The Big Island in August

[Otter]

I am leaning towards diving The Big Island this coming August....Shorediving.com has plenty of shore dive locations for The Big Island...

What I would appreciate is..

1) name of a couple of good dive ops

2) non-diving "MUST" dos.

TIA

 

[Wildcard]

You MUST do the helo flight of the island. Go to the Hilo side and do the one hour tour $169. The waterfalls are better than volcaino park but both are awsome. A trip up Mauna Kea is fun but not after diving, 14,000 feet. On the dive side don't miss two step and the manta dive. for operators, most are good, too many competitors to be bad and stay in business. Have a ball! Aloha.

 

[bluemagoo]

I am leaning towards diving The Big Island this coming August....Shorediving.com has plenty of shore dive locations for The Big Island...

What I would appreciate is..

1) name of a couple of good dive ops

2) non-diving "MUST" dos.

TIA

1) How about giving Steve (Friscuba) a try? http://www.wanna-dive-kona.com/index.html

2) Volcanoes National Park is always special for me. See if you can do the hike out to the lava flow at the end of Chain-of-Craters road; it's a long drive down and several miles roundtrip hike over fresh lava; best seen at night; bring water, lights, and walking stick (to feel and avoid breaking through hollow lava bubbles); inquire at the Park information area/ranger station about conditions. The drive along the Hamakua coast is picturesque; the helo ride suggested by Wildcard must be even better. From Waimea-Kamuela town, there're great views of the huge Parker Ranch from the road up the Kohala mountains connecting to the town of Hawi. Lots of history to this island; it would be well worth reading up on it.

 

[Otter]

1) How about giving Steve (Friscuba) a try? http://www.wanna-dive-kona.com/index.html.

Have you? Any feedback? There are always pros & cons to smaller ops....but if there is good feedback, I am all for it.

 

[bluemagoo]

Have you? Any feedback? There are always pros & cons to smaller ops....but if there is good feedback, I am all for it.

Not yet, but others on this and other boards have and I haven't seen a bad opinion yet. I'd certainly give him a go if and when I can get back on that rock. A phone call or email might help to get a feel for his or any op.

 

[Mantasscareme]

I actually just got certified in Kona! Jack's Diving Locker http://www.jacksdivinglocker.com/welcome.htm is a great op as far as I could tell. They were really professional and helpful with beginners. They also have special advanced "adventure" trips which I have absolutely no firsthand knowledge of. You've probably already heard of the "legend" of the Kona manta ray night dive. Not everyone sees the mantas (I got lucky, 7 mantas one night and 6 the other, what a rush!). This is a must do dive on the Big Island. If you get bored of diving, Hawaii Forest and Trail http://www.hawaiiforestandtrail.com/ can hook you up with some great overland tours. Personally, I recommend the Valley Waterfall Adventure. It's really not for those with virtigo, but the payoff of getting to the end of the cliff trail is some great waterfall views. The kiluaea volcano can be spectacular on some days, but when I was there the fireworks weren't at their best. The Hawaii Forest and Trail office is just across the street from the marina where the dive boats are. Good luck and happy travels
-Mantasscareme

 

[RPanick]

If you do go out to see the Lava, which is really cool. If you can try to pick a moonless night, and check the Hilo weather for clear sky. I've never seen so many stars in my whole life. We stopped at the end of the road on the way back where there was a picnic table and just layed back on it and enjoyed the show. I would have loved to have a Telescope.

I would really suggest saving a couple of days to go over to the other side of the island, it really is a different world. Maybe stay at a B&B or or hotel one or two nights. Don't let the Big Island's size fool you, its a long drive from Kona to Hilo, even by mainland standards. But is absolutely gorgeous.

There are even two dive shops in Hilo, (at least last time I was there). There is a black sand beach at Richardson's Beach I believe just South of town that has really great shore diving. Its a bit of a surface swim out, but even that was pretty good because the snorkling there is absolutely fabulous.

Check out Dick the Diver for info on shore diving. You might also want to check out other posts in the forum for good suggestions on operators. Place of Refuge would be a good place to go to. Although for shore diving I think I would recommend some experience, or hire one of the dive guides.

Of the Kona boats I like Kona Honu Divers, because they are a small shop with a very big and fast boat. Jack's was able to fix a piece of gear for me, and I'm grateful for that. But I saw a bunch of people piling into a van for a ride to the boat. The boats also didn't look all that roomy to me.

Bob

 

[redrover]

Otter, The Big Island is an amazingly diverse rock, one persons pleasure is another one’s hell, all of which you can find here. Go to www.wizardpub.com and get The Big Island Revealed, and pick things that appeal to you. It is a very inexpensive reference and all us locals use it. If you have questions about something more specific I’d be happy to try and help. I wrote about Jacks http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?p=1043016#post1043016.

 

[z28badgirl]

I'm glad I found this thread. Lots of good info for us Hawaii-noobies. I'm going to be on the big island for my honeymoon at the end of August, and my fiance and I are really itching to dive while we are there. We can't wait!