Capturing the Moment

   The mantas that frequent the Kona coastline have been not so frequent of late. In fact we've been getting skunked way more than normal this past year. So it was very refreshing to have multiple mantas back at the campfire for the famous Kona manta night snorkel last night.    At one point we had six mantas in our sight. The plankton was pretty dense in the cove and the mantas were definitely enjoying the plethora of food. We watched them glide over the scuba divers at the bottom, before swimming straight up under the snorkelers at the surface. These pictures of of the manta as it barrel rolled inches under our board. Our underwater lights lit up the white underbelly of the 8+ft coastal manta. The black spots and splotches on the belly are how we identify individual mantas. Over a hundred have been identified at this spot alone on the Big Island.   It is always a good time when you have to remind your snorkelers to lift up their feet so they don't acci...

 I'm not sure how unusual it is to have a manta ray drought at the famous Kona manta ray night dive location off the Big Island in Hawaii. For three weeks we were skunked, the only sighting being a fleeting vision of one swimming just over the campfire and out of sight. I can remember only being skunked at this location one time in the past two years.  And that is coming here once a week every week from Nov-April. However this week definitely ended the drought. It was practically raining mantas. I noticed for a few days that the plankton levels have definitely blossomed. Another good sign was actually seeing a large manta ray feeding at the surface as we pulled into our manta ray anchorage. Everyone on board got a good look as the large ray swam near the surface down the entire length of our ship. The plankton levels were much higher density than the previous weeks, so I wasn't surprised when we saw mantas hanging out at the camp fire when we first jumped in. Unique ...

Jess: Local Knowledge Entry at Koloa Landing, Kauai    For shore diving the south side of Kauai there is one solid option that will satisfy beginners and experts alike.The name of the place is Koloa Landing. Located in between the resorts of Poipu and the famous blow hole, Koloa Landing provides an easy boat ramp access and gravel parking lot right next to the water. My friend Jess has been working as a dive instructor in Kauai so knows the waters pretty well. She agreed to take me out for a crepuscular/night dive to see what kinds of interesting creatures we could find. Potter's Angelfish   After a very easy entry and a short kick out we submerged to a find a large school of blue stripe snapper. Large boulders were strewn about the site with some nice looking coral sporadically among them. It was in and among the coral and crevices that we wanted to search for the rarer species. Leaf Scorpionfish Jeweled Anemone Crab   And fine them we did....

The Big Three Must-do Adventures on the Big Island of Hawaii Hiking on Lava   When on the Big Island of Hawaii there are three unique adventures that comprise the 'Big 3'. Hiking out to see the ocean entry where lava from Kilauea Volcano is dumping into the sea, Watching the sunset and then star gazing from the summit of the tallest mountain in the world Mauna Kea, and finally to go swimming on the famous manta ray night dive off the Kona coast. You will need 3 different nights and a pretty good rental car to complete all of these amazing and unique feats so good luck. Lava Pictures for Sale    1: Hiking to the Lava Ocean Entry : This can be the deal breaker because even though Kilauea Volcano has been actively erupting since Jan 3rd, 1983 it does not always flow into the ocean. Sometimes the escaping lava can flow back underground through cracks and tunnels, or towards towns like it did two years ago in Pahoa, or just bubble at the lava filled crater lake. ...

Swim-by on Dive 1 Kona Dive Company   Kona Manta Ray Night Dive Now known as the "#1 Night Dive in the world", the Manta Ray Night Dive in Kona, Hawaii is something not to be missed. It can be done as a snorkel if you are not a certified diver , or as one of the most spectacular scuba dives anywhere on Earth. Diver, Manta, and Bubble Ring     I take people snorkeling here once a week and I still can't get enough. In fact, this dive is one of the first things I looked forward to doing after getting off the boat. It is right up there with grabbing a cold beer (no drinking on the boat), and having a good surf session. People often can't believe that all I want to do after leading people through the Hawaiian Islands for work is to get back in the water.   The crazy thing about this manta dive is that there is no pattern to let you know when there will be lots of manta rays or when there will be none. It doesn't seem to matter about moon phase, cu...

  Every week I like to push the guests to try something new and to embrace new adventures. Traveling with Un-Cruise here in Hawaii can be filled with these new experiences. It is not uncommon for our guests to be on the more adventurous side already, but one excursion that usually puts people a little more out of their comfort zone is the night snorkel with manta rays. A Hawaiian Flagtail Fish  Manta in the Night Lights   It all starts with a warm up snorkel to make sure everyone who will go out at night has already gotten used to their gear and being in the ocean. Then during dinner we bring in a manta ray expert, usually Ian or Katie from Kona Dive Company, to talk about manta rays and answer questions.     As soon as dinner wraps up we head out on the back deck to get into wetsuits, snorkel gear, and wrist glow-lights. Then we load up into our skiffs and motor a few hundred yards over to the manta snorkel area. From here six or so guest will jum...

Tiger Cowrie   Strange creatures abound at Sugar Beach after dark. This is one of our favorite night dive spots for some muck diving action on Maui. Not many people know about this place because it really does take some faith, especially at night, to get in the water here and hope for the best. It doesn't look like much at first but after finding the first few unusual creatures they seem to appear everywhere you look. From active cowries to unknown nudibranchs we delighted with each new find. Gloomy Nudibranch   Even the fish can look totally different at night, taking on new colorations and behaviors. But the big surprise of the night was a beautiful red-orange frogfish that Heidi found out in the open. Moorish Idol at Night Pokemon Nudibranch Shy Scorpoinfish Heidi's beautiful frogfish Reticulated Frogfish, very rare