Hanauma Bay – Snorkeling Destination
Tucked inside an ancient volcanic crater that opens to the vast Pacific Ocean, this sparkling crescent-shaped bay encompasses a magnificent marine environment you won’t want to miss during your trip to Hawai‘i. – hanaumabaysnorkel.com
Ever wish to transform your world into something exotic and surreal? Maybe snorkeling is the way to go. One day while I was walking around the streets of Waikiki, I noticed a sign posted up in the local ABC store. The sign posted was about one of the top snorkeling sites in the world. It is always cool to check out the top anything in world as far as I am concerned, so it immediately caught my attention. To my surprise, this supreme snorkeling location was only nine miles from my location.
Having been my first trip to the island and not wanting to walk for nine miles, the next goal was to find a way to get there. A taxi was out of the question as they were very expensive around there. After a bit of searching I decided to look into the local bus system. This was a great idea. The bus system on Oahu is amazing, and best part is a ticket only cost $2 and you can get free transfer tickets. So I board the bus and head on over to Hanauma Bay.
Upon arrival there is absolutely no guesswork as where to go because the local mascot was right in front of the location. Now since this is in fact Hawai’i where the tourism gets a bit crazy, there was about a 30 minute wait before I could even enter the location.
Finally once I got in to purchase my tickets they make you watch this video briefing (in English OR Japanese) that explains the delicacy of the ecosystem. Tips such as “don’t step on the coral or else” and other common sense things.
After sitting through line and briefs, the time came where I was able to go down to the bay. There are not many things in my life that I can say this about but WOW! It was one of the most beautiful locations I had ever seen(minus all of the other tourists of course).
The way the coral wrapped around the sandy ocean bottom and how the waves splashed up against the rocky surroundings, the atmosphere was to die for. So I wade my way through the sea of tourists, throw on my ocean shoes and mask and dive in.
Having never snorkeled before, I was awe inspired by the diverse life that is present in this small bay. I was looking at more types of fish then I ever knew existed, sea turtles swimming around in their natural environment, and even the sea urchins were absolutely amazing to me. After spending about four hours of straight snorkeling, I decided to call it a day(snorkeling is very tiring). Unfortunately I do not have any cool underwater pictures as I accidentally left my underwater camera in the hotel when I left this island but take my word for it, if you ever get the chance to go snorkeling at Hanauma bay, it is HIGHLY recommended.
SNORKELING RESOURCES:
Snorkeling.info – Great link that has enormous amounts of information on snorkeling.
HanaumaBaySnorkel.com – Hanauma Bay excursion company. $18 Excursion price.
HawaiiSnorkelingGuide.com – Has some good Hawaii-related snorkeling information.
Divers-Supply.com – Good snorkeling gear.
