Twin Cheeks: a Cheeky Dive Site if ever there was one!
Twin Cheeks is a beautiful pinnacle, due North of North Twin Island. The dive site starts around 10m just below the surface and drops off to 40+m on the Northern side. Twin Cheeks is a very memorable scuba diving site and as such one we try and dive often. This Burma dive site basically consists of a large granite pinnacle and is best dived as an early morning dive. This is because of the dive site depths especially as you are on a Burma Liveaboard doing up to 4 dives / day.
Currents can be strong here so a negative entry into the water is the way to go. And once you have descended get yourself down to one of the protected areas or you will use up your air faster than you would like. However your Dive Guide will brief you on this so just pay attention to your Dive Briefing. If you don't dive in currents much it's a good idea to dive Phuket first on one of our Phuket Day Trips as we can do some dives in currents to get you properly prepared.
Visibility is usually very good and this dive site is very good for large pelagic life. And as such we have seen schools of Eagle rays, Manta Rays and several Whalesharks here the last couple of years.
What is there to see at Twin Cheeks at North Point Island?
Twin Cheeks dive site is basically one large pinnacle dive. The dive site starts around 10-12m and drops off deeper than 40m.
We start the dive by doing a giant stride off the boat next to the pinnacle. From here the pinnacle descends steeply to around 40m with huge healthy Sea Sans sitting atop the rocky reef. You will see schools of Snappers and Sweetlips drifting over the reef infuriatingly still. This in contrast to you and the current you find yourself hiding from. In these deeper areas you can look for sharks and large sting rays. Thus keep an eye out away from the reef, into the blue, for schools of Barracuda or a cluster of Eagle Rays.
Those diving on Rebreathers often find this is a great area to hang out on. Rebreather divers can often have as much as an hour of no decompression time down there and usually come back with some awesome photos. As you move towards the shallower water the granite boulders give you more protection from any current. Consequently you can duck behind these into several passageways and swimthroughs. A quick flick with a light shows up hundreds of small shrimps and maybe some pipefish in the nooks and crannies as well.
We often have to almost fight your way through all the Glass Fish as they swarm together and crowd around you.
Be aware of your dive computer as it is easy to run short of no decompression time on this site; unless diving on a Rebreather of course ...
