Shark's Cove

It's been about 2 weeks since my last post - sorry for the delay. Work issues have really kept me busy. It looks like I will also be extremely busy in the coming weeks as well. I hope I'll have some good time to spend when the kids visit!

Aside from the work issues, last weekend we went snorkeling at Shark's Cove. You may remember this place from one of my previous posts about huge waves. Yep, this is the same place without the waves and is home to some of the best snorkeling on the island! I'm sure everyone is tired of endless underwater pictures on my blog. But the water was very clear, there were lots of fish and there were beautiful underwater formations - and since it's my blog, I'll post some more...

Shark's Cove is on Oahu's North Shore. During the winter, this part of the island is world-famous for big surf. Other times of the year it is not as famous for it's clear blue waters and abundant marine life. Being almost an hour away from Waikiki and not having a lot of amenities, most tourists only see this part of the island from a tour bus. The sand on the tiny beach is course and there are plenty of sharp lava rocks. In fact, about the best way to visit Shark's Cove is packing some snorkeling gear.

When we arrived there were plenty of people scampering on the rocks and in the water. DeAnna and I grabbed our gear and waded across shallow water to claim a collection of rocks in the middle of the cove. We put on our wet suits as well as our brand-new inflatable life vests and headed out to the deeper part of the cove. I got the life vests for safety when we swam in less-known or agitated waters. Two puffs of air, and you're floating; otherwise the vests don't get in the way.

As soon as we looked underwater, we were in a large school of silver fish!


In fact, there were many different kinds of fish schooling and pecking on the rocks for food. Naturally, we snapped many more pictures than these as we swam among the formations into the deeper parts of the cove.



Suddenly, a sea turtle came swimming up and swept just beneath us. We were official underwater tourists, snapping pictures at every opportunity!





We swam into the deeper water of the open cove. Huge rock formations were everywhere in the 20+ feet of clear water. I dove down to the bottom often while DeAnna swam along the surface. It reminded me of episodes of "Flipper" and "Sea Quest" that I'd seen as a boy. The more we swam, the further out we got until we were completely outside the cove in the open water! Along the rocks and in the crevices were countless fish.






Down on the bottom - about 20 feet down - I even swam through a crevice and cave watching the underwater, under-rock fish! Sorry for the shaky video, but hey, I WAS swimming under rocks on the ocean floor!


Eventually, we got out and ventured onto the rocks. These are the very same rocks that my "Big Wave" picture shows being smashed and over flowed! The lava and ocean have combined to form jagged, other-worldly formations. Believe me, it is hard to walk on these formations without getting hurt!

We had a wonderful adventure at Shark's Cove! We're looking forward to going back again soon. DeAnna goes back to Minnesota next weekend, so maybe we'll get back to snorkel again before she leaves. Until then, I have fabulous news... Thanks to Kevin Parker who ordered a replacement for my beloved hat lost in the ocean in February...


The Tilley is BACK!!