Maui shore diving/snorkeling

[KrisB]

I am heading there there 1st week of Nov... will shore diving be pretty much out of the question on the west side of the island??

Not at all! Unless there are some big swells!

Think of our big swells as something that occurs about as often as a really heavy thunderstorm on the mainland. Typically, these happen only a few times each season.

Ok, and honestly... is Molokini used up or is it still a good dive site??

Well, I've got several dozen dives at Molokini and still love it!

jsut wasn't sure being that I have read there can be up to 2000 peeps in the water at a time there... think that would scare off the fishies a bit.

You'd think... but most of those are snorkelers and are in the shallow areas. Lately I've only been seeing at most one other dive group when I'm underwater.

My big thing is how restrictive the snorkel ops are (understandable considering how many and the varied skill/experience of their guests). You have to stay in a small area, max depth is about 30 ft and the time is too short.

Some ops aren't that restrictive... you'd just got to find them out.

IIRC, SeaFire and Kai Kanani are relatively relaxed. Trilogy is one of the more restrictive that I've seen... That said, when I've been out with the Kai Kanani, I'm usually climbing out of the water well before they want to "close the pool."

I advise visitors not to book a whale watch trip until after they have done a snorkling trip --- much more often than not, they'll see enough whales on that trip that they no longer desire to go on a dedicated whale watch trip.

Very good advice... the only exception I'd have is those that don't want to snorkel, but would like to see the whales.

I don't think there are any regulations prohibiting gloves at Molokini.

No, there's no regulations about wearing (or not) gloves anywhere around here -- though some boat ops may dislike it. Just be stern with them -- it's your dive gear, and you're not asking them to wear it.

Only thing to add -- don't use it as carte blanche to touch stuff. "Taking" is prohibited at Molokini, and that word was redefined by the particular statute to include capture, confinement or harm to the animal / organism.

As for knives -- there ain't no way you're taking my dive knife or EMT shears from me anywhere. It's a tool that has saved a dive many-a-time, and has come close to being a "life saver."

Reverse Reef's End Drift

Is that when you start inside the crater and drift around the point and onto the backwall? I've really enjoyed that too -- especially not having to worry about kicking against that current to get back.

 

[Charlie99]

I could do Reef's End every day for a week and still request another. Most often the currrent is going from the point around counterclockwise towards the backwall. I'm assume that by "reverse Reef's End" that Dive Maven means starting somewhere around the outside by the cove or lighthouse, and then ending up inside the crater.

My best Reef's End dive was the double reverse fake out!

Started from a boat moored at the outer Reef's End mooring. The dive plan was that if the current was against us, we'd come back to the boat, otherwise the Captain would come pick us up on the backside. Just me, one other customer; and the boat owner, Pierre.

The current was clockwise (against us) so we swam along the outside wall for a while, then drifted back past the boat. Then we swam inside Reef's End past Garbonzo's and wandered around Taco Flat for a while. Then, since we had been shallow and still had lots of air, the Pierre asked us if we wanted to go over the wall. We then scooted over the top of the wall, timing things carefully because it was only about 8' deep. Then we drifted back along Reef's End back to the mooring.

No boat. Obviously, he's off looking for us on the backwall. We send up a DSMB from about 70' and start swimming out the garden eel sand channel to be more obvious.

We slowly ascend. Our boat is nowhere to be found. A minute later he comes steaming around Enenui side. He had made a complete loop of Molokini and was up on the radio asking the other Captains if they had seen us. Elapsed dive time 1:18. Including 1 pass ccw down Reef's End outer side and 2 passes going clockwise.

Captain Dave was not happy at all, and gave the boat owner/DM a stern talking to. On our next dive the DSMB went up at exactly 60 minutes, independent of how much air we had.

 

[boat sju]

Hey Aloha Steve,

You know, I wouldn't worry to much about the surf. It either hits ir it doesn't. The nice thing is there are so many options / sites that you can shop around and usually find something decent. Like it was mentioned, mornings are typically best. Let's hook up and do some more dives. Your folks might even be interested in following us around a bit to see what we do down there! You can PM me as it draws closer and I can give you a good feel for what the water is doing.

I'll definitely give you a call. I enjoyed diving with you.

 

[DiveMaven]

I could do Reef's End every day for a week and still request another. Most often the currrent is going from the point around counterclockwise towards the backwall. I'm assume that by "reverse Reef's End" that Dive Maven means starting somewhere around the outside by the cove or lighthouse, and then ending up inside the crater.

Yes, that's Reverse Reef's End. We've always started at Reef's End and drifted in front of the crater to En'e Nu'e. It's a nice dive since you're basically on the long sloping wall at the opening of the crater the whole time and can pick and choose your depth. Lots of stuff to see and very relaxing to just coast along.

 

[KrisB]

Yes, that's Reverse Reef's End. We've always started at Reef's End and drifted in front of the crater to En'e Nu'e. It's a nice dive since you're basically on the long sloping wall at the opening of the crater the whole time and can pick and choose your depth. Lots of stuff to see and very relaxing to just coast along.

I've never heard it called that... but, yes, that's a great dive!

I also haven't experienced drift-able current along that wall... and I've usually used it as a second choice to Reef's End when that current is raging.