When it comes to dive vacation planning, some people prefer to go with familiar locations, an appeal I fully understand every time I return to the comfortable surroundings of Cozumel. In general, though, I prefer to explore new areas, so when my non-diving wife and I head out for a vacation, I need to scout ahead to find out what I should be looking for and what operator(s) I should use. When this year's complex planning included only a few days in Kauai, I turned to the Hawai'an O'hana forum in the regional travel section of ScubaBoard. A search of past threads taught me that a must-do dive in Kauai is Ni'ihau, the "Forbidden island" off the southwest coast. That same search suggested that the best people to take me there would be Bubbles Below (Bubbles Below Scuba Diving Charters Hawaii - Scuba Dive Kauai and Niihau), a small, long-established operator that first explored Ni'ihau in 1984. I later learned that Linda, the company's owner, is something of a legend in Kauai diving, and she is responsible for the names of many of the island's dive sites.
I joined Linda for a warm up day first, exploring some of the off shore sites. It is apparently mating season for white tip reef sharks, and we were hoping see a little romance, but it was not to be. We saw one good sized one with recent gill scars, showing that mating in the white tip world is a serious matter indeed. Since I like to watch species in action, the highlight of that day for me was watching a large turtle hanging motionlessly while a hoard of fish cleaned the algae from its back.
I have notoriously bad luck with dive travel weather, so the beatific calm of our journey to Ni'ihau the next morning was something of a miracle. The crossing is usually pretty rough, but this day the ocean was as smooth as any lake. On the way we watched the wedge-tailed shearwaters (Shearwater - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) glide inches above the water in search of fish, and we listened to our divemaster (Joseph) explain the somewhat controversial history of the forbidden island (Niihau - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). Throughout the day, the briefings were extremely thorough and focused heavily on the biological and ecological experiences we would be having. The trip out had less time than normal for such talk because of the calm weather, for we made it there in not much more than half the expected time.
Because of its isolation, much of Hawai'ian sea life is endemic, meaning that it evolved there and is found nowhere else. Because I rarely come to Hawai'i, I am attracted to these new (to me) species. It didn't take long for that to happen, for when our boat pulled up for our first dive at a site called Vertical Awareness, we were greeted by two large Hawai'ian monk seals, a critically endangered species (Hawaiian Monk Seal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). After we entered the water, the curious seals came down to check us out. One of them must have committed a serious breach of monk seal etiquette, for they were soon involved in a major brawl, with their bodies twisting around as they barked loudly angrily and bit at each other. This fighting must be somewhat common, for we saw many bite scars on their bodies.
After our unexpected ring-side experience, we dropped down the wall to begin the dive. Ni'ihau is different from most dive sites. If you are looking for lush, colorful coral, sponges, and gorgonians, you are in the wrong place. Neither should you expect to be swarmed with schools of fishes. Ni'ihau's origin is clearly volcanic, and the sheer walls consist of thin layers of ash and eruption debris, like a giant torte or an oceanic baklava. The rock surfaces are deeply scarred by algae-eating sea urchins. The sea life is relatively sparse compared to other sites around the world, but it seems as if everything there is unique and new. A divemaster who knows what to look for is a valuable friend in a place like this. Joseph led us immediately to 125 feet and some long fin anthias (Anthiinae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia), an endemic species with unusually shaped fins. We moved on to other sights, such as a black feather hydroid, and as we ended that dive, we found an endemic Hawai'ian lionfish (Hawaiian Lionfish).
When we reached the expected location for our second dive, we found a pod of spinner dolphins already there, and they were in the mood for play. That meant we had no choice but to spend a significant percentage of our surface interval on snorkel, while the pizza that skipper Pete had baked on the block of the diesel engine grew cold.
The benign weather conditions clearly had the Bubbles Below crew off their normal routine, which in this case was a good thing. With unexpected options open to them, they decided to do a rarely-dived site for our second dive, Puu Muu Point. The real draw of this site is the topography, for it is a labyrinthine maze of swim throughs and boulders. One swim through consisted of a low arch where precise buoyancy control was needed to reach the outer edges without touching the ceiling or disturbing the silt. In the darkness we found schools of big eye squirrelfish and lobsters, including a purple variety I had never seen before. A large Hawai'ian tiger cowry (Cowry - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) clung to the ceiling. Out in the open we found a tiny dwarf moray and a Spanish dancer nudibranch (The Right Blue: Video: Spanish Dancer Nudibranch) as we dealt with the rapidly changing and swirling currents of the area. At one point a large and majestic gray reef shark hovered over us, as if to remind us that we were in his domain and only with his grudging permission.
Again because of the weather, we had a lot of choices for the third dive. After much discussion and debate, we opted for the Pyramid site, even though that would take us much deeper (nearly 100 feet) than is customary for a third dive. Joseph was gambling that a pair of rare whisker boarfish might be hiding in their customary spot, and that gamble paid off. They were right where he hoped they would be. Right below them we found a huge yellow hairy hermit crab (Hairy Yellow Hermit Crab) inside a triton trumpet shell (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_(mollusk)). Most of the rest of the dive was on a sheer rock wall, where the monk seals returned to watch us, and where we were passed by a spotted eagle ray and a white tip reef shark. A small harlequin shrimp (Harlequin Shrimp, Clown Shrimp - Hymenocera elegans) was too shy and reclusive for me to see, but those who got there before me got a glimpse.
The good weather continued for the return trip, which started off with freshly baked (the diesel engine again) chocolate chip cookies. We would have arrived far ahead of the expected schedule were it not for two extended pilot whale encounters that occupied much of that extra time. Even with that, we managed to arrive more than an hour early.
The trip to Ni'ihau is not for everyone, and there are definite reasons to skip the trip. Our experience to the contrary, the crossing can be long and rough. Because of the depth and erratic currents, beginning divers should get more experience and training before taking the trip. Those of us who were not diving nitrox flirted with and sometimes exceeded the no decompression limits, so divers should have enough training to be comfortable with that possibility. The three tank dive is definitely a full day trip, from near pre-dawn darkness to the edge of supper time.
On the other hand, if you like unusual topography, both beneath and above sea level, and if you like seeing unusual and rare species, it is well worth the trip. The first divers did not start exploring Ni'ihau until 1984, and few operators go there even today, so it is still largely unexplored. If you go, make sure you choose an operator that knows the area as well as possible.
I joined Linda for a warm up day first, exploring some of the off shore sites. It is apparently mating season for white tip reef sharks, and we were hoping see a little romance, but it was not to be. We saw one good sized one with recent gill scars, showing that mating in the white tip world is a serious matter indeed. Since I like to watch species in action, the highlight of that day for me was watching a large turtle hanging motionlessly while a hoard of fish cleaned the algae from its back.
I have notoriously bad luck with dive travel weather, so the beatific calm of our journey to Ni'ihau the next morning was something of a miracle. The crossing is usually pretty rough, but this day the ocean was as smooth as any lake. On the way we watched the wedge-tailed shearwaters (Shearwater - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) glide inches above the water in search of fish, and we listened to our divemaster (Joseph) explain the somewhat controversial history of the forbidden island (Niihau - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). Throughout the day, the briefings were extremely thorough and focused heavily on the biological and ecological experiences we would be having. The trip out had less time than normal for such talk because of the calm weather, for we made it there in not much more than half the expected time.
Because of its isolation, much of Hawai'ian sea life is endemic, meaning that it evolved there and is found nowhere else. Because I rarely come to Hawai'i, I am attracted to these new (to me) species. It didn't take long for that to happen, for when our boat pulled up for our first dive at a site called Vertical Awareness, we were greeted by two large Hawai'ian monk seals, a critically endangered species (Hawaiian Monk Seal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). After we entered the water, the curious seals came down to check us out. One of them must have committed a serious breach of monk seal etiquette, for they were soon involved in a major brawl, with their bodies twisting around as they barked loudly angrily and bit at each other. This fighting must be somewhat common, for we saw many bite scars on their bodies.
After our unexpected ring-side experience, we dropped down the wall to begin the dive. Ni'ihau is different from most dive sites. If you are looking for lush, colorful coral, sponges, and gorgonians, you are in the wrong place. Neither should you expect to be swarmed with schools of fishes. Ni'ihau's origin is clearly volcanic, and the sheer walls consist of thin layers of ash and eruption debris, like a giant torte or an oceanic baklava. The rock surfaces are deeply scarred by algae-eating sea urchins. The sea life is relatively sparse compared to other sites around the world, but it seems as if everything there is unique and new. A divemaster who knows what to look for is a valuable friend in a place like this. Joseph led us immediately to 125 feet and some long fin anthias (Anthiinae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia), an endemic species with unusually shaped fins. We moved on to other sights, such as a black feather hydroid, and as we ended that dive, we found an endemic Hawai'ian lionfish (Hawaiian Lionfish).
When we reached the expected location for our second dive, we found a pod of spinner dolphins already there, and they were in the mood for play. That meant we had no choice but to spend a significant percentage of our surface interval on snorkel, while the pizza that skipper Pete had baked on the block of the diesel engine grew cold.
The benign weather conditions clearly had the Bubbles Below crew off their normal routine, which in this case was a good thing. With unexpected options open to them, they decided to do a rarely-dived site for our second dive, Puu Muu Point. The real draw of this site is the topography, for it is a labyrinthine maze of swim throughs and boulders. One swim through consisted of a low arch where precise buoyancy control was needed to reach the outer edges without touching the ceiling or disturbing the silt. In the darkness we found schools of big eye squirrelfish and lobsters, including a purple variety I had never seen before. A large Hawai'ian tiger cowry (Cowry - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) clung to the ceiling. Out in the open we found a tiny dwarf moray and a Spanish dancer nudibranch (The Right Blue: Video: Spanish Dancer Nudibranch) as we dealt with the rapidly changing and swirling currents of the area. At one point a large and majestic gray reef shark hovered over us, as if to remind us that we were in his domain and only with his grudging permission.
Again because of the weather, we had a lot of choices for the third dive. After much discussion and debate, we opted for the Pyramid site, even though that would take us much deeper (nearly 100 feet) than is customary for a third dive. Joseph was gambling that a pair of rare whisker boarfish might be hiding in their customary spot, and that gamble paid off. They were right where he hoped they would be. Right below them we found a huge yellow hairy hermit crab (Hairy Yellow Hermit Crab) inside a triton trumpet shell (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_(mollusk)). Most of the rest of the dive was on a sheer rock wall, where the monk seals returned to watch us, and where we were passed by a spotted eagle ray and a white tip reef shark. A small harlequin shrimp (Harlequin Shrimp, Clown Shrimp - Hymenocera elegans) was too shy and reclusive for me to see, but those who got there before me got a glimpse.
The good weather continued for the return trip, which started off with freshly baked (the diesel engine again) chocolate chip cookies. We would have arrived far ahead of the expected schedule were it not for two extended pilot whale encounters that occupied much of that extra time. Even with that, we managed to arrive more than an hour early.
The trip to Ni'ihau is not for everyone, and there are definite reasons to skip the trip. Our experience to the contrary, the crossing can be long and rough. Because of the depth and erratic currents, beginning divers should get more experience and training before taking the trip. Those of us who were not diving nitrox flirted with and sometimes exceeded the no decompression limits, so divers should have enough training to be comfortable with that possibility. The three tank dive is definitely a full day trip, from near pre-dawn darkness to the edge of supper time.
On the other hand, if you like unusual topography, both beneath and above sea level, and if you like seeing unusual and rare species, it is well worth the trip. The first divers did not start exploring Ni'ihau until 1984, and few operators go there even today, so it is still largely unexplored. If you go, make sure you choose an operator that knows the area as well as possible.
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