Scubagolf
Contributor
We flew to Maui non-stop from Sacramento on Saturday, July 30th, arriving at the airport in Kahului at 11:30AM. Our first stop was at Mama's Fish House about 15 miles up the Hana Highway for the best fish on the island. We usually stay along the beach at Kaanapali on the west side of Maui, primarily for it's good weather and convenient location. This time my wife, 20-year old daughter and I stayed for 7 nights at The Whaler on Kaanapali Beach.
I had arranged for a check-out dive on the day following arrival for new equipment (Zeagle Brigade and new regs) with a dive pro at Extended Horizons, Warren. After spending 30 minutes going over my new equipment, Warren and I did a scooter dive from the beach just north of Kaanapali out to the outer reefs. This was really a blast.
I dove on Monday with Ed Robinson's out of Kihei, which was a 45 minute drive down from Kaanapali. This was my first time with this outfit which has a really good rep, especially on this board.
We did the usual 2-tank morning dive, the first dive in the inside of Molokini Crater. This was a bit disappointing, but the weather conditions and the experience of the divers on board made diving the outer wall of Molokini not a good idea for safety reasons. The second dive was near shore in the general vicinity of what is called Turtle Town, and rightly so. There were probably 35-40 large green sea turtles. A very nice dive. All in all, I was pleased with Ed Robinson's service and would have no compuction with diving with them again.
I dove Wednesday and Friday on two tank morning dives, both to the south shore of Lanai with Extended Horizons. "EH" operates one larger sized boat comfortably accomodating 12 divers out of Malaa Wharf on the north side of Lahaina. EH usually does the 45 minute trip across the channel to Lanai. I have dived with EH many times and I have never been disappointed. The best dives on Lanai are The Cathedrals.
These restaurants are highly recommended:
1. The Plantation Restaurant in the clubhouse of the Plantation Golf Course at Kapalua. My wife is partial to the Appletinis.
2. "IO" in Lahaina. Call ahead for a reservation and ask for outside seating for the sunset, which was about 7:00PM when we ate there on Friday night.
3. Mama's Fish House - On the Hana Highway. Again, great seafood.
4. For lunch or dinner, try The Aloha Grill, which is on Kaanapali Beach in front of the Whaler Shopping Center. Curl your toes in the sand and enjoy lunch after a great day of diving off of Lanai.
5. "Sansei" in the shopping center at Kapalua -- sushi fusion stuff. Outstanding.
ANYONE FOR GOLF?
At Kapalua, both the Village and the Plantation Courses are great layouts, but pricey.
Makena on the south side of the island is also really good.
If you want to play the Kaanapali Beach Resort courses, you can only play the North Course until November. The South Course is being "remodeled." Although clearly a cut or two below the Kapalua courses, the North Course at Kaanapali is both fun and a difficult course. Green fees are reasonable, especially if you are staying at a Kaanapali Beach Hotel which entitles you to a discount. The twilight rate after 3:00 is just $80 and there is plenty of time to get in 18.
We had a great time on this trip.
I had arranged for a check-out dive on the day following arrival for new equipment (Zeagle Brigade and new regs) with a dive pro at Extended Horizons, Warren. After spending 30 minutes going over my new equipment, Warren and I did a scooter dive from the beach just north of Kaanapali out to the outer reefs. This was really a blast.
I dove on Monday with Ed Robinson's out of Kihei, which was a 45 minute drive down from Kaanapali. This was my first time with this outfit which has a really good rep, especially on this board.
We did the usual 2-tank morning dive, the first dive in the inside of Molokini Crater. This was a bit disappointing, but the weather conditions and the experience of the divers on board made diving the outer wall of Molokini not a good idea for safety reasons. The second dive was near shore in the general vicinity of what is called Turtle Town, and rightly so. There were probably 35-40 large green sea turtles. A very nice dive. All in all, I was pleased with Ed Robinson's service and would have no compuction with diving with them again.
I dove Wednesday and Friday on two tank morning dives, both to the south shore of Lanai with Extended Horizons. "EH" operates one larger sized boat comfortably accomodating 12 divers out of Malaa Wharf on the north side of Lahaina. EH usually does the 45 minute trip across the channel to Lanai. I have dived with EH many times and I have never been disappointed. The best dives on Lanai are The Cathedrals.
These restaurants are highly recommended:
1. The Plantation Restaurant in the clubhouse of the Plantation Golf Course at Kapalua. My wife is partial to the Appletinis.
2. "IO" in Lahaina. Call ahead for a reservation and ask for outside seating for the sunset, which was about 7:00PM when we ate there on Friday night.
3. Mama's Fish House - On the Hana Highway. Again, great seafood.
4. For lunch or dinner, try The Aloha Grill, which is on Kaanapali Beach in front of the Whaler Shopping Center. Curl your toes in the sand and enjoy lunch after a great day of diving off of Lanai.
5. "Sansei" in the shopping center at Kapalua -- sushi fusion stuff. Outstanding.
ANYONE FOR GOLF?
At Kapalua, both the Village and the Plantation Courses are great layouts, but pricey.
Makena on the south side of the island is also really good.
If you want to play the Kaanapali Beach Resort courses, you can only play the North Course until November. The South Course is being "remodeled." Although clearly a cut or two below the Kapalua courses, the North Course at Kaanapali is both fun and a difficult course. Green fees are reasonable, especially if you are staying at a Kaanapali Beach Hotel which entitles you to a discount. The twilight rate after 3:00 is just $80 and there is plenty of time to get in 18.
We had a great time on this trip.
