Capturing the Moment

  One of the more well known shore snorkels/dives on the Kona coast of the Big Island is a place called Two Step, or O'Hanaunau Bay. Not only is this the site of a ancient city of refuge for the Hawaiians, but quite possibly some of the most stunning snorkeling in Hawaii that is easily accessible from shore. There is parking nearby and even though it is a lava rock coastline there is an easy entrance formed by two smooth lava rock shelves that you can step down into the calm water from. Two Step is located about 20 miles south of Kona town. My dad's sea turtle encounter   Big schools of yellow tangs graze the expansive coral reef in the shallows. Sea turtles are also in the area, often napping under ledges or feeding on algae in the shallows. The water here stays clear and calm almost every day of the year thanks to the direction the bay is facing and the lack of runoff due to being in an arid environment. Spinner dolphins diving down   One bonus that som...

  There are only a few places on Earth where you can go from a hundred feet below sea level to fourteen thousand feet above in a matter of hours. The Big Island is a perfect place for this unique adventure. Now for those of you who know a bit about scuba diving you know it is not healthy to go on a dive and then travel to extreme heights. So this adventure is best done in reverse. Start your day watching the sunrise on mighty Mauna Kea then travel down to the beach for a scuba dive off the warm tropical Kona coastline.   Our dive site was one of my all time favorites. It is a place locally known as two-step, or O'Hanaunau. We were very lucky this day because a small pod of Hawaiian spinner dolphins were cruising back and forth out in the bay. So we snorkeled out closer to them and let them swim to and fro sometimes coming quite close. We didn't chase them or make them change their behavior. I was able to snap a couple of pictures as they swam past me. Even as we descended w...