This was a harder dive; Turtle Bluff is deeper than Sheraton Caverns, and there is a current. We descended to about 45 feet and began swimming against the current, following a dive instructor. I knew pretty quickly that this was going to be a short dive for me. I was already tired and having a hard time swimming against the current.

We paused, holding onto the surrounding rocks so we wouldn’t drift away in the current, to watch a baby (about 1 foot long) white-tipped reef shark just hanging out under a ledge. After a couple of minutes, I signaled to Steve that I wanted to go up. He got the attention of an instructor, who swam over to me. Of course, we have to use hand signals to communicate; he asked me what was wrong. I indicated I was tired and having trouble breathing. He motioned to me to take long, slow, deep breaths. Then we began swimming leisurely, calmly with the current back toward the line leading back to the boat.

I began ascending slowly, holding onto the line. About halfway up, I felt a tug on my fin. I looked down at the dive instructor, who was pointing below and to my left. Several yards away, a 6-foot white-tipped reef shark was lazily swimming just above a ledge. Wow! The shark was obviously not agitated and I wasn’t frightened at all. After observing it for a minute or so, I continued my slow ascent.

I began to feel the swells about 10 feet from the surface and I had to either get to the top quickly, or I was going to be sick! This was the absolute hardest part of the whole dive for me. I was exhausted, but I had to pull myself close to the ladder without crashing into it, keep my mask and regulator in place, take off my fins, and, with full gear on, hoist myself up onto the deck. The instructor pulled my fins off for me, and the captain calmly talked me through pulling myself up the ladder and led me to the bench where I could finally allow my legs to collapse.

As I gained strength in my legs, I found a nice spot where I could just hang my head over the side and wish I’d taken the Bonine sooner. About half hour later, the rest of the divers surfaced and we mercifully headed back to the harbor. I decided if diving were always this difficult, I’d much rather be snorkeling!

After brief instructions, we boarded for the short ride to Sheraton Caverns, so named because it lies near the beachfront Sheraton Resort in Poipu. Sheraton Caverns is a very popular dive site, with depths ranging from 30-65 feet. The water was a little rough and I was glad I had taken my Bonine a couple of hours previously. Some of the other riders were looking a little green.

This was my first dive as a certified diver, and I was a little nervous, but excited. When it was my turn to jump in, I inflated my BCD, followed instructions and hit the water feet-first. Unfortunately, I hadn’t held my mask close enough to my face and it flooded immediately. What a way to start! I also swallowed a bit of seawater, but determined to be brave, I cleared my mask and regulator and signaled to my dive buddy (my husband, Steve) that I was ready to descend. Deflating our BCDs, we drifted downward.

I was feeling a little claustrophobic at first, but was able to push it away as we explored the underwater lava tubes that are home to the creatures of Hawaii’s deep. I’m sure my eyes were wide as a large sea turtle glided over a ledge toward me, pausing to eat algae off of the lava rock. The dive instructor pointed out a large green moray eel in a cavity, red & white cleaner shrimp going about their business eating the parasites from their homely host. A large spiny pufferfish, angelfish of several varieties, large humuhumunukunukuapuaa (a triggerfish), wrasses, and many other colorful fish made this a fun dive site.

My regulator was sticking and I realized I was breathing hard, so I surfaced with another diver while Steve stayed down a bit longer with other divers. Aboard the Anela Kai, both of the snorkelers and one of the divers were busy leaning over the side, feeding the fish with their previously digested lunches. Oh boy, was I glad I’d taken the Bonine!

After all the divers were up, we decided to return to the harbor and drop off any who didn’t want to continue on to the second dive site. On the way, Spinner dolphins appeared and we took a small detour to get a little closer. What fun, and a great way to take one’s mind off of seasickness, to watch them jump and spin in the air before plunging back into the sea. Once you see them, you understand that they are very aptly named.

I would reccomend buying some gloves as it is eaiser to grab things to hold on to. I would suggest getting an underwater flashlight for the caves. I was about a foot from a giant turtle and did not see it until one of my dive group shined his flashlight on it. You will see lots of giant turtles, and if you are lucky like I was you will see some white-tip sharks.

This was my first dive where I encountered sharks. I was nervous at first but my dive master made sure I knew that they were harmless.

Ask for Debbie as your divemaster--she was great. Go on the morning dive, as the water will be more calm and clear.

Before you go, you may want to go next door and pick up some food as all you will get on the boat are some cookies.

Make sure that the divemaster knows your skill level, as it will make all the difference as to how much attention you will get while you are down there.

I had such a great time that I went back again.

Have fun.

There was a large Moray Eel in it's cave, poking it's head out of its cave.

The lava tubes are fun, just like going through an open ended cave. In one end and out the other into another coral world, just a little different that the one you just left.

The varied species of marine life in one location is really neat to see. On the second dive, we saw a Spotted Eagle Ray, gracefully fanning its way along the ocean's bottom.

Great dives, definitely worth visiting. Seasport has another location over at Kapaa on the east coast of Kauai, which I'll definitely try out the next time. But I'll also go back to Poi Pu again, as well.