Great time, learned a lot but......
by Judy Magill
I'm really almost "fresh out of the water" as I write this, as I was just at Hanauma Bay August 23rd. I ended up taking a "tour" there.....you know the package deal where the transportation, gear was $15.00, and of course an underwater camera for an extra $13.00. I think the rental fees on the beach were steep, like $9.00 or so, but the locker fee was $5.00. Early Monday morning the beach had to be closed for a while for a pair of mating Monk seals, and dang if they weren't back there a few hours later, waaaay down away from the crowds. My experience was odd, as my mask was all snarled from the previous person, and only after I nearly drowned did a young guy come up to me and spend 15 minutes of his time helping me and showing me what to do. I had trouble keeping my mask on even after that and drank more sea water than I'd like, but I did finally get to see some random fish and coral. The lifeguards warned us that the tide was coming in a little early so the water seemed to "roll" at times, and I drifted down the beach without even doing that much! Apparently some people found plenty of fish schooling around some deeper coral, but by this time I was getting tired (probably due to those fins....they were awkward but needed)and decided to quit for the day. All in all a great time, now I just know I need more time to get used to the equipment and water conditions. Judy Magill |