Kauai advice sought

[Henryville]

I'm lucky enough to be going to Kauai sometime in the next 18 months. We get to pick the time, but have a variety of scheduling constraints to work around. I'm seeking some information on whether there are "don't go" and "best possible" times of year for diving, and also information on whether or not there is any operator there that caters to decompression diving, rents doubles, that sort of thing.

From what I have read in other threads, Ni'hau would be highly recommended, but only available in summer months. Similarly, Northern/Western exposures out during the winter. I would very much welcome any other tips or points to factor into our scheduling decision. I can be happy doing all sorts of diving, would just like to have some more pros/cons of various times of year.

Thanks a lot for your help.

 

[rgee9]

Hello there,

I just got back from Kauai and I would definitely recommend diving. We did our dives on the South Shore and were able to see a wide variety of marine life that we do not have on the East coast. Sheratons Caverns had turtles everywhere. THere were also nudibranch, Moorish idols, eels, and several other local fish to HI. We were scheduled to dive Ni'hau, but the operation we went with had boat issues and we missed the chance to dive there. However we did get a chance to take a snorkel trip there. The viz was a 100+ and snorkeling we saw a monk seal and a white tip. After that trip we were very disappointed we didn't get to dive there and are considering going back to dive there and then maybe head over to Kona.

We did dive with Fathom Five divers and had a fellow scubaboarder as one of our diver masters. We had a great time and they tried to accommodate all our requests. They tried to get us to dive sites where white tip were more prominent, but we could not find them (No Luck on finding them). The operation was very well organized and they ran six pack boats. The six divers were nice and we were a little bit leary when we first saw the size of the boats. However, Fathom Five had great organization and made the smaller boat seem very comfy and not overcrowded. If we were to go back we would definitely dive with them.

Thanks,
Rob Gee

 

[TullyM]

Kauai has some awesome dives, its the only island we visit frequently, spent two and a half weeks on-island in May and got in six great dive days. The South shore has many good dive spots, Sheraton Caverns is the most heavily dove, (our place looks right out on it and we see Fathom and Seasport out there every day, many times twice a day, its a cool site with frogfish, turtles, the occasional scorpionfish and wonderful lava tube structure. The fishiest SouthSide spots I've seen are between the Shark Cave and Yellow Brick Road - lots of life there!
If you can get to Mana Crack off the NaPali its an amazing place to dive, scenery both above and below water and very pristine due to the light dive load. Niihau/Lehua is the holy grail - I was luck and got six dives over ther this trip (two out of four scheduled runs), conditions determine the trip and when the swell does not cooperate you don't go. I schedule multiple Niihau/Lehua trips to insure I get there, its simply the best diving in Hawaii - much better than Molikinis back wall on Maui. If you go Niihau try to get into the Keyhole - amazing place, Pu'u Mu'u is second on my list followed by Vertical Awareness, Niihau Arches and Neon Cave - all excellent and the vis is amazing 180' plus. sure to see Monk seals over there, this trip we also saw eagle rays, grays and many big pelegic fish.
I've dove the three main operations Fathom, Seasport & Bubble Below, all are good and well run, but I prefer Bubbles. When you are with them you feel more like family and friend than customer and business. They also seem to wander farther afield to find a cool spot, originating out of Port Allen they hit Mana Crack and have been doing Niihau the longest. Bubble has no storefront and there is something to be said for that, they just dive and they do it very well. Ask for Joe Hancock, he is incedibly awesome, not to say the rest of the crew is any less so.
Enjoy and Dive On!
Tully

 

[Driznik]

Tagging along - going to be in Kauai Dec 30-Jan 6, then the Kona aggressor Jan 6-13.

 

[pigletfish]

We were on Kauai at the end on March a couple of years ago, and Ni'ihau trips were not happening -- like you said, it tends to be a summer-only excursion. The northern part of the island was very rainy, but the south (Poipu Beach) was sunny most days. The diving was pleasant, but not quite on par with Kona (in my opinion). Water temps were around 72 degrees. Kauai is a beautiful island, though, a nice contrast to the Big Island (the oldest and the newest of the Hawaiian islands!). We went on some lovely hikes. It's definitely worth a visit, but you might want to go in the summer. Cheers!

 

[AquamanKauai]

Aloha from Kauai,
I DM here on island and can suggest the best of the best dives for you. Among instructors/DM's here most with experience would tell you that Turtle Bluffs is a certain favorite. When divers are doing 2-3 days with me I have TB as a must along with Zach's Pocket or Cargo Nets as deeper sites. They are by far the most consistent I find. Shallower dives - Sheraton Caverns is the most requested dive on the South shore. Loaded with turtles and almost always at least one of our amazing frogfish! The overhead topography is quite impressive there as well. Some of the rare and harder to find critters we pride ourselves in showing include...
Freckled snake eels (Harbour ledges)
Whiskered Boarfish (Ice Box)
Morwongs (secret spot I can't name)
Spotted Knifejaws (Turtle Bluffs)
Deep Water Anthias (Wreck of the Pele)
Longnose Hawkfish/Black Coral (Fast lanes)

Over a couple of days you will see octopus, turtles, 6-8 diff species of eels, flatworms, nudibranchs, shrimp, lobsters, crabs, butterfly fish, Morish Idols, Bandit Angels (only Hawaii), whitetip reef sharks, Tutles everywhere, trevally, snappers, trumpetfish, gobies, crown of thorns seastars, ..... the list goes on and on.

Niihau is a MUST if you are here at the right time. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE leading tours there! Always something unexpected! AND YOU CAN DIVE WITH THE HIGHLY ENDANGERED MONK SEALS.

let me know if i can help with any dive questions you may have. Happy to help.

Best from the islands

 

[aquachick]

My husband and I are contemplating a visit to Kauai in January. I know that Niihau is out, which we will do another time. Which operation do you work for?

 

[barleemr]

Henryville,

The only person on the island that does any sort of tec diving on the island of Kauai is Hawaii Trek and Tec. He can take you cave diving up on the north shore area at Tunnels Beach. But I don't believe he does any decompression diving. I did get TDI Advanced Nitrox Certified from Doc a couple of years ago when I was there. He is a very good instructor. YOu may give him an e-mail to see if he knows anyone on the island that does do tec diving on Kauai. He would know if there is anyone. His web site is "http://www.kauaiscuba.com/index.html" His name is Richard Neuman, everyone calls him Doc. Also the Niihau diving is awesome, I've done it 3 times now over the years, and it is by far the best diving in the Hawaiian islands. Bubbles Below is who I recommend to go with out there. If your prone to seasickness though, I'd shy away from it. Its a 3 tank all day trip and the ride home can be pretty rough, 10 to 15 foot seas for about an hour until you get in behind Kauai. Two and and half hour ride back from Niihau to Kauai, it takes about an hour and a half to get there in the mornings.

Mark

 

[eric_in_az]

Aloha from Kauai,
I DM here on island and can suggest the best of the best dives for you.

I'm planning on going to Kauai in February. What would your recommendations be for that time of year?

 

[Ob1Stogie]

I'll be there in late November, and any good beach dives you can recommend would be great!