Windy Dive

The winds have been really blowing lately. A quick check on the surf report revealed that it was ok to dive. I called Ammon up the day before and he was still feeling sick with his sinuses bothering him. We ended up going out for a late afternoon dive. The weather was still really windy but it was really hot and sunny. Upon arriving at the spot we walked towards the peak of the cliffs and could hear the wind howling and see fierce whitecaps as far as the eye could see.

However upon further inspection we saw that our in and out area was protected by the point and that it would be ok for us to jump in. We jumped in around 4pm and swam left. I took a few warm up dives to get acclimated to the depth and pressure. We swim further and see a few uhus here and there but they are all really wary. The water is on the murkier side with decent current.

I spot a good size Mu lurking in the distance and take a drop. Upon hitting the bottom, I trying calling to it but he refuses to come in. I start dusting sand and I see a good size Joe out of the corner of my eye. Hes also on the alert and swims away.

After drifting for about an hour, Ammon reports that he sees a nice kumu near a sand patch. He takes two drops and on the 2nd one is able to get a shot off. While hes stringing up his prize, I see a school of kawakawas fly by on the inside in about 15ft of water!

We decide to head back in due to the sun setting. I finally see an approachable red whiptail and take a drop. Upon seeing me dive the uhu swims up from the reef towards me! I squeeze off a good holding shot and the uhu takes off while stripping line from my reel. At the same time Ammon and I spot a huge moana kali in the distance. I decide to help Ammon with the stalk while keeping an extra eye on the gianormous Kali. Not having an interest in us the Kali swims away.

I return to my gun floating mid water and take a drop. I hit the bottom to find that the uhu has pulled my shaft all the way in the back of the little cave. Luckily I see that the small hole opens up on the other side. I return to the surface and reposition myself along side the opposite end and take another drop. I see both the uhu and my shaft and brain the uhu first. Since the line is pulled through the hole, I needed to unclip my shooting line from my gun in order to bring the uhu to the surface. I return to the surface yet again rethinking my strategy to untangle this fish. I finally go down again and see a moray eel trying to steal the uhu. I grab my shaft with my hand and start poking it till it finally swims off. I'm finally able to unclip the line from my gun and swim the fish up. So much work for an uhu!

We end up swimming back with 2 uhus and a kumu. We see two people fishing who cannot believe we are diving due to the wind and water. After sharing some laughs and stories we head up to the truck. Not a bad day of diving.