The manta ray night dive I did at the Honokohau Harbor was one of the most memorable dives I ever did in my life. Some dive masters placed several torches at the bottom of the sea (about 30 feet) to attract sea cooties that the manta rays fed on. Other divers and I then descended and sat around the "campfire" waiting for the "dinner crowd." Voila--within seconds, four 12-foot mantra rays arrived, and an amazing "ray ballet" began. The rays sometimes swirled around the lights with the elegance and grace of ballet dancers, but once in a while, they would act like agile acrobats performing a few somersaults just above our heads. These rays were a lot of fun to watch.
The operator I used for this dive is Big Island Divers, and their service was good. A photographer went into the water and took a video for us. Purchase of the VHS/DVD was optional.
A few pieces of advice for this activity:
- The weather turned pretty cold after sunset, so bring some warm clothes with you. I did not feel the cold while I was watching the ray ballet, but once the show was over, I started shivering.
- Each diver was given a torch. Make sure to hold the torch well above your head, or else you would get really "intimate" with the rays, as they were trying to catch the cooties attracted by the light.