Diving Lanai Part 2: First Cathedral

The opening to Cathedrals

First Cathedrals has been on my dive list for a long time and I was about to get to see it! I was so excited. I was the first one ready in my group so even though I was a bit cold from the first dive I jumped in to see what lay below. The opening of Cathedrals could barely be seen 50ft down or so because of the clouds of fish. Sargent majors and black triggerfish schooled in huge numbers above the cave system but the real draw here is the topography. That was until I saw how much life was on this dive!

 Entering into an underwater cavern with light filtering in from different directions is always an eerie experience. There is an unnatural shade of blue that gives everything a ghostly haze. But if you turn on a flashlight there is an amazing amount of vibrant bright colors.

 Inside the cave opens up into a massive open area which is where it gets the name Cathedrals. I would have loved to spend more time inside but there is so much to see. We exited out a small tunnel on the opposite side of the entrance named the shot gun, for how the current rushes in and out and if you time it right you can push yourself into the tunnel just as the current turns out and it will shoot you out like a bullet.

Outside the back of Cathedrals we entered nudibranch heaven. Gold laced, fellows, and several different phyllidias roamed the walls. We also encountered a huge titan scorpionfish hanging very close to a large lobster. Around a few more corners came some real treasures, two new fish for me, a Bandit Angelfish and a scary looking Viper Moray Eel. I can't wait to go back.

Titan Scorpion Fish

Viper Moray Eel

Inside the eerie but beautiful First Cathedral

Bandit Angelfish