I had the chance to get out and dive twice last week while on vacation on Oahu and I have to say both trips (and the ops I dove with) exceeded my expectations!

On Monday the 1st, Gabe from Kaimana Divers arranged a 2 tank afternoon dive for myself, my certified daughter; integrated into a 2 tank intro dive for my son. Gabe picked us up from our hotel and provided gear for both my kids… He did a great job making my son at ease while drilling him on the essential basic skills needed for his intro dives. Once in the water he continually coached him, helping him start to dial in his buoyancy and generally get comfortable in the water, all while keeping him close enough to assist in a moment had the arose. Gabe’s skill as an instructor, along with his ability to connect with my slightly phobic, somewhat nervous 16 year old allowed me to simply tag along and enjoy two beautiful dives off the shores of Oahu. Sites visited were, Turtle Canyon & Kewalo Pipe/ Horseshoe Reef. Both sites provided a continuous parade of sea life, from the expected to the exotic: Green sea turtles from medium to huge, cleaner wrasse, more species of butterfly’s, angels, damsels, triggers, parrots and tangs than I could keep track of. Add to that cornetfish, trumpetfish, 3 colors of frogfish (green & red adults & a yellow juvenile), a devil scorpionfish, a yellow margin eel and possibly the biggest moorish idol ever!

On Friday the 5th I was lucky enough to dive the YO-257/San Pedro with Sean from Reef Pirates; in a word our dive on the YO was UNBELIEVABLE !! Viz was 150ft + and the current was virtually non-existent. Coming down the line from the surface both wrecks were visible from stem to stern and it just kept getting better as the dive went on; with 2 outstanding wrecks to explore, monstrous green sea turtles, a couple of eagle rays and huge schools of reef fish. As I hung by the mooring line during my safety stop, gazing down on the wrecks, I realized that this dive is exactly what I imagined diving would be before I actually got certified… As we headed to shallower waters for our 2nd dive, I wondered how anything could follow our first dive, but as we tied in at Kewalo Pipe a large school of dolphin was spotted a little further offshore; only moments after spotting a humpback cruising nearby. Since both DiverDave and I had dove the pipe before, Sean suggested we head away from shore at the end of the pipe in hopes of encountering some larger critters. While the viz was not nearly as good, and we failed to find any of pelagic's we were searching for; Sean made our “2nd dive” a memorable and enjoyable one. We alternated scanning for shapes in the water at the edge of visibility with exploring the scattered small patches of reef and coral heads along the sandy bottom.

The bottom line is I would recommend Gabe / Kaimana Divers and/or Sean / Reef Pirates to anyone visiting Oahu who wants to dive, just for a day or everyday for a week; from beginner to experienced diver! They are both knowledgeable and proficient, focusing on making their clients dives effortless, enjoyable, and safe … Mahalo guys!