As natural light begins to fade, cerulean shades wash over us, giving everything around us an eerie hue. The ripples of reflections bounce across the ceiling and as we dive gradually deeper, our surroundings become a darker tone of blue. Eventually, we reach the deepest depths. All is silent in our metal box apart from the steady hum of the engine. Outside our craft is another matter – the underwater world is a hive of activity.
Although may sound like something from the mind of Jules Verne, it’s no work of fiction or Captain Nemoesque adventure: I’m sat in a submarine, 35-metres underwater, close to the shores of Mauritius. I’m on a tour of the island’s reef with submarine excursion company, Blue Safari.
About Blue Safari
Founded in 1998 by two Frenchmen with a passion for sailing, travel and the sea, Blue Safari began with a single submarine for five passengers, but just a year and a half later, a second submarine was added. In 2005, a fleet of underwater scooters – a creation of co-owner Luc Billard – were introduced. Because of this, Mauritius is the only place in the world that you can use a subscooter.
There are only 12 leisure submarines in operation in the world, with Blue Safari owning two of them: The BS1100, a 7.5 metre long, 10-seater submarine with a seating arrangement similar to that found on a plane, and the BS600, a small 5-seater vessel with a huge, panoramic window. The smaller of the two craft is mostly used for private excursions where a champagne dinner is served 35-metres below the sea.
The Submarine Tour
After a short safety briefing, we climbed down the rickety ladder into the submarine’s innards. Its stark and industrial with two rows of seats on either side of the vessel and a concave porthole beside each one to provide a view of the water’s depths. Our pilot, dressed in a neatly pressed dress shirt with shoulder stripes, sits at the front, his hands on the controls and fiddles with levels. There is what sounds like wooshes of air and flowing water and the propeller starts and the ballast tanks fill. “Just sit back and relax” he reassures us, before explaining how to steer the craft in the event of him falling ill. Don’t worry though, If anything happens, there is enough water and air for 3 days underwater. Consider me not reassured.
It only takes us a few minutes to reach our target depth. Here the entirety of the submarine’s interior is washed in blue. Through the portholes, the exterior is the exact same colour, only there the turquoise is broken up by schools of colourful angelfish and spotted black and white Mauritian clownfish that weave and dash in and out of the seagrass and anemones that sway in the current on the reef’s surface.
The Reefs of Mauritus
In Mauritius, the coral grows in shallow waters parallel to the shore, resulting in the formation of a fringing reef that covers around 150 Km of the country’s coastline. In geological terms, the fringing reef is relatively young.
The impacts on the lagoons and coral reefs of Mauritius have been chronic and intense, starting 400 hundred years ago with the demise of the native forests, resulting in chronic sedimentation in the lagoons. Add to this sand extraction for the construction industry, the filling in of wetlands, and coastal development that has brought with it pollution and excessive fishing, all contributing to the chronic and intense demise of Mauritius’ reefs.
Tourism also has its impacts, with snorkel and dive boats dropping anchors and breaking the coral. However, Dawood Jawahir, the commercial director of Blue Safari sees their submarine safaris as a positive for the country’s marine environment. According to him, the tours allow visitors to see the declining state of the barrier for themselves. As the local economy is so dependant on tourism, locals are becoming more and more aware of the importance of preserving the ecosystem to guarantee future beauty, and future income, of Mauritius.
“Bringing customers closer to the coral reef to show them the true state of the barrier. The local economy is dependent on tourism and it is becoming aware of the importance of preserving the ecosystem to guarantee the beauty of Mauritius to tourists.”
All of Blue Safari’s pilots are trained to explain clearly how the ecosystem of the reef works and how to preserve it, as well as how to navigate the submarines around this fragile environment with as little disturbance or impact as possible.
There are many conservation projects and attempts to revive the Mauritius reef taking place. As we pass the hulking frame of the Star Hope, the deteriorating remains of a ship that sank here in 1988 and now sits rotting in two pieces on the sea bed, you can see that fish and coral have made its remains their home. There are now around 20 such wrecks surrounding the coastline of Mauritius, all purposely sunk to encourage coral growth.
after 40-minutes of underwater exploration, we emerge at the surface, the blue fading and all colour coming back to the cabin with the return of natural light. In the past, my only thoughts on submarines were restricted to those seen in movies, used in naval warfare or even Captain Nemo’s Nautilus. While I may not have discovered the lost city of Atlantis or fought off any monstrous sea creatures like those depicted in Verne’s novel, it was certainly an adventure.
What You Need to Know About Blue Safari's Submarine Tour
Location
Blue Safari Submarines is located on Coastal Road, close to Trou Aux Biches Beach.
Opening Hours
Daily from 8 am until 5 pm
Price
a 40-minute underwater excursion about the 10-seater BS1100 costs MUR 5,1000 (£108 / $140). The trip lasts for two hours in total, including transfer from Blue Safari to the submarine by boat, safety explanations and refreshments following the dive.
I visited Mauritius as part of the #MyMauritius Explorer Lab in collaboration with Iambassador and Mauritius Tourism. However, all opinions are my own
