Trip report: liveaboard journey in Egypt: Brothers, Daedalus & Elphinstone

Bram sells clothing for the construction industry and loves blowing bubbles in his spare time. You can often find him in flooded stone quarries in Belgium, and thanks to EWDR he can enjoy other waters for a change. In this trip report, he takes you to Egypt for a liveaboard with the iconic EWDR route: Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone. A perfect mix of sharks, reef diving and wrecks.

Nothing can confuse the human mind and body more than a plane trip. First he still stands, weighed down by cold and rain, on the tarmac of Brussels only to embrace the Egyptian warm ground in Hurghada some five hours later. In the Western Hemisphere, winter is coming to an end. On the Red Sea, too, spring is eager to take over the underwater world.

After a short transfer from the airport to the port of Hurghada, I reach our sailing hotel. It is already late and all the guests are already asleep in their cabins. The cook quickly prepares another dinner and then introduces me to my roommate in the dark. What he mumbles in his half-sleep no sturgeon understands.

Seven o’clock, getting up. Little do I realize that for the next week I will never be allowed to stay in my cage that long again. Downstairs in the saloon, I meet the motley diving party. 19 passengers, three British, four French, two Czechs, two Argentines, three Spaniards, two Germans, one Austrian, one Dutch and one Belgian. It seems to be the beginning of a well-filled farce. Everyone exchanges some words, English as lingua franca. Then it is the turn of the crew and dive leaders to introduce themselves. Although we are on the eve of the high season, there are still some empty staterooms. The crew is full and as large in number as the guests. We feel like true pharaohs.

A comprehensive briefing introduces us to the week’s program. In this, the bell on board plays a crucial role. Does the bell ring? Time for action! Your hair determines what to do. Is your hair dry? Time to dive in. Is it wet? Time to eat. Simple as that. For the next week, every day will dance to the same rhythm. 6 a.m. get up, half an hour later briefing, then dive and then eat. We do this ritual three times a day. As devout monks who pray the metts, lauds and vespers, diving is our religion.

When the briefing is over, it is time to leave the port. On the quay, like true explorers, we wave to some strangers. The deep blue sea is our destination. After about two hours of sailing, the sailors cast anchor for the first time. The first dive arrives. Checkdive. Everyone traveling alone is assigned a buddy. There is some experimentation with lead. Here and there a weight goes back on board, or one comes the other way. The first introduction to the Red Sea is moderate. Our dive site is still close to shore. We behold a motley coral garden and a sea of fish, but our wish list for this week is childishly long. A second dive a little further south satisfies our hunger. The appetizer is over. Tomorrow comes the appetizer.

Brothers Reef: Big Brother & Little Brother

At night, our boat bangs on toward the equator. The machines buzz us to sleep. Like a great cradle, we rock on the waves. Gently we are awakened by knocking on our door. I slide away the curtain from in front of our porthole and see nothing but sea. Once we reach the deck, two rocky islands appear. The Brothers Islands. A world-renowned dive site. This will be our playground for the day. There is not a living soul to be found in the area, with the exception of one other liveaboard, above water. Even the lighthouse on the largest island is deserted. Under water, on the other hand, it is buzzing with activity. The first two dives we do on Big Brother, the third of the day continues with its smaller brother, Little Brother. The other ship does just the opposite. Thanks to this game of musical chairs, the underwater paradise is exceptionally reserved for us. During our three dives, it becomes clear why this sea is called the Red. Coral in all colors of the rainbow make our relaxer fall out of our mouths by far. We meet firefish, glassfish and countless moray eels. As icing on the cake, on our third dive, a thresher shark comes to greet us. Brothers confirms its fame on all counts.

After a delicious dinner, the anchor is raised again. The belly of the boat begins to hum again and course is set towards Daedalus. On deck, we reminisce about the beautiful day. On the salty sea, Egyptian beer tastes sweet. Those who had yet to find their sailor’s legs eventually succeeded. Under a clear starry sky, a balmy night falls.

Daedalus Reef

Daedalus Reef is, if possible, even more overwhelming than Brothers. Here there is not even an island to be seen. The reef just barely reaches the surface of the water. Without the manned lighthouse, many a boat runs aground here. Which has happened many times in the past. On this reef we will spend two days enjoying all the flora and fauna. The first day we admire giant napoleon fish, schools of barracuda and tuna. Also lots of hard and soft coral with snappers, glassmouth fish and carp. I learn that the posing clownfish protect their territory. The promised sharks, however, make us wait. At the end of the day, we are able to visit the lighthouse. A nice interlude after three days without setting foot ashore. As night falls, threatening shadows appear in the water by our boat. The sharks we did not see during the day do not give way after all. In true Jaws style, they cut the water in two with their fins. That we may dive here again tomorrow fills my heart with fear and joy at the same time.

Day two on Daedalus, dive day four, again brings entertainment. Everyone still has the image of the sharks burned into their retinas. There is a healthy dose of stress on board. The buddy checks are done thoroughly. Taps open? Check! Computer on the right mixture? Check! At the first dive, the crack of dawn, it is instant prize. The diving plan to dive along the reef is completely thrown overboard. Indeed, under our boat, the syndicate of silky sharks is holding their general assembly. Each of our four diving groups hovers about 20 meters into the blue to marvel at these magnificent sea creatures. Silky sharks are between 1.5m and 2m long and inspire a lot of awe. During dive two and three they are also present. With our souls deeply moved, we bid farewell to this beautiful reef and all its inhabitants.

Elphinstone Reef

The night train thunders on. Rubbing the sand out of our eyes, we awaken to another beautiful reef on our port side. Welcome to Elphinstone! We banish from our minds the fact that we have already reached dive day five. No lighthouse or other reference point here. Never can a landlubber guess what underwater palace nature is building here. All our dives so far are conducted with Nitrox. Not an unnecessary luxury for such an intensive diving trip. But because it itches to feel the sand between our toes a little deeper, today we do our first dive with air. No depth restriction to 33 meters for this dive. However, our dive guide reminds us that the closest caisson is a day’s boat ride away. When our computer ticks 45 meters, we decide that this is deep enough. Our NDL drops at lightning speed. The norm is not to let it drop below 5 during the dive trip. Like disobedient schoolchildren, we still allow ourselves to be tempted into a little deco dive. There is actually absolutely no need to reach this depth. The marine life is at its most beautiful in the first ten meters. On the reef we find giant gorgonians, firefish and other colorful reef fish. Who we have not yet met during our diving trip is the sea turtle. Here, much to our delight, we see a handful. Chasing the sluggish animals against the current is impossible. Gracefully, they seem to mock us. We feel like the hare in the fable. Furthermore, I learn from my British dive buddies that “Jack Crevalle” is not a British rock star, but a large yellow perch that swims in large schools near the reefs.

Wreck dive: the Salem Express

The penultimate day of diving breaks. A wreck dive is on the menu. For those who still feel like a cheese plate, the day can end with a night dive. Our dive on the sunken ferry, Salem Express, is one with mixed feelings. The ship is at about thirty meters and is very spacious for diving. Still, it feels disrespectful to enter the wreck. In 1991, the ferry sank with more than a thousand passengers aboard. Only 180 people survived the disaster. With a firm dent in our conscience, we leave the site. The night dive is short and shallow. Some moray eels show themselves in all their glory. Spanish dancers give the dive a golden edge.

On the last day of diving, two more reefs close to shore are visited. Because we have to catch our flight tomorrow, there will be no more diving after noon. The last two dives are therefore a footnote to all the beauty we have already seen. Today’s dive sites are accessible for day trips from the harbor, and this tells in a bellowing of motor boats. The tranquility of the open sea is on the horizon.

The last dinner on board is again one to lick thumbs and fingers at. In addition to a full turkey, there are fresh fish, fresh vegetables, rice, potatoes and finally pie and fruit. A party on the boat, a short night and a flight to Brussels put a happy ending to our log.