Once of the best places to dive in the world is off the shore of Maui, Hawaii. Spending the day in Lahaina, this was exactly what I set out to do. We had arranged with a dive master to meet us close to the dive site, and in out eagerness not to be late we had about 30 minutes to spend on this beautiful beach!
Laihaina- Last pretty beach for a while
The dive site was the Mala Wharf, a pier originally built 1922 for steam ships to change goods and passengers. Unfortunately the heavy swells and strong currents made this nearly impossible, it was mainly used for smaller ships. In 1992 Hurricane Iniki passed by and destroyed most of the pier. The collapsed parts landed on a sandy ocean floor and has proved to be a great home for coral, fish, sharks and the occasional turtle.
Lahaina – Does not look too inviting
After meeting with the dive master and getting geared up we headed to the beach for a quick briefing. We then had to walk out to the dive site from the beach, following the remaining structure of the pier. Once we got under the water, we did not see much immediately. Then all of a sudden we could see the collapsed structure covered in coral and tons of fish! At one point there was so much happening that I could hardly decide where to look, and point my camera.
Lahaina – Much prettier under the water
Lahaina – So many corals!
When I was swimming along following various fish a huge turtle came swimming up next to me. I managed to get some awesome footage and followed the turtle for a while. I also managed to spot a moray eel that was trying to hide, and several starfish that were puffed up. The dive master also pointed out two sharks, but they were hiding under the pier structure so I could not see them.
Lahaina – Huge turtle
On the way back to shore we ended up swimming between the poles of the still standing part of the pier. While it looked really cool, and made for some fantastic video footage there was not much space. After almost hitting some of the poles I decided to swim on the outside of the structure back to shore.
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