Snorkel Oahu: Electric Beach

Turtle Sunburst

On a beautiful sunny morning with slight offshore winds Heidi and I decided to go on a critter hunt at one of our favorite reefs off the west side of Oahu. We used Electric beach as our entry point and hung a left once out in the clear water. We came across some big schools of surgeon fish and tangs which contrasted nicely with the stark white sand.

Heidi searching for interesting animals

Heidi and her turtle

   It had been awhile since Heidi and I had been free diving so we both needed to re-hone our breath holding skills. My short breath holds were evident when we came across our first turtle. But the more I dove the longer I was able to stay down. One turtle surfaced right next to me but for the most part the turtles were chomping away along the bottom eating up the algae.

Hawaiian Day Octopus

  It is always great hanging with turtles but I get even more amped swimming with octopus, especially if they are too big to find easy hiding places. This Hawaiian day octopus was huge, one of the biggest I have seen. It was constantly on the move but I hung with it for a good long while and managed to snap a few pictures. We got to this spot a little late to look for dolphins (they are there early in the morning most days), and we didn't hear any early humpback whales singing nearby (I should see my first of the winter any day now), but it was still a huge success with clear water and great wildlife!