Abyss Scuba Diving

Not everything spectacular at Paul’s Rock is enormous.

Among the dramatic walls, gullies and giant sea fans, Sue Burnet photographed this extraordinary banana nudibranch (Notodoris minor) on the reef.

One of the Indo-Pacific’s larger nudibranchs, it can grow to around 14 centimetres long. Its network of black lines makes the bright-yellow species easy to identify, while the shaggy-looking structure halfway down its back is actually its gill plume, partly concealed beneath protective lobes.

This unusual sponge specialist is another example of the remarkable marine life waiting to be discovered at Paul’s Rock.

Explore diving Paul’s Rock, Vanuatu:
https://www.abyss.com.au/diving-pauls-rock-vanuatu

📷 Sue Burnet

✈️ MORE OF THE PLANE BENEATH THE SEA

Our first photograph of the Trislander YJ-RV3 reached more than 25,000 views—so we thought you might like to see more of this unusual Vanuatu wreck.

Resting on white sand in only about eight meters of water off Lelepa Island, the Trislander is ideal for a short residual air dive.

It does not replace any of the ten boat dives included in our Vanuatu dive week—it is a bonus dive added to the day’s diving whenever the local plan allows.

Our next Vanuatu Full Dive Week runs from 17–24 September 2026 and includes:

🌴 Seven nights in Vanuatu
🤿 Ten scheduled boat dives
🏨 Twin-share, air-conditioned accommodation
🥐 Continental breakfast each morning
🚐 Airport transfers
💰 A$2,595 per diver, land-only

If you have been thinking about joining us, this is the final week to book. Places remain, but full payment is now required.

Book the 17 September Vanuatu Dive Week:
[https://www.abyss.com.au/trips/abyss-vanuatu-dive-trips](https://www.abyss.com.au/trips/abyss-vanuatu-dive-trips)

Questions before booking? Call the Abyss team on (02) 9583 9662.

The exact dive sites and any residual air dive are determined by the local team according to conditions, access and the day’s diving plan. Please wait for written confirmation of your place before booking flights.

The weather has been less than friendly in Truk Lagoon, but Andrew and his team have done some great diving.
Now is the time to plan your next dive trip.
https://www.abyss.com.au/travel-hub

That feeling when you finally own your whole dive kit, everything matches and you feel the ultimate underwater comfort. Unstoppable! 😍

🤿 AUP
📸 Tiffany 🤿 Scuba Diving & Trips + Social Media Manager
🩵 Abyss Scuba Diving • PADI Courses Sydney, Australia 🐉

🌴 In just over two weeks, you could be stepping off the boat into the warm, clear waters of Vanuatu.

Join Abyss from **17–24 September** for a full seven-night dive week featuring:

🌊 **10 boat dives** across five diving days
🐠 Reefs around Moso Island
🪸 Paul’s Rock and Hat Island when conditions allow
🏝️ Time to relax and enjoy island life between dives
🤿 Abyss support before departure

The package is **A$2,595 per diver**, twin-share and land-only. Open Water divers and above may join, solo travellers are welcome, and non-diving partners save A$1,000.

⚠️ **This is the final practical week to join.** Because departure is close, full payment is now required when booking.

Book here:
https://www.abyss.com.au/trips/abyss-vanuatu-dive-trips

International flights are separate. Please wait for Abyss’s written confirmation before booking flights.

Yesterday: a frogfish the size of a five-cent coin.

Today: a bobtail squid the size of a grain of rice! 🤯

Bo and his team discovered this impossibly tiny bobtail squid during today’s dive at Maratua Island. Bo summed it up perfectly:

“This one is even smaller than the frogfish—this is a rice-size bobtail squid.”

Look at the fingertip beside it to appreciate just how small it really is. Encounters like this remind us that some of the ocean’s most extraordinary creatures are also the easiest to swim straight past.

Would you have spotted it?

Discover where your next diving adventure could take you:
https://www.abyss.com.au/travel-hub

A great day for diving at Martin Island. Book a seal dive before the season ends https://www.abyss.com.au/seal-dive

Are you sick of getting out of the water by yourself and wish you could just play the ‘drowning diver’ so someone else will pull you out? Well, wait no longer! 😂 The PADI Rescue course is on 5 September.

You’ll take turns creating mayhem - drowning? Freaking out? Panicking for fun? Whatever you feel! You’ll be given emergency scenarios to act out and get saved by your team mates - and then vice versa!

It’s one of the most fun courses, but also the most important you’ll do in diving. This course is the one that really changes you as a diver.

It’s not easy, it’s hard. It’s a challenge. But it’s a very good time, and you’ll be learning a lot of helpful, useful skills that you’ll carry for the rest of your life.

See you September 5th for some mayhem.