TRIP REPORT: St. Maarten – Saba – Statia – St. Kitts, April 12 – 19 « As the Prop Turns

Nice site about Live Aboards

 

New! Project AWARE’s 10 Tips for Underwater Photographers « Life of a Singapore PADI Scuba Diving Instructor

 

This is a great site! good information about taking pic’s underwater.

One of the biggest natural attractions on the island is the large population of Green Sea Turtles. They inhabit the inshore reef systems and are easily seen from the shoreline without ever getting wet. They can get pretty big, like hundereds of pounds. Becasue they are a protected species, it is against the law, and comes with pretty heafty penalties if you are caught touching them or interupting thier normal behaviors.

But no one told the tutles this. I had a group of open water students sitting on the sand watching the turtles at a cleaning station at the outer edge of Reef II at Ulua (compass headinf of 265 from point of Reef I), when a large male turtle decided to check us out like he was the tourist. This very large turtle sank down to the sand right in front of me and began inching closer to me until his shell pressed into my thighs. I moved back to give him more space, and he pushed up against me again. I had kept moving back, and he kept pushing into me, until he knocked me over. This encounter went on for about 3 minutes before I put a little air in the BC and lifted off and away from the Beast!….I looked back, and I had 4 students with huge eyes, and lots of bubbles.

I would like to know if the turtle ever paid his fine for molesting the dive instructor….Either way, it was a great experience, even for a seasoned pro!

As a dive instructor on the island, I depended on tips to eat. The theory is, work hard, know your dive sites, and show your customers an incredible dive. I worked hard to make sure they had the best time possible. I generally did very well. The best tip ever was from a couple from Utah named Doug and Sandy. The dive didn’t go off that great. Sandy was unable to do the second dive due to an equipment malfunction. We had some serious difficulties. In spite of all of this, I got a fifty dollar tip, lunch and some adult beverages after the dive was over. They were great, and the fifty dollars meant I had groceries for a week.

On the flip side, I picked up a customer at his resort at 6:00 am, took him all over the island trying to find a drivable site in bad conditions, managed to get one dive in at Olowalu, probably the only stretch of beach without 10 foot waves and zero viz in all of Hawaii on that day, and we even saw some great stuff in the limited visibility. After the dive, I took him to a fast food place so he could pick up some food (I had no cash, so I didn’t eat), and then took him back to his hotel. He gave me a six dollar tip, and told me how upset he was that I cancelled the second dive of the trip. Even though by the time we surfaced the waves were huge and the long-shore current was kicking fast enough to award us with a free trip to Fiji.

Six bucks….I felt like telling him to keep it…but that was two tanks of gas for my scooter.

If you are heading Maui way, and you should, this is a good place for your very first dive. If you are certified, get tanks, get gear, get wet. The parking is free, and generally plentiful. The reef is easy to follow, and beautiful. Take South Kiehi Rd along the coast towards Makenna(make sure you have a map of the island). The road will curve abruptly to the left and start climbing a small hill. About halfway up the hill is a four way stop. Turn right here. About another 1/2 mile down you will see a oval sign for the Renaissance Resort. Just past this will be a bi-color light and med green sign for Ulua/Mokapu Beach. Turn Right.

So Here is the tourist mistake. Most visitors to the island park in one of the two free parking lots on the right hand side. Put all their gear on near the trunk of their rental car, and then walk the 200 yards down to the beach. The locals and instructors do this part a little different. After all, diving is not about ass kicking physical exertion for most of us. at the end of the road into the beach is a loop. Stay to the right, pull up to the grass area, pick a spot and quickly unload your gear. Then whoever drew the short straw gets to take the car back up to the parking area, find a spot for the rental car, and walk back in slippahs (Hawaiian for flip flops). Much easier than the 60 pounds of gear on the way down the hill to the beach, and the 80 pounds of wet gear up the hill back to the car after your dive.

So, once you get down to the grass, there is a nice restroom facility and shower. From here there is a walkway heading down to both Ulua and Mokapu Beaches. Take the path to the left (while looking towards the ocean), and once on the sand, the next reef is to the right. You can see the rocks sticking up out of the water at low tide, and they are visible just under the surface after high tide. The rest of the beach is sand. Get in kick out and over to the reef. When it looks like you have a good 10 feet of water, pick a place and drop down. Take the time to do you buoyancy check here. Follow the reef out until you come across four metal cord loop ties embedded in the sand where the reef backs a turn to the right. Set your compass heading for 270 (and remember it will be 90 to get back) and kick across the sand for about 50 yards. You then be at Reef II. explore the reef, and look in the crevices for Moray Eels, Snowflake eels, and frogfish. Remember to look up and out to the sand once in a while. Manta Rays and Spotted Eagle Rays are pretty common here. I had one Manta Ray hang up with me my entire dive, just kept circling and swooping down to check us out. I had a first time student in the water with me. I think they are hooked for life.

Remember to bring some food to fuel up between dives. It is easy to spend a whole week exploring this site. During Whale season, we would spend our time watching them right from the beach.  I usually pack a sack lunch from Da Kitchen on South Kihei Road on the back side of the Rainbow Plaza.

This is my first trip into the blogosphere. I am a little ascared, but here it goes. I hope this does not evolove into an addiction I need 12 steps or a higher power to overcome, but I guess that ain’t such a bad trip either.