Diving with Daryl
Well I just got some of the pics from my trip to hawaii. The weather wasnt the best so we never made it to the out islands but we did the best with what we had.
Daryl noticed how much weight I had put on in the last 2 years or so following my wedding and then this year the birth of my son and apparently he felt it was his personal duty to swim it all off of me! When we rig hunt here you do almost no surface swimming...you swim to the rig, hide in the lee of a leg and dive from there. In hawaii we must have swam 20 miles a day! The only problem with my new weight loss program was that we would go out to dinner every night where I would gain 5 more pounds than I lost
Though the weather kept us from the best spots, we were blessed in other ways. The first day I found myself getting frustrated to the point of cursing at the small spooky fish in the air-clear water. At just the time where I went from frustrated to pissed a turtle swim up to me at the same time a whale starts singing inthe background...what an attitude adjustment!
The second day of diving presented us with some once in a lifetime moments. After checking Ulua houses and wahoo spots with no luck we were running to another area when we noticed a group of pilot whales playing on the surface. We motored over and Daryl dropped Andy York and myself off in their path. As the bubbles cleared (I make ALOT of bubbles these days ) I saw a pilot ahead of me. It was totally verticle in the water playing with some trash. Soon three of them were swimming right at me! Andy had his video setup and was filming the encounter. They just kept coming. In fact they got within 2-3 feet of us. On the boat, Daryls buddy Pete Wolfgram is yelling at Daryl who is rushing to get in on the action, "Hurry Daryl, I think they are going to ride them!" WE played with the pilots for quite some time before continuing our fish quest.
Not an hour after that we notice some humpbacks close by. Daryl has been trying to get in with them for quite some time without chasing them(thats illegal ) and only had luck once in the last year of trying. This time he dumps Andy and myself off and motors away. I see nothing but blue and a haze of the bottom 90-100 feet below. Suddenly its as if the reef is moving! Its 3 humpbacks passing 40 feet below us. Flying in formation it was unbelievable. 2 adults side by side, one swimming right side up and the other swimming upside down, plus there was a small juvenile between them. It was impossible to keep up with them and they werent even moving! Unbelievable.
The next day we had to dive the fished out west side of the island due to weather. The water was the cleanest I had ever seen which is precisely why it is fished out We did have a plan to see if we could find the dolphin pods that inhabit the area. Sure enough we did. What an amazing time.
WE did shoot some fish but had anyone asked me if I would rather shoot a big ulua or swim with the whales...well thats a no brainer.
I would like to thank Daryl Wong, Rick Bettua, and Pete Wolfgram, as well as their friends for an amazing trip that I will always remember. Next year I'll get my ulua(but Id rather it be an omilu )!
Well I just got some of the pics from my trip to hawaii. The weather wasnt the best so we never made it to the out islands but we did the best with what we had.
Daryl noticed how much weight I had put on in the last 2 years or so following my wedding and then this year the birth of my son and apparently he felt it was his personal duty to swim it all off of me! When we rig hunt here you do almost no surface swimming...you swim to the rig, hide in the lee of a leg and dive from there. In hawaii we must have swam 20 miles a day! The only problem with my new weight loss program was that we would go out to dinner every night where I would gain 5 more pounds than I lost
Though the weather kept us from the best spots, we were blessed in other ways. The first day I found myself getting frustrated to the point of cursing at the small spooky fish in the air-clear water. At just the time where I went from frustrated to pissed a turtle swim up to me at the same time a whale starts singing inthe background...what an attitude adjustment!
The second day of diving presented us with some once in a lifetime moments. After checking Ulua houses and wahoo spots with no luck we were running to another area when we noticed a group of pilot whales playing on the surface. We motored over and Daryl dropped Andy York and myself off in their path. As the bubbles cleared (I make ALOT of bubbles these days ) I saw a pilot ahead of me. It was totally verticle in the water playing with some trash. Soon three of them were swimming right at me! Andy had his video setup and was filming the encounter. They just kept coming. In fact they got within 2-3 feet of us. On the boat, Daryls buddy Pete Wolfgram is yelling at Daryl who is rushing to get in on the action, "Hurry Daryl, I think they are going to ride them!" WE played with the pilots for quite some time before continuing our fish quest.
Not an hour after that we notice some humpbacks close by. Daryl has been trying to get in with them for quite some time without chasing them(thats illegal ) and only had luck once in the last year of trying. This time he dumps Andy and myself off and motors away. I see nothing but blue and a haze of the bottom 90-100 feet below. Suddenly its as if the reef is moving! Its 3 humpbacks passing 40 feet below us. Flying in formation it was unbelievable. 2 adults side by side, one swimming right side up and the other swimming upside down, plus there was a small juvenile between them. It was impossible to keep up with them and they werent even moving! Unbelievable.
The next day we had to dive the fished out west side of the island due to weather. The water was the cleanest I had ever seen which is precisely why it is fished out We did have a plan to see if we could find the dolphin pods that inhabit the area. Sure enough we did. What an amazing time.
WE did shoot some fish but had anyone asked me if I would rather shoot a big ulua or swim with the whales...well thats a no brainer.
I would like to thank Daryl Wong, Rick Bettua, and Pete Wolfgram, as well as their friends for an amazing trip that I will always remember. Next year I'll get my ulua(but Id rather it be an omilu )!
