One of the other reasons I left Oahu for the big island was to dive at the best divesites in the US. Kona seaside. I learned that Kona is home to the best night dive in the world: A dive with Manta Rays…
Plus a surprise: Black Water diving. I signed up for both… And some day dives. I signed up with Hawaii Big Island Divers – and the equipment is great, the guides are extraordinary good, the captains funny and knowledable.. All in all: I can recommend them!
Manta Heaven: Oh Yeah! The Manta Nightdive turned out to be a show. In the water with all Scuba gear and swim 15m. Then sit on the bottom for 45 minutes looking at the graceful Manta Rays feeding using our lights… But what a show: Awe inspiring, grace, peace and harmony… There was 16 manta rays each around 3m in diameter and they were all over, at the side, above me, several times they actually touched me in their efforts to feed using my light. OUT OF THIS WORLD! This is a MUST DO dive, if you ever get to Hawaii…
The Black Water dive was… different. I didn’t know, what I was signing up for… But during the briefing, I learned that sometimes it is better to read before deciding: The black water dive is simple. At night, the boat goes 5 km off shore – to a place, where there is 2-3000 meter deep. Then you jump into the water and look at whatever is there. Well. rather, look at what your flashlight is showing.
And what is there? Lots of small animals, goples etc. which migrate from the deep at nighttime. Several species, which haven’t even been named yet…. And some, a bit larger animals, which have been named, and made shall we say popular in a film some years ago… Jaws.
Well. Jumping into the water wasen’t that bad. And even though I couldn’t see anything, I felt strangely safe. After 45 minutes of looking at strange animals I felt it was time to get out of the water. Just as I did, a silk shark shows up and swims in the middle of the other 4 who was still in the water.
That behavior is NOT a good sign. Normally they swim away fast, or stay at the boundary. And the shark was “big enough” as our divemaster said… So seconds after I left the water, the other rush to the ladder and get out of the water. A bit of intense exitement after all…
As the divemaster, who have several hundreds of these dives under his belt: When a shark shows up here in open water, he wants to eat. So better to leave the water fast than be sorry…
Anyways; I also did 4 day dives. The first two was ok (6-7 on my 10-scale), but not especially great or beautiful. However, the last two was really up there among the best I have had. The dive locations was Golden Arches and Kolokai Lav Tubes.
