin Sūg''; Chavacano: ''Mar de Sulu''; Cebuano: ''Dagat sa Sulu''; Hiligaynon: ''Dagat sang Sulu''; Karay-a: ''Dagat kang Sulu''; Cuyonon: ''Dagat i'ang Sulu''; ms, Laut Sulu) is a body o ...
in the western
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, between the islands of
Coron and
Busuanga
Busuanga, officially the Municipality of Busuanga ( tgl, Bayan ng Busuanga), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 25,617 people.
History
Oral tradition has it ...
in the
Calamian Islands
The Calamian Islands or the Calamianes is a group of islands in the province of Palawan, Philippines. It includes:
* Busuanga Island
* Coron Island
* Culion Island
* Calauit Island
* Malcapuya Island
* Banana Island
* Pass Island
* Calumbuyan Isl ...
. Most of Coron Bay is in the Coron Island Protected Area and is a traditional fishing area of the indigenous
Tagbanwa tribe.
Coron Bay is famous for diving on ten
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese shipwrecks. The ships , ''Okikawa Maru'', , ''Kogyo Maru'', ''Olympia Maru'', ''Taiei Maru'', ''Kyokuzan Maru'', East Tangat Gunboat and Lusong Island Gunboat were sunk on September 24, 1944, by the third air fleet of US
Task Force 38
The Fast Carrier Task Force (TF 38 when assigned to Third Fleet, TF 58 when assigned to Fifth Fleet), was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific War from January 1944 through the end of the war in August 1945. The tas ...
. The wrecks can be reached in a one-hour drive from Coron by dive boat. With the exception of the Lusong Island Gunboat, which partially breaks through the water surface and is therefore suitable for snorkelers, and the East Tangat Gunboat, which is suitable for beginners at a depth of 5 to 20 m, all other wrecks lie at depths of 20 to 45 m. Some of the wrecks are over 100 m long and have decks, corridors, galleys etc. that can be dived. Some equipment has been salvaged from some of the wrecks (e.g. the engine blocks removed), but there are still various equipment and some grenades there. Because of the depth and size of the sunk ships,
nitrox
Nitrox refers to any breathing gas, gas mixture composed (excepting trace gases) of nitrogen and oxygen. This includes atmospheric air, which is approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% other gases, primarily argon. In the usual applicatio ...
is usually used for diving because of the longer no-stop time and shorter decompression stops.
References
Bays of the Philippines
Bodies of water of the Sulu Sea
Landforms of Palawan
Underwater diving sites in the Philippines
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