Dive No.: 1980
Dive Site: Lanai Lookout, Oahu, Hawaii
Max Depth: 58ft/17m
Total Time: 48mins

Air: 200bar – 120 bar
Mix: EANx36
Tank: 80cu
Weight: 8lbs

Visibility: 80ft/24m
Water: 73F/23C
Exposure: Rash Guard, 5mm full wet suit, 3mm skull cap

Comments:

The climb into and out out of this shore dive was half the insane adventure! The approach began with a scamper down the smooth rock face, a crawl through a narrow tunnel running under the road, and a stagger out onto a slick wave-beaten pinnacle— all in full dive gear. The eight-foot plummit from a giant stride entry had to be timed with the rolling waves to avoid being smacked against the rocks.

Plunging beneath the wave crests in a negative entry drop, I rocketed forty feet down into a massive blue cauldron. I laid at the bottom of the sheer Hawaiian walls and watched the bodies of my dive group as they plunged between the rolling sets. We followed a wide oblong swimthru under the same pinnacle we had just walked out on as schools of kihikihi darted away.

Fish life was present but not plentiful. The moonscape geography was absolute breathtaking; it resembled the monolithic features of Bryce National Park in Utah: smooth, water-worn rock ridges interrupted by towering spires protruding to the surface. We weaved in and out of the shallows, inspecting the tiny nudibraches inches along the stony surface to the soundtrack of serenading whales.

The exit was as treacherous as the entrance. We swam up through a narrow canyon into a small whirlpool, timing our movements with the waves to grab ahold of the rock face. Pulling ourselves onto flat land, we then had to hike over one hundred feet up the smooth rock face in full dripping wet gear. Gasping for breath in the parking lot, we learned from another dive group that we had just missed a manta ray sighting. Guess that’s what we get for showing up late (curse The Kraken!).