Gary Poster, with essential assists from Galyn Norwood, Phiroon Phihakendr, Jose Quijada, Pavandeep Kalra. But now it's time to reconsider.
Military planes perform daily flybys and coast guard and police vessels patrol the waters.
Fortunately, the military buildup hasn't robbed the island of its languid charm. You won't spot the soldiers unless you doff your mask and fins and go looking for them. While the soldiers are discreet, the turtles the island's most notable inhabitants can hardly be avoided. Each morning Sipadan's beaches are crisscrossed with the tracks of female turtles, who have come ashore under the cover of darkness to lay their eggs. With many divers staying away, the reefs are more peaceful now than they have been since the first wave of visitors arrived in 1988, inspired by a TV documentary by French oceanographer Jacques Cousteau that showed labyrinth-like caverns and teeming schools of fish.