In Hawaii, you can often feel a "laid-back" atmosphere, with local residents looking happy and most of the time with smiles on their faces, and travelers are susceptible to these smiles and soon have smiles on their faces.
1
History of Hawaii
The Hawaiian Islands are in what geology calls "hot spots." Earth's mantle is thin in this place, so lava beneath the seabed can erupt from here to become volcanoes.
As the Earth's plates move, this "hot spot" of seafloor magma erupts, and the cooling lava forms a chain of basalt landforms.
The northernmost and westernmost islands of the chain are the oldest to form and the most eroded; the large island, known as "Hawaii," is the youngest in the chain. The island chain consists of 8 larger, habitable islands and numerous other islets and atolls.
The Hawaiian Islands were first discovered 1,500 years ago when Polynesians from the South Pacific arrived in large double-cabin canoes.
In 1778, Captain Cook, recognized as the first European to "discover" these islands, named them the Sandwich Islands.
In 1810, small, independent tribes from the islands of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii were united after a war to form the Kingdom of Hawaii
It was annexed by the United States in 1898
In 1941, Japan bombed the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands;
In August 1959, the Hawaiian Islands officially became the fiftieth state of the United States.
2
Diving in Hawaii
Searching the Internet for "Top 10 Dives in the World," there's no doubt that the "manta ray night dive" off the coast of Kailua Kona will take its place. If you're traveling to the Big Island, don't miss it.
1 manta ray night dive
The Sheraton Hotel built a deck near the lounge and added lighting to a small harbor near the deck so that people could use it at night.
However, it was soon discovered that there were many manta rays swimming around in the relatively shallow waters next to the observation deck.
The explanation for this phenomenon is that the plankton in the water is attracted by the strong light of the harbor, and the manta rays are filter eaters, so they follow the plankton to come here.
Based on this principle, local divers get inspired to find a suitable place to dive at night, and then make manta rays "get used to" staying there by placing artificial light to attract plankton.
This pattern works well, and over the past few years, 6 or more dive boats have been stuck on the surface every night (when the waves are not too big) and then used dive flashlights under the water to attract manta rays.
On some nights, it can even attract more than 20 manta rays, some of which can have a wingspan of more than 5 meters.
If you complete this dive, you'll never forget the manta ray's huge mouth and exposed gill rakers. You'll never forget the feeling of these graceful animals gliding overhead, the water flowing out of the water making you sway under the water!
The manta rays will continue this graceful feeding dance until the dive guide pats you on the shoulder and tells you that someone has run out of air and that the dive is about to end.
It's important to note that manta rays don't appear when the waves are heavy, but most nights they come as promised and perform!
You can also save on "entrance fees" by diving directly from the shore of the Sheraton, but that is far less simple than from the boat, requiring careful planning and extensive diving experience.
2black water dive (夜潜)
Another famous night dive in the Kona region is called Night Dive, which makes it easy for you to dive with manta rays for an unforgettable night!
You take a boat to a depth of more than 900 meters and about 4.8 kilometers from the coast. Then drop off 6 or 8 12-meter-long ropes from different parts of the boat.
After each diver hooks these main ropes with the ropes attached to their bcds, you're ready to go. As the hull floats up and down in the waves, each diver with a diving flashlight on the main rope moves up and down in the black waters.
All the creatures you can see are glowing: red, white, green, yellow and blue, and a large number of organisms you've never seen before are dancing and flashing!
But you must think twice before diving, as it is not suitable for people with bad hearts! (Once, when the diving instructor grabbed my calf and pointed it out to a large Venus band on it, I almost fainted).
The slow current gives you the opportunity to take a closer look at these creatures, while the fast currents will make these strange creatures fly around like scenes from Star Trek!
3 dives on a Hawaiian boat
Hawaii has some dive sites located near the coast, but many are far from the coast, and in general, the farther away from the coast the dive site costs.
But when a humpback whale visits, it's definitely worth taking a boat trip to a longer dive site! I once was diving at a depth of 30 meters and was lucky enough to encounter a female whale swimming with her baby whale 12 meters below my fins!
The west coast of the big island has some pretty wonderful underwater terrain, which is made up of lava formations and lava caves, and swimming and diving is quite fun.
There are some excellent charter dive companies in and around Kailua-Kona Island, so you can carefully choose your boat dive operator.
4 dives on Hawaiian shores
Shore diving on the Big Island will be easier for both advanced divers and budget divers, and the shore diving experience will be great!
There are several dive sites on the east side of Hilo Island, which can be accessed directly through shore diving. But the water temperature on the east side will be slightly lower, and visibility will be very poor when it rains heavily in this place.
If you are planning to do shore diving, I highly recommend renting a car as some of the dive sites are simply too far away.
3
Hawaii's underwater scenery
Hawaii is home to more than 20 species of coral fish that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Because it's too far away for fish from coral reefs on other continents, they need to walk quite a long way to get here.
Most of the corals around Hawaii Island are "hard coral" or "stony" corals. Mountain star coral is abundant, it usually looks like a giant mushroom, and often appears in different colors such as green, red, yellow, purple or blue. It's easy to mistakenly think you've walked into Alice's Wonderland!
Hawaii also has several types of soft corals, but most are small and not easily seen.
4
Hawaiian fish
Yellow tang fish, butterfly fish, parrot fish, jaw needle fish, wrasse, salamander and golden scale fish, etc., as well as green turtles are common there. Frogfish, lionfish and scorpionfish can also be seen by experienced people.
The national fish humukukuapua'a is not common there, but when you see it, you will know that it is it. Spotted fish abound there, and you can see them in the "cleaning stations" where the Chinese tend.
Whitetip reef sharks, fan-shaped hammerhead sharks, tiger sharks, blacktip sharks and sandbar sharks can also be often seen there.
Humpback whales that make people really boil with blood are certainly indispensable. They come here between December and March of the following year to breed and give birth. They can be easily seen from the boat spraying water and leaking.
Humpback whales and certain sharks are rare species in Hawaii. But even an ordinary dive (if there is one), if you can meet a male humpback whale singing, it will make this dive very special!
5
Water temperature in Hawaii
Hawaii has water temperatures below 21°C in winter and 21 to 26ºc in summer. Therefore, you need to wear a 3 mm thick wetsuit in the winter, and only a 1 mm thick wetsuit in the summer.
6
When is the right time to go?
You can go all year round, but be aware that during the winter months, there may be some waves from the North Pacific, which adds some difficulty to diving.
The peak season for diving is around Christmas. Winter you can come here to escape the cold and snow, but this time hotel prices tend to be higher.
In addition, the Ironman finals are held every October on the Big Island. Therefore, if you are planning to visit during October, be careful to book your hotel in advance, as hotels in the Kailua Kona area are usually full during this event.
7
The cost in Hawaii
Like many island nations, most of Hawaii's items need to be imported, so many of its items are usually more expensive than those on the mainland.
But there are a number of ways to reduce your costs:
1. There are many vacation homes and apartments in Hawaii, but there are also some cheap apartments in them, which requires you to look for them.
2. Eating in Hawaii is a big expense, you can rent an apartment where you can cook, do it yourself, and have plenty of food; you can also find restaurants that locals often visit, which not only taste more authentic but also have cheap prices.
3. If you want to rent a car and have a good tour, you'd better avoid major festivals and important events, or you'll be upset with your wallet for two seconds!
8
Transportation between the Hawaiian Islands
If you want to depart from the big island to a neighboring island, a plane is the only option. In addition, there is a ferry from Maui to Molokai.
All in all, the Hawaiian diving was spectacular! If you're planning to go to Hawaii, you won't be disappointed!
The picture comes from the Internet, invaded and deleted
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