October 2014 - Island Divers Hawaii

HALLOWEEN RAINBOWS !! 31 Octopus

October 31, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Larry Hogan

there were a few scary masks on the boat today, but none as frightening as Capt. Joe’s real face, so no problems there. Max looked like Senator McCain today, instead of me (see photo above!) it was a bit rainy ashore, so beautiful rainbows, but out at sea the sky was blue! still training with big Chris, today wreck, with jenn still along to help me out. big group celebrating today, and we decided on kahala barge, a fun swim-thru wreck! lots of fish around, and current was moderate as we headed into a slack tide. a nice eagle ray cruised by, and we found an incredible octopus – true masters in the art of hiding out in the open! 2nd jump was a drift of Fantasy reef, and sure enough the current was just eking along. it was great, as we got to ease our way around this beautiful reef. a huge eagle ray, mating octopus, plus turtles galore – as well as the volcanic topography we love! thanks to all for safe diving, larry, joe, kellen

CRUISING THE BLUE !! 30 October

October 31, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Larry Hogan

wow, so nice today! love those blues! not the music, but the sea and skies of Hawaii! off we went for some training at Koko Craters. Chris was working on his Navigation and Buoyancy dives, while Driss ( a Morrocan Canadian !!) and Amy from california were out to do Open Water dives 1/2. Jenn was along to help me supervise Chris. 🙂 great viz and strong current met us underwater, but we worked it and had a great time seeing turtles, eels, fish, and an octopus who tried to pull me into his little den. 2nd jump was the far west mooring at Turtle Canyons, and we had a blast, see more turtles, an eagle ray, more octopus, and loads of reef fish. Chris navigated us back to the boat successfully both times, and everyones buoyancy, was excellent, particularly for newbies amy and driss. thanks to all for safe diving! larry and Admiral Vercoe

DISCOvery Wednesday! Oct 29

October 29, 2014/in Uncategorized/by David Sanchez

What a great day out in the Bay today! It started with Mike and Pali coming to the shop at 9am sharp to begin Pali’s Discovery Scuba Experience! After an EXCITING video and quick test it was off to the Research Pier next to Sea Life Park. Wouldn’t you know it… they were filming a scene for Hawaii 5-0! Undaunted we snuck by the film crew and entered the water unseen… where Pali was totally at ease in the water and aced the skills section! Way To Go Pali!

Next it was off to board the Fox where we were met by perfect conditions as we moored up at Little Buddha… Great visibility, no current, and lots to see! As a bonus we picked up Logan who joined us after doing the AM charter… Welcome aboard Logan!

Turtles turtles everywhere!

Many turtles, puffer fish, Sergeant Majors, and reef fish of all sizes and colors greeted us and swan along side. So much to see… and as we were returning to Little Buddha…

He doesn’t look amused!

A crazy BIG octopus charged out of a hole and sat down in the sand directly in front of us! AWESOME!

After a short surface interval it was on to Anglers Reef… once again great conditions and the four of us took a nice slow current up and down the ledge… many Eels, Squirrel fish, Trumpet fish, and a Helmet Conch were but a few creatures that amazed Pali as she looked like a natural in the water!

All too soon it was time to surface… and back to the dock. Way to go Mike, Pali, and Logan! Thank you for a fun and safe day of diving… Come see us again!

Lead Dave Sanchez

Capt Joe

Crew Dan

Little Buddha- Depth 36 ft

Anglers reef- Depth 45 ft

Water temp- 75*

SPITTING CAVE IN REVERSE !!

October 29, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Larry Hogan

wow, another beautiful pair of dives this morning! weather was warm and sunny, and the skies and ocean were blue, blue, blue. old friend chris from San Fran is out doing his Advanced Open, with friend Jen. also coming along were dive-crazy Logan, just certified, and in love with the ocean! plus josh (HSU DMC), Fuji, and Sushi, visiting from Nippon. we went to baby barge, and conditions were excellent. great viz, allowing us to see a pair of eagle rays cruising at 80 feet as we descended down and visited the shark cave and then up the ledge to the wreck. lots of eels, and fish, plus a baby octopus. 2nd jump was a reverse drift of spitting cave, with the drop-off point out at a turtle cleaning station that is well west of the wall. we only do this dive with very specific conditions, and today they were good enough for us to do this spectacular dive, getting lots of time in before hitting the green wall. so many turtles!!! crazy!! also frogfish, big eels, scorpion fish, and tons of healthy coral! thanks to all for safe diving!! larry and capt. joe

Baby Barge 81 feet 35 minutes 110 viz

Spitting Cave Reverse 50 feet 41 minutes viz variable 130 down to 20 at the end

It’s an K kinda day 10/28

October 28, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Maxine Markert

Starting out our beautiful day we headed out to the Kahala Barge, excellent conditions slack current and 100+ visibility! Yay we got to penetrate the wreck incredible conditions maximum depth was 98 ft. After a 25 minute dive we were back on the boat small swell today but all the same still a battle to get back on the boat. Surfacing and doing an hour long surface interval we headed over to Keanu Reef. Again excellent conditions 100+ visibility slight East current and excellent dive buddies! I got to dive with Mara and Angela on their last day absolute treat to dive with thank you for making my day so important and so fun I really appreciate it! Myria and Randon you guys were also a pleasure to dive with excellent dive buddies I can’t wait for you two to come back and dive with me again and I will hold you to coming out on a Whale watch! Thanks for all of you being there today it was a lot of fun it’s nice when I have people who are as energetic and excited as I am about diving Mahalo and I can’t wait to see you all again hopefully really soon!

Staff : Captain Joe crew Ashley Instructor Maxine

Relax, Chill, and Dive…10~28~2014

October 28, 2014/in Uncategorized/by Manolo Cabasal

This afternoon on the Sea Fox we had an easy going group of students, certified, and first time divers. The surface conditions were superb. Light trades, and no swell. The dive sites on today’s agenda: Koko Craters & Angler’s Reef.

*Koko Craters*
35ft – 39min

With a very manageable current and 80 ft. visibility it was hard to miss anything at Koko Craters. Turtles, puffer fish, and flounders…OH MY! Many eels were spotted as well as more and more turtles.

*Angler’s Reef*
44ft – 42min.

Just when you think the conditions couldn’t get any better…they do. With an almost dead current and 90ft visibility, the divers were able to cruise at a snails pace and take a good peek at every crack and crevice. Grapefruit sized sponge crabs, giant moray eels, a pair of scorpion fish, and a huge school of pennant monarchs all came to play.

Congratulations to Matt for completing his Open Water Diver course and Russell for completing his Discover Scuba Diving experience.

Shout out to the crew: Capt. Joe, Danny, & Dave.

A night under the stars 10272014

October 28, 2014/in Uncategorized/by Manolo Cabasal

On the evening of the 27th, the Sea Fox was boarded by 4 first time night divers: Angie, Mara, Jillian, & Logan. Eager to take the plunge into darkness, the four intrepid adventurers assembled their gear and eagerly waited to arrive at the first dive site: the LCU.

*The LCU*
87ft – 30min

Descending on the line, the divers were met with a very strong current. After pulling themselves down the line, superman style, the divers spied a 3ft. white tip reef shark under the wreck. Making repeated appearances around the divers, the white tip wasn’t bothered by our presence. Hoping to watch the shark eat another fish, the divers knelt down in the sand and watched the shark elegantly swing around. Needless to say, the shark didn’t eat anything, at least that we didn’t see.

*Angler’s Reef*
46ft – 44min

Angler’s Reef never ceases to amaze. The current was manage able and the clarity was as far as your dive torch could shine. Numerous sleeping parrot fish, squirrel fish, crabs, and a crazy starfish littered the dive site. After some extended exploration the divers delighted in a short blackout session with glittering plankton luminescence.

Congrats to everybody on completing their first night dives. It was a pleasure leading you.

Shout out to the crew: Capt. Kendal, Lil’ Chris, & Dave

Splendid Spitting 10/27

October 27, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Maxine Markert

Starting out our enchanting afternoon we departed with four extremely cheerful divers and two enthusiastic instructors Larry and myself. Tom came out went solo with Larry to get him back in the swing of things. Raymond and Hannah have been out with us several times before and they were out to play with their go pros and get their gills wet! And Last but not least we had Tracie finishing up her open water certification with outstanding performance. Excellent job Tracie, we started out our first dive at Turtle Canyons on the far West mooring. Max depth was 40 ft and the visibility was around 30 ft, we got the pleasure of seeing many eels and some jolly greens sea turtles. After about 45 minutes of diving , we finished up all of Tracie’s skills. On our second dive because everyone was so comfortable we made our way over Spitting Caves. We had a splendid dive, we had many turtles a friendly little octopus, and a white tip reef shark. The visibility about 70 + ft the current had us rolling around quite a bit but overall it was an amazing dive! Thanks for Everyone coming out diving with us it was an awesome time I can’t wait to see all of you all very soon. Mahalo

Staff: Captain Kendal Crew Chris Instructors Larry and Maxine

7th Annual Underwater Pumpkin Carving

October 26, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Amy Bossler

Weather Conditions: Sunny and clear, 90 degrees
Dive Sites: Koko Craters
Dive Conditions: Mild current, great visibility
Marine Life Observed: Underwater pumpkins, rock scorpion fish, various moray eels
Staff: Capt. Neal and Amy

Aloha,

Thanks for choosing to dive with Island Divers Hawaii. Today was our 7th annual underwater pumpkin carving and underwater costume contest! We had fourteen divers joining us for some pre-Halloween fun! Capt Neal took our club barge out to Koko craters for an hour long dive of carving pumpkins and exploring the back crater. We all had a great time diving and carving. After the dive we share some pumpkin spice Hershey kisses and peanut butter cups!!!! Woohoo for divers on sugar over load! Once we got back to the dock we lite up our pumpkins and started the judging. Our winners this year included: Randy Collier with his Batman inspiration, Brady Vinning with his creative pumpkin face, and Aimee Hagmier with her version of Pirate Jack from the Nightmare before Christmas. For the underwater costume contest our winner was Laura Vinning. Check out our pictures! Thanks again for choosing to dive with IDH! We had another great club dive. Please be on the look out for our Veteran’s Day dive. Until then, dive easy!

Happy Halloween from your staff at Island Divers Hawaii.

Aloha,

Amy

Afternoon Delight 10/26

October 26, 2014/in Dive Reports/by Maxine Markert

What a pleasant day to spend underwater, very little current and excellent visibility. On our first dive we went to Turtle Canyons and saw a spotted eagle ray. It was really incredible small East current but lots of eels and turtles. Marcus finished up all of his skills for his open water course he did a really awesome job today! I also had the pleasure of diving with Steve who also called and signed up with me it was a lot of fun having you on the boat today thanks for pointing out that octopus. Another absolute pleasure to have on the boat is Larry and Rafi awesome time with you two in the water always a good time! Thanks for coming out with me. The second dive we went to Koko Craters and had even better visibility and less current we got to see a leaf scorpion fish and at least 5 more turtles and several cushion star fish, over all excellent day of diving.

Dive Sites: Turtle Canyons; max depth 40 ft, visibility 40ft, slight west current 82 degree water. Koko Craters; max depth 37 ft visibility was 90 ft, slight east current and again 82 degrees.
Staff : Captain Neil Instructor Maxine