My plan for the day was to take the bus to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. I got ready and out to the stop by 10:30, joining a large group that got larger as I stood there. When the bus finally arrived, it drove right by us, apparently full already. Since it was an hour until the next bus, and since I knew they would stop admitting people to the beach once 3,000 people got there, and since this is a top occupancy time for tourists, I decided to scrap the Hanauma bay excursion and just walk on down the beach to my favorite snorkeling spot and enjoy the time in the water instead of trying to get to Hanauma Bay.
I was more practiced at getting into the water this time.
1. Stop at the shower and shed my cover up and put on my water shoes while my feet are dry and sand free and where I have a bench to sit on.
2. Use the shower to get my hair wet so I don't have to get salt water in my eyes to get my hair out of the way of the mask.
I had the new Go Pro camera with me as well as my Fuji underwater camera. I put a floaty wrist strap on the Go Pro and found that very convenient for taking photos. It kept the camera handy, didn't interfere too much with swimming with my hands and arms and was comfortable to hold the camera with my finger on the shutter switch.
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| Waves were splashing up over the sea wall |
I saw plenty of fish and took lots of photos with the Go Pro. It was easy to use and pretty easy to scroll through the menus and get from video to photo, but I missed having a dedicated video button where I could start video quickly when the action popped up. With fish, you have to move fast, because they can be gone so fast.
With the Go Pro set to wide shots the photos of the fish did 't turn out too well. they are dwarfed in the scene and didn't reflect at all how close I was to them or the detail I could see with my eyes.
Eventually I went back to shore and exchanged the Go Pro for my Fuji camera. Later when I looked at the photos I had to admit I like them better. Maybe if I change the wide setting on the Go Pro I might see better results with it.
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| There were plenty of other snorkelers in the water and a boat paddling by |
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| The low surf was perfect for a large class of newbie surfers to be taught the basics of surfing. |
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| The Fuji gets a much closer up view |
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Large groups of fish look as close as they were when I saw them.
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| Trigger fish |
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| My most unusual sighting. A spotted trunkfush. |
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| Milletseed Butterfly fish |
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| Moorish Idol |
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| Yellowfin Surgeon fish. These are really large |
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| Hawaii state fish, the wedge trigger fish Humhumunukunukuapua'a. I love these, they are like a modern painting. |
Eventually I tried again to learn how to use the fins that came with my snorkel and mask. I managed to get them on and get deeper into the water, but they were still so awkward I gave up and put them away for good. Unless I'm in deep water where I never have to stand up, I won't wear them again.
The good news is that in the two plus hours I spent in the water I got a lot more comfortable with the whole process of snorkeling. I was more comfortable in different depths, less nervous, standing up less and less, and got better at expelling water from the mask while still staying prone in the water. I'm improving on keeping my face still so I don't create leaks around the bottom of the mask too.
The bad news is that in spite of doing my best to spray enough sun screen on my back and re spraying it again while I was on the beach, I managed to get a painful burn on my back. Dang. I should have worn a shirt...
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