Maui
By Mindi McPherson
This past holiday, I spent New Year's in Maui. Hawaii is a beautiful state & has many islands. Maui is south of Oahu (where Honolulu is) & north of the Big Island. We stayed on the "dry" side of the island, except it pretty much rained the whole week I was there. Everyone said the overcast rainy stuff was VERY out of the ordinary, but it was after all, MY vacation. Fortunately, there was no severe weather, just rain & this did not keep me from diving at all!!!!!
I dove with the Scuba Shack in Kihei. They took us to the amazing dive site of Molokini. Molokini is an old volcano crater, so it shelters the reef within. You could see it sloping down into the deep blue yonder. One of the coolest things about the dive wasn't what I saw, but what I heard!!! The whales migrate through Hawaii during the winter & I could hear them. It was just like Nemo, but better!!! I expected to see one swim by on my second day of diving they were so loud. Of course since Hawaii is NOT in the Caribbean, the fish differ quite a bit from what we are used to. Sea turtles, giant manta rays & barracuda are found here, just like in the Caribbean. But they also have the beautiful Moorish Idols, colorful surgeon fish & little hawkfish that hide in the coral, just to name a few. Because it had rained so much, we mostly dove Molokini since the shore dives were murky. The one shore dive we did get in was on a sunken Louisiana shrimp boat....I know, go figure??? Hiding in the bottom was a batfish, which, like the boat, must have gotten way of course since they aren't usually found in Hawaii. He was not shy & quite photogenic. The dive was GREAT....super nice & very accommodating. Maybe it was because I was a single gal diver & they were all over-protective males??? Charlie, the owner, actually drove the boat & let me borrow his jacket. My first divemaster, Dave, was AWESOME & let me stay down with him since I had half my tank left when everyone else was going up =) He took the picture of me amidst the coral on the outer slope of Molokini.
I stayed with friends on the island in a house, so I have no information on the resort scene. There was myriad of bars & plenty of places to eat. The ABC stores (found on almost every corner...kinda like an Eckerd's) were a life saver for souvenirs & things like the sunscreen I never used. Everything on the island is EXPENSIVE since it has to be brought in from the mainland. Some things, like towels, flip-flops & coffee are cheap because they are made/grown there. I did come home with a cool pink Hawaiian towel. My flight was booked in late June & only cost me a little over $600, roundtrip from Lubbock. That's not bad actually. Car rental is just about a necessity....the drive up to the top of the volcano, Mt. Haleakala (holly-ah-ka-la....means house of the sun) was not a cab fare type deal. The Road to Hana is a MUST DO, & you'll wanna do it at your own pace. It was gorgeous, despite the off & on rain. There are many waterfalls to see & black sand beaches to stop at. Just beyond Hana are the Seven Sacred Pools. Some guy who owns the land just says that because neither are there SEVEN, nor are they SACRED for any reason. It was a fairly easy hike...take bug stuff & wear comfy shoes.
I enjoyed Maui & got to see quite a bit, except for the sun =( But I had a great time & want to see more of Hawaii one day soon!!!! Any questions, please feel free to e-mail at mindi1123@yahoo.com.
We are interested in your dive experiences. If you would like to share information about places you've been, please email us at texas@scubafied.com
