VIS Island – the Pearl of the Adriatic Sea

Going to Croatia was an idea we had a month before the 2004 long May weekend. That year Millennium Divers focused on organizing the so-called "northern shipwreck safari" in Egypt, on the Red Sea. As the trip appeared to be extremely popular among our customers, there was no free room on the boat and we needed to come out with another idea for one more group. Croatia is not so far away and is always attractive but where exactly should we go?

The number of attractions on the Dalmatian coast makes it quite difficult to choose a location for diving. We left the choice to chance this time. Some diver or another told someone else that the Vis island is a pretty nice place for diving. Well, I did not know the island so I decided to check for myself. And where exactly is it?

It is an inhabited islet located at the largest distance from the shore. It is real close to the Tremiti islands in Italy, where we planned to dive in the following month. Mild climate and beautiful scenery are the reasons why it is called "the Pearl of the Adriatic Sea". The name is certainly deserved. In the vicinity of the picturesque island there are many smaller islets, or rather rocks, on which many ships have crashed. 

Underwater caves, sites of archeological interest from the Roman times, as well as the diversity of flora and fauna make the island a must when planning a journey to Croatia. I really liked the mountains there as they are particularly picturesque. The air temperature was about 20 degrees Celsius and when we went by car to the highest spot on the island, the temperature dropped to 12 degrees and we were driving through clouds. The island is 20 km long and 8 to 9 kilometers wide. No wonder that the highest part used to serve as a military base for many years. You can still see there old barbed wire, barriers and information boards prohibiting taking pictures. When you have a look at the island from its western side, you can see cannons in concrete bunkers, which have been there since the times of the World War II. It is a perfect place for guarding the Adriatic Sea against potential enemies.

How do you get there?
"Jardolinia" ferries depart from Split. Of course, in the high season there are many of them in the timetable but out of season there are just two. Our ferry departed on 1st May at 11.30 am and at 7 pm. If you are late, bad luck, you can catch the next one tomorrow. I happened to be late for the first ferry by 11 minutes. Still, it proved all right, as I could go sightseeing and Split is a great tourist attraction. I don't think there is a tourist who would want to skip it when visiting this part of Croatia. And not without a reason, as the city is one of the most beautiful I've seen so far in this rocky country. Not to mention the taste of cold beer after a night-long journey, when you are sitting in a restaurant under a sun umbrella and watching the warm waters of the Adriatic Sea.

It takes about two hours for the ferry from Split to reach the town of Vis. There are two bigger settlements on the island - Vis and Komiža. They are so picturesque that you do not want to leave the place. Our diving group was based in Komiža for dives on the southern side of the island. There are two roads from Vis to Komiža. It takes 10 minutes to cover the distance using the first of them and about 20 minutes using the other one. You will easily find a diving centre in Vis to offer attractive diving opportunities on the northern side of the island, when walking along one of the streets with planted palms.

We happened to stay in Komiža with just two diving centres. The first of them is called Manta but it was closed, as they open on 10th May. Their prices are much higher and their building is situated at the seashore and is a perfect base for divers. The center has also a motorboat harbor as well as a decompression chamber for one person. The other one is ISSA Diving Center (www.scubadiving.hr), which was our center during that long May weekend.

A few words about the center itself before going to details about the diving sites we visited during the trip.
ISSA Diving Center organizes diving trips as well as training in CMAS, UDI and IANTD standards. Before coming there I'd had an impression they might be fond of deep diving and I was not mistaken.
The center is located at a stony beach opposite the Biṥevo hotel, where we stayed. They own two dinghies and a large boat for divers capable of taking on board 15 divers at one time. The guide always accompanies divers underwater but you need to be careful. Anytime your guide might disappear because he dived to the depth of some 50 meters or for some other reason. You are left on your own in a situation when not knowing the diving plan becomes a serious problem for every diver. Diving to the depth of 30-40 meters is standard for them. The owner of the center, called Sinisa (which should be read as Shinisha), is about 40 years old. He was the first one to open a diving center on the island and he is a real diving afficionado.

For those in favor of deep diving this center might prove perfect but you need to keep in mind that deciding for ISSA Diving Center means planning your dives independently. The employees of Sinisa's diving center are so keen on diving that they cannot refrain from exploring shipwrecks whenever they see them. Unfortunately, it often appears that not all divers are equally advanced.
The only hotel in Komiža called Biševo offers place for 400 people in rooms and apartments. The prices out of season are one third of what you need to expect during the season. At least, that was the situation in 2004.

The weather was certainly not favorable. Yugo, which is a warm strong wind from the south, started to blow on the second day of our stay and made us appreciate the potential of the Adriatic Sea. The capability of descending from the boat and getting back to it in a skillful manner was essential there. Earlier training and diving in the Baltic Sea proved extremely useful for some of us. 

The first dive was the so called 'check diving'. Other, more advanced divers were at the site at that time, so I asked my group not to dive too deep. We could watch our guide some 15 meters below. The place is called 'SECA 3 METERS'. An underwater mountain begins at the depth of 3 meters. On the side of the sea a vertical wall goes down to the depth of about 40 meters and on the side of the land the rock is stair-shaped and it reaches the depth of about 20 meters.


The second diving on our first day. The TETI wreck at the depth of 10 to 33 meters. The ship crashed directly with her bow into an islet called Barjak, which is situated at the western side of the Komiža bay. The bow itself is ruined but the stern is pretty well-preserved, so the interesting part of the dive is located deeper.
The ship went down in 1930 and her total length is 65 meters. Over the wreck you can see a characteristic "cauldron", which is a good point of reference for the diver watching the wreck. The site is marked with buoys but it starts in its shallow section, which gives the diver the possibility to choose swimming shallower and even surfacing at the wall. I would award this site a 7 on a 1 to 10 scale.

The next day was to be devoted to diving on a wreck located at the depth of 25-55 meters. We were, however, stopped by the Yugo wind. Perhaps it was a lucky coincident because in my opinion some of us needed more training before going to the fascinating but also difficult shipwreck. Instead we chose to dive in a place called Hr Kamik. A small rock protrudes into the sea and there is a small passage underwater leading on one side to a vertical wall going down to some 40 meters. The other side closer to the land is rather undiversified and shallow but I managed to see there about 20 sea slugs and some crayfish there. You can also spot lobsters at this site.

The second dive that day needed to be done in a place sheltered from the wind, too. We decided on the Komiža bay on its eastern side. The place is interesting because of caves located in the shallower part of this diving site. At the very beginning of the dive we saw an airplane wheel with the mechanism used to hide it in the wing. Initially, we thought it was a part of the famous B-17 situated nearby at the depth of 72 meters. The guide, however, told us it was not the case. Still, no one knows its origin. Perhaps another airplane wreck will be discovered one day in the vicinity and the question will be answered.

Our guide Sinisa gave us a good run underwater at the depth of more than 30 meters. I had an impression he was checking if the divers could endure the strain and the nitrogen tolerance before visiting the wreck situated at a greater depth on the next day. Not all of us were aware of the risk of swimming at a large speed at the depth of 35-40 meters, so some of them needed to be directed to shallower sections of the site. At the end of our dive we saw an enormous crab. It proved to be the major attraction of the place. The word 'enormous' does not reflect its size at all, the animal was virtually gigantic. Once more, I was extremely sorry I was not equipped with a camera, as a photo of the crab with the divers would look similar to those of divers with turtles. Well, I know such animals are not rare in this area. The next time I go underwater in this place, I will surely take a camera suitable for taking underwater pictures.

Unfortunately, the weather was still bad the next day. The strong wind made us unable to go for a dive anywhere at a larger distance and we had to give up the first dive at all. Of course, in Croatia you won't be bored even when the weather is bad. We used the opportunity to see the island and to visit its sights. On the southern side of the island the sea was really rough and the waves were crashing against the rocks and splashing water to some 10 meters up. It is something to see for a landlubber and all of us took pictures. You could sell tickets to let people watch it.

In the afternoon the wind lost its strength and we could take one dive near the port of Komiža. Rocks and seaweeds, as well as many interesting objects attached to stones promised an interesting spot for a night dive. By seaweeds I mean of course posidonia, and some of us looked for sea horses in it. We did not see any of them but they are surely there.

On 5th May we finally managed to visit the wreck of the Vassilios T. She sits on her right side, close to an underwater slope. Her left bow side is situated at the shallowest point, at the depth of about 25 meters. When you swim towards the stern, you can see that the wreck is situated at an angle. The propeller is situated at the depth of 45 meters and the right stern side at the depth of around 55 meters. She is a real giant, with the length of 104 meters. She sunk, or was sent underwater by her owner in 1939 in order to protect her from being overtaken by the German army. As insurance was paid, the undertaking proved to pay off. It was a clever thing to do, resulting in an opportunity for us to experience incredible underwater views.

The wreck is almost covered with green sponges. You can get there easily, as you will find the anchor fixed at the depth of about 20 meters and the anchor chain goes right to the ship's bow. You can actually do two separate dives there, the first one on the bow part and the other on the stern. Our plan was to swim around the wreck during the first dive and to focus on the bow part during the second one. Had the visibility reached 30 meters and had it been sunny, the Vassilios would have certainly made a better impression. You need to keep in mind that every dive to see that wreck ends with decompression because of the depth. This site deserves a 10 on a 1 to 10 scale. 

Another day and we were going to the neighboring island called Biševo. In the 60s there was a school on the island but today, following last year's fire that destroyed 70% of the green area, the last inhabitants departed, leaving just one family. The island is famous among divers thanks to its Blue Cave, which is a tourist attraction not just for divers, as you can reach it in a small boat. The blue gleam on the surface takes your breath away but the underwater view is also fascinating. On a sunny day the cave makes an unforgettable impression. You can see it in numerous pictures advertising of the place. The entrance to the cave is really big. The shallowest point in the cave is at the depth of 10 meters and the deepest - 24 meters.  When you reach the surface, you can swim to the left, where you will see breathtaking vertical walls going down to the depth of 60 meters. The part of the island facing Vis is full of vertical walls and caves, as well as passages and grottos. I am sure many divers will find it interesting, especially if you take into account the abundance of fish. In my opinion the place should be ranked among the most beautiful.

The last dive, on the same day, was organized in the Komiža bay and we did it late in the night. We could finally see many underwater attractions, such as morays, crabs, shrimps, Chinese mitten crabs, cuttlefish and many other. We could see them despite the roughness of the sea and not at very large depths.

Our trip to see the Pearl of the Adriatic Sea left me unsatisfied. The visibility and the strong Yugo wind made it a bit difficult to enjoy the beauty of underwater life and my friends tell me the place is astonishing in the summer. June or September seem also a good choice if you want to avoid the high season prices. The visibility should be much better than in May.

It is difficult to decide in the case of Croatia whether one spot is better or another. There are no poor diving sites there, as the Croatian coast is magnificent. Its diversity makes it even more attractive and motivates to explore new sites. I wish I'd had time to visit the wreck of a fishing boat sitting on the sea bed at the depth of some 50 meters. With good visibility you can watch it from a rock shelf situated at 30 meters.

If you asked me whether I would go once more to Vis, I would say, 'Certainly yes, but in another time of year'. Even a month later the water would be cleaner. Anyway, I could see all the places described above and I believe I will come back one day to visit the remaining diving sites on Vis, perhaps on its northern side.

I must admit the most fascinating thing about diving is visiting new places you can talk about to other people and later on describe the attractions offered by these sites as you know them from your own experience.
 

Text: Rudi Stankiewicz