Hawaii diving logistics

[XJae]

Well, there are plenty of people out there that are more than slightly upset that they've done the manta ray night dive only to say it was one cold and dark dive with no mantas.

There are also many who will say, myself included, that it's one of the best dives they've ever done. Last time i went we saw a half dozen 12-14' rays up close and personal, including one that i later saw on the history or discovery channel.

The Arizona, on the other hand, will definitely be there. Although, if you aren't with the Navy or National Park Service on a rare special project, you won't be diving.

I don't know any of the details, but apparently there is a really good dive on Kauai with the monk seals.

 

[DivingDoc]

I guess I meant the Arizona and just the harbor/old base in general. My husband was a Lt Cmdr in the Navy for 11 years and is a Viet Nam vet; got a Bronze Star -- does that count?? Or do you have to be a WWII vet?

ET

by pearl harbor do you mean the arizona memorial and the uss missouri? i ask because i work at pearl harbor and if you're not a retired veteran you're not gonna get on the base. but the arizona and the mighty mo are open to tourists. just get there as early as you can because the lines can be long to get in.

arizona and mighty mo- pretty much guaranteed

big island mantas- hit or miss, when i went we none showed up. so now i'm going back in august. you may not have that luxury.

just my 2 cents.

 

[friscuba]

Re the mantas being hit or miss. Right now it is much more hit than miss. I've done it a couple dozen times since early march and haven't been skunked once. Talking with my other friends who lead the dives more often than I do it seems there's been maybe 5-10 nights since early march that they haven't shown up. I suspect it'll be pretty decent through september. Winter time and any time there is big surf from the west/northwest is always a crap shoot, otherwise it's been pretty consistant off the airport (don't pay heed to anyone who mentions the Kona Surf as the manta site - 4 year old info) spring thryough early fall the last couple of years.

later,

Steve

 

[XJae]

hey steve,

is that garden eel cove off the airport.
i did a nice two tank twilight dive last time i was there. (1yr ago)

twilight tank to see the eels, which is pretty cool itself,
then a night dive near the same spot for the mantas.

a while back i remember the hot spot was further south in front of a hotel,
can't remember the name w/o my log book.

i'm curious if they are somewhat conditioned to feeding in the pot lights on a regular basis.
if it is garden eel cove you're talking about,
do you frequently see the one they call big mama, easily 14',
or lefty, slightly smaller with a broken left lobe?
lefty is the one i later saw on tv.

 

[DivingDoc]

OK -- so in JANUARY, is the Manta dive a crap shoot? Where is the best place to dive in the Hawaiian islands in January?

ET

Re the mantas being hit or miss. Right now it is much more hit than miss. I've done it a couple dozen times since early march and haven't been skunked once. Talking with my other friends who lead the dives more often than I do it seems there's been maybe 5-10 nights since early march that they haven't shown up. I suspect it'll be pretty decent through september. Winter time and any time there is big surf from the west/northwest is always a crap shoot, otherwise it's been pretty consistant off the airport (don't pay heed to anyone who mentions the Kona Surf as the manta site - 4 year old info) spring thryough early fall the last couple of years.

later,

Steve

 

[justleesa]

Over here the West and North shores are pretty rough in winter, we used to bring the boat to the east shore for those months.

 

[DivingDoc]

So should I forget about diving in HI in Jan?? Is it just too rough? What's the water temp in Jan? Also -- would it be better to dive in Kona or Oahu or even Kauai (since that's where my meeting is). Are the Mantas not likely to show up in Jan?

I've seen plenty of eels at other places I've been, and some Eagle Rays, but I have yet to see a Manta Ray.

ET

Over here the West and North shores are pretty rough in winter, we used to bring the boat to the east shore for those months.

 

[justleesa]

So should I forget about diving in HI in Jan?? Is it just too rough? What's the water temp in Jan? Also -- would it be better to dive in Kona or Oahu or even Kauai (since that's where my meeting is). Are the Mantas not likely to show up in Jan?

I've seen plenty of eels at other places I've been, and some Eagle Rays, but I have yet to see a Manta Ray.

ET

I haven't been to other islands, but I can say that diving is good in January on the East and South shores.I have to use seasick pills no matter what so I can't say if it's that rough or not....with the pills I can take anything. The water temp is in the lower 70's. If you're here, I wouldn't miss diving where ever you choose to go.

 

[friscuba]

January diving off Kona is strictly swell driven. The last couple of years we have has substantial swell during January and the smaller boats have cancelled roughly 10-15 days during the month. One or two larger boats will go out in all but the worst stormy swells, personally if it is so bad that every 6 pack op shuts down for the day I take it as a hint that it won't be a good dive that day. Some Januaries I've seen zero cancellations and great conditions all month long.

The mantas seem not to show as regularly when it's rough, even if some of the boats do go out. Winter tends to be slower than summer months for the mantas, then again I've seen a dozen at a time on some nights in the winter.

Kona CAN be affected by strong northwest swells (say 10' and greater) and pretty much all diving shuts down for the day if we have a heavy west swell (say 8'-10'), especially when combined with a heavy northwest swell. These are generalizations as there is usually somewhere to tuck into except when the swell is direct from the west.

One thing about Oahu in January, as Lisa said, is they have the option of diving on the southeast side if there's a heavy northwest swell. The little diving I've done out that way (turtle canyons, Koko craters and such) rates just above putting my scuba gear on and walking up and down my driveway. To be fair, I went out with an op who put me in a 63, even though I was a new diver and weighed 215. I'm sure there must be more interesting stuff available to see if you hook up with a decent operator.

My wild guess on water temp, depending on which island you dive and whether it's a cool year, is in the 72-76 range for January.

Steve

So should I forget about diving in HI in Jan?? Is it just too rough? What's the water temp in Jan? Also -- would it be better to dive in Kona or Oahu or even Kauai (since that's where my meeting is). Are the Mantas not likely to show up in Jan?

I've seen plenty of eels at other places I've been, and some Eagle Rays, but I have yet to see a Manta Ray.

ET

 

[friscuba]

The manta dive is done off the airport at Garden Eel Cove these days. The hot spot used to be off the Kona surf down south, but they disappeared for about 4 months during the summer of '99 and we're found off the airport in October. After that they seemed to go back and forth between the two until the hotel closed in mid '00. Since then it's been virtually all off the airport. If they disapper there for 4-6 days usually someone will try a dive at the old site with mixed results.

The mantas are extremely conditioned to the lights these days. Lights are a signal that the buffet is open. If there is no plankton they'll make a few passes and be on their way, if there is plankton (most of the time this is the case) then they're generally there for the hour or so that the divers are in.

I believe the manta you are referring to is Big Bertha. Bertha is still pretty much the most noticeable and frequent visitor at the night dive. Lefty is there most of the time. There's a bunch more regulars nowadays. I don't really follow all the names but I do notice when there's a new one in, they tend to linger around the outside of the divers and they seem not to always figure out the proper swoop to get the plankton off the lights without bumping the divers.

later,

Steve

hey steve,

is that garden eel cove off the airport.
i did a nice two tank twilight dive last time i was there. (1yr ago)

twilight tank to see the eels, which is pretty cool itself,
then a night dive near the same spot for the mantas.

a while back i remember the hot spot was further south in front of a hotel,
can't remember the name w/o my log book.

i'm curious if they are somewhat conditioned to feeding in the pot lights on a regular basis.
if it is garden eel cove you're talking about,
do you frequently see the one they call big mama, easily 14',
or lefty, slightly smaller with a broken left lobe?
lefty is the one i later saw on tv.