Circumnaving the Island of Lanai

Underwater Panoramic off Remote West Side of Lanai
Shipwreck off shipwreck beach
North Lanai snorkel gem
  This summer I have been captaining a new adventurous trip that circumnavigates the nearby island of Lanai. Getting to see the 52 miles of coastline, most of which is hardly ever visited, is quite a treat. I am driving a 38' rigid inflatable boat. It is the same style that the coast guard and the navy seals often use. With a smaller boat and a small crowd I can get right up next to shipwrecks, blowholes, 1000' sea cliffs and more. We look for tropic birds nesting in the remote cliff sides, dolphins cruising the nearshore water, and new snorkel spots to explore. Everything is an option. Based on the weather I can put people in the water on the south, east, north, or west coast of the island. Not to mention a few offshore pinnacles that make for some good drift snorkels as well.
Crocodile Needle Fish


You never know what's lurking beneath
Swim-thru at Five Sisters
  Since I am the captain I don't jump in the water, even at new spots. Because of this I wanted to go out as a passenger and check out some of these sites all my passengers have been raving about. Now I understand. Beautiful clear water, steep drop offs, massive underwater arches and swimthroughs await the adventurous snorkeler. The fish at some of these sites are plentiful even in very shallow water so the beginner snorkeler can enjoy just as much as the expert.

Ben serenely taking in the scene
Photo Op
Take a look at the snorkelers in these pictures to get an idea of the dropoffs we are exploring. At shark fin rock it is about 85ft straight down to the sandy floor. Outside of barge harbor it drops down even further into the blue abyss. The ultimate challenge are the swimthroughs. At our barge harbor site there is a big one about 50ft down.
Shark patrolling the swim through
Turning to meet me
  As I snorkeled down to the swim thru I was surprised to see a shark swimming up at me out from under the rock arch. I kept going down and it kept coming up until turning right in front of me and slipping back down under the arch. It was a 5ft white tip reef shark. You can see the white tips on the dorsal and tail fins.



Outer dropoff at Shark Fin Rock
Check out more adventures around Lanai here:
Second Cathedral Scuba Dive
First Cathedral Scuba Dive
Dolphin Watching

Comments

  1. emilyharrieJanuary 27, 2014 at 10:59 PM

    Once there we boarded a boat tour to Lanai where we got to get out and start snorkeling. There were so many different types of fish and beautiful reef to be found. After about an hour in the water we got back on the boat and set back to Lahaina. Both Laurin and I (as well all most the people in the boat) were fighting back sea sickness when we came across a big pod of spinner dolphins, about 60 individuals we guessed. We followed them for a bit then got back on our way.
    lanai snorkeling

    ReplyDelete

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