Shark cage diving in Hawaii
Posted by Sarah O'Neill , Saturday, 9 July 2011 12:30
Ben had read about another shark cage dive with Galapagos sharks which was about an hours drive north of where were staying. So of course we had to do it! We booked the day before, and got onto the first one of the day (recommended as the best) which was at 6.30am! So, being an hour’s drive away, and not knowing where we were going, we wanted to leave with plenty of time, which meant a very early start!!! We left the house by 5am, it was still dark! Ben did a sterling job driving on the wrong side and in the dark, while I tried to improve my navigational skills! We had good directions and managed to get there ok! The dive boat was much smaller than the one we had been on in Oz, but there were only 11 of us, including some kids! This ‘dive’ was actually only a snorkel, so once we had made our way out to the site (where the cage is permanently situated) we got ready to go in. Ben and I were in the first group, and had a good half an hour in the water. There were 3 sharks around the whole time, and they were
pretty big! They came quite close, but nothing as scary as the Great White’s! They looked a lot less aggressive and it was actually quite a tranquil peaceful time watching them glide around! Got some pics, but this cage had a glass front, which made it more difficult to get good photos, and of course the sharks don’t pose for you! We got out and the next group got in. They literally only stayed in for about 10 minutes and wanted to get out, so they said we could go back in, so of course Ben and I did! Had another 15 minutes or so, and then it was time to head back. We got back to the car and started the drive back, but were both really sleepy. I felt myself dropping off several times, and asked Ben how he was doing, he was also feeling his eyes getting heavier. We both knew it was not worth the risk of falling asleep at the wheel, so we pulled into a car park and I wanted us to have a nap. Ben agreed we needed to rest but was adamant he would not sleep. However, we both slept for over an hour! We must have looked so funny to passers by! We obviously needed it, and I am glad we did that! We then drove back to the studio feeling a lot better! When we got back we had another little sleep, I think the Long Friday had caught up on us!! When we finally felt ready to start the day again we had some lunch and then headed for our first visit to Waikiki Beach! We spent the afternoon there, the weather was brilliant and the waves were great! We hadn’t taken our swimmers or body boards with us, but knew we’d be back! We spent the afternoon wondering around taking it all in. The beach is a really fun place, lots of shops and things going on, and very busy! When we headed back to Kailua we stopped at Teddy’s Bigger Burgers for dinner. The burgers were delicious, and I am glad I only ordered a small one, as it was plenty!!!
The next day we had a lovely lie in and caught up on all our sleep! After lunch we drove to Waikiki again, and this time we took boards, cossie’s and everything we’d need to a beach afternoon! However, when we got there the sea was as flat as a pancake! So we strolled around again and did some window shopping! Ben cooked a great Spag Bol for dinner and we watched America’s Got Talent!
On Wednesday we had another early start, leaving the house at 6.30am to go and snorkel at Hanaumau Bay. This is a really beautiful bay that is renowned for it’s snorkelling, but gets really really busy, so they suggest you go early, and they mean 7am! So we got there nice and early, paid to go in, and then had to watch a DVD about snorkelling there and being safe etc. Then we walked the steep hill down to the beach. It was already quite busy, and we could see it was just going to get madder! We had our own snorkel gear, but had to hire fins, and a locker which was rather pricey! The snorkelling was good, but the tide was quite low, so swimming over the reef was a bit daunting and closer than I’d have liked! We saw some pretty big fish, but the tide wasn’t the best for it! I think we have also been spoiled by the snorkelling we have done before, particularly recently in Fiji! After a good hour of snorkelling we lay out in the sunshine and it felt much later than it was! Most people come for the day, especially as you pay to get in, but we decided to go back to Waikiki as the surf report had been good! So, we headed that way with the boards again, and the waves were better than the previous day, but not as big as the first day! We enjoyed breakfast at a lovely place overlooking the beach, and then went and calimed a spot on the sand! It took ages to get out to the best spot for catching the waves, and there were lots of rocks under us which made me nervous as the waves were pretty strong and getting wiped out would have been pretty scary! I managed to catch 2 really really good waves all the way and a few fun ones half way, we had a good time! Spent the rest of the day lazing on the beach and enjoying the sunshine! Ben booked himself on a wreck dive for the next morning, which he’d been wanting to do for ages, and Hawaii has some great wrecks! I did not fancy that, especially as he had to get up at 5.30! Early night for us!
So, when I woke up Ben had long gone for his wreck dives. They were going to do two wreck dives, and be back around 11am. He had obviously taken the car and driven by himself without me saying ‘stay right’ the whole time! I had a nice morning catching up on writing emails I had been meaning to get around to, and was done around 11am ready for Ben to come back. By 12pm he was still not back and I began to worry. I decided that if it got to 1pm I would phone the dive shop and find out if the group were back yet. Sadly it did get to 1pm, so I phone the dive shop using skype, but it was all fine! They had had a flat tyre on their way out in the morning, so it had put them back a while, but she told me they were on their way back! I am glad I rang as it put my mind at rest and Ben turned up at about 2.30pm! It was our last afternoon, so we decided we’d like to spend it at Waikiki, as the weather wasn’t great at Kailua, and we gambled that it might be better over the mountains at Waikiki! We were right! It was glorious sun and we had a lovely afternoon lying in the sunshine and cooling off in the sea. We had a lovely last evening before our next adventure to the mainland!
