Oahu is a fantastic place to visit, with plenty to see and do onshore, and some incredible dive sites just waiting for you to discover them. With warm water year-round, amazing marine life, and excellent visibility, Hawaii’s third largest island is also perfect for underwater photography. Whether you’ve just purchased your first underwater camera, or if you’ve been enjoying this relaxing pastime for years, you’re certain to be delighted with all you find beneath Oahu’s crystal clear, blue waters. Here are five great sites to whet your appetite!
China Walls
Also known as Portlock wall, China Walls is a magnificent wall dive that extends all the way from the Big Sea Cave site to the Spitting Caves dive site. Normally, there is a current here which allows for a drift, making this an excellent place to try your hand at underwater videography. As you move along the wall, which is beautifully wreathed in coral and sponge growth, you will encounter a wide array of Hawaiian marine life, including tiny crabs and other creatures, a wonderful selection of reef fish in every color of the rainbow, and plenty of larger creatures, including green sea turtles, sharks, eagle rays, and maybe even Manta rays. This is also a prime location for encountering Hawaiian monk seals, which love to interact with divers.
Maximum depth is 75 feet, although the best features and light conditions are between 20 and 40 feet. Between January and May, you may hear whale songs echoing all around you! This dive is usually suitable for intermediate to advanced divers.
Sharks Cove
This North shore Oahu dive site is very easy to access from the beach, and is full of magnificent rock formations, including arches and open-ended lava tubes, plus some wonderful caverns at about 30 feet below the surface. You’ll also find the famous elevator here – a hole, 10 feet in diameter, which allows for a descent to about 20 feet, then an exit through any of three tubes. These amazing geologic features offer incredible lighting effects, and give you a chance to practice your wide angle shots.
Despite the site’s name, there are not many sharks here – if you see them at all, they will be small reef sharks hiding in the sand beneath the rocks. The area is home to large schools of convict tang and lots of baby mullets, as well as plenty of other fantastic reef fish. In addition, turtles and rays are commonly sighted here. Maximum depth is 60 feet, and when conditions are calm, the site is perfect for all divers to enjoy.
Baboon’s Nose
Everyone loves Hanauma Bay, but most people stick to the inner reefs, since that is where the concentration of fish is highest. Baboon’s Nose is located on the outer edge of the bay, and can be hard to get to, as surface conditions are usually rough and currents can be treacherous at times.
If you are fortunate enough to enjoy a dive at Baboon’s Nose on a calm, peaceful day however, you will find an incredible series of canyons, coated in fantastic layers of coral. Here, the fish life is amazing, plus there are Hawaiian Monk seals, sharks, turtles, and rays in the area. The site is suitable for intermediate to expert divers, and depths range from very shallow to 65 feet. In the winter, you’ll hear whales singing as they pass through the Hawaiian Islands.
100 Foot Hole
100 Foot hole is really between 70 and 90 feet deep. Once a fishing ground accessible only to Hawaii’s royalty, this amazing site features a cluster of volcanic rocks that are encrusted with cauliflower coral and teeming with fish. With tunnels, small caves, and a large open-ended cavern, as well as lots of ledges and large boulders, the site’s geology is incredible. You’ll need to bring a good dive light with you to view all the crabs, lobster, octopus, and moray eels that live inside the caves, and with small creatures everywhere, this site is excellent for both macro and wide angle photos.
Watch for Manta Rays, turtles, and white tip reef sharks, and if you’re feeling adventurous, try a night dive here! Visibility is usually about 100 feet, and the site is great for intermediate divers and up.
Haleiwa Wall
This amazing wall starts on top the reef, at about 20 feet, and plummets all the way to 90 feet below the surface. Peppered with small caves, cracks, and crevices, it is an incredibly beautiful site on its own, with lovely coral and sponge growth where all kinds of small crabs and lobsters hide. Peek inside the caves, and you may see small green sea turtles napping. Look for moray eels and groupers, and enjoy the sight of all the lovely fish that are sure to capture your attention as you slowly ascend the wall.
Remember to pause occasionally to peek over your shoulder, or take turns watching the blue to see what kind of creatures are approaching. You’ll see sharks, schooling jack and barracuda, very large sea turtles, tuna, and other large pelagics. If you’re lucky, you may even encounter a pod of dolphins – particularly if there are lots of schooling mullet on the day you dive here.
This is an incredible area for photography, with generally calm conditions and 100 foot average visibility. It is perfect for both macro shots and wide angle views, so be sure to experiment and see what kind of images you can capture. The site is ideal for intermediate to advanced divers.
These are just a handful of all the incredible dive sites Oahu has to offer, but they’re also some of the island’s best. Be sure to plan your trip well in advance, as these dive sites are popular and charters fill up quickly. Oahu is home to quite a few fantastic dive operators, so pick your favorite! Finally, remember that it’s a good idea to play with your new camera for a while before taking it on a trip. Familiarize yourself with its features, so you’ll be ready to capture those once in a lifetime shots!