Wojciech Zgola - "My Hawaii": Whales, diving and a plane - report + gallery

Hawaii is many islands and, one might say, many paradises. Flying between the largest of them in a matter of minutes, you’ll often see a rainbow, a fine mist, blue water and sometimes a whale’s tail.

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Being already on the island of Maui, I planned my time quite intensively. Averaging 3 dives each, a trip to Molokini Island, a visit to the highest volcano, catching the Hawaiian atmosphere. I was also thinking about a whale watching tour. They come to Hawaii in autumn and stay until about April. During this time, baby whales are born and they stay close to their mothers.

Selection

I analysed the amount of time, consulted the language and decided to go on a cruise to the island of Molokini. But you can swim and dive near it. I trusted the Maui Diamond II company. The rule is simple, if you meet whales on the way, you must not jump into the water. The engines get a stop command and the whole gang watches the dike. After arriving at the spot and dropping anchor we dive. If the whales come up you can approach them.

Moonlit island

There are also snorkellers on board. After a short briefing we jump into the water, which immediately envelops me. It is warm, the temperature is 26º C. The biggest “in plus” shock is the visibility. It is a good 50 metres. Turning around our own axis we cover 100 metres of the ocean. Incredible and stunning. From a distance you can see a lot of fish. The downside is the current, which we have to deal with during the whole dive. It is not strong, but it is especially hard when, after stopping by a photo-worthy specimen, you have to catch up with the group after a while. That is why I prefer to dive in pairs or in my own small group. I pass shoals of colourful fish. There are rockfish, peacock thalassos, large lobsters and moray eels. There is a lot of life. But the most interesting is the sound of humpback whales, which are out of sight.

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Whales

After almost an hour we finally emerge to swim away from Molokini and approach Maui. On the way we meet whales several times. The males keep their distance and we count 7 of them. The mums with the cubs swim right by the side of our boat, which now seems small. We all wait for the spectacular emergence of the tail. We can see the snout, belly and fins. A small humpback whale lays down on its back and swims like this for a while. The outside world stops reaching our senses for a moment. Everyone is focused on the spectacular sight of the colossus, listening to its characteristic squeaks and catching a sharp photo in the frame.

Dive bomber

We arrive at the site of the wreck of a dive bomber. It broke down during an exercise in 1944 and had to be launched. It is now lying on its belly, on the sandy bottom, at a depth of 16.5 metres. This is good, because it can be explored for longer, and bad, because visibility automatically decreases. Many of the divers mindlessly hit the bottom with their flippers, causing sand and other sediment to float.

The place is called Hell Diver. I descend quickly and hover at a suitable depth. I swim to places where there is no one at the moment. The visibility is about 20 m, but in some places it drops to a few and we have to wait until it clears up. The wreck is very well preserved. You can see both wings, the propeller, the inside of the cockpit and the tail. As happens with artificial reefs, also this plane has become a dwelling for many creatures. A large moray eel lives in the engine, a large octopus lives under the right wing, and snails walk on the other wing. Countless schools of various fish swim everywhere. There is no current and it would be a dream to dive here with just a partner in windless weather. The photos could come out amazingly.

Back

Meanwhile, we surface and board the ship. I take off my wetsuit and put together my borrowed equipment. The pleasant atmosphere and the meeting of the whales is shared by all. Evening comes. Time to look for a good pub and taste the local beef burger. It is excellent by the way. It gets crowded in the bars and on the street. It is difficult to find a parking place. At night I need to sleep, because tomorrow is also a day, part of which I will spend under water. Mahalo!

The above text is the second part of the series “My Hawaii” by Wojciech Zgola. We encourage everyone to read the first part “My Hawaii – Welcome to Oahu” and to visit the author’s website – www.dive-adventure.euwhere you will find many interesting and useful materials created by Wojtek during his numerous diving trips.