1/5 - yup, still here...

Plans to dive at the crack of dawn were once again thwarted by my insomnia.  Copious amounts of caffeine kept me up into the wee hours of the morning and my day started at 10:30am.  Instead of hitting the beach, I ran errands, got my haircut, and rinsed off some of my dive gear.  Wheeee!   

In the early afternoon, the wind looked manageable enough to get a late dive in.  My kayak hasn't left the roof of my car for the last week, so packing up was a cinch.  Tossed a few things in and was headed down the road to the beach.


Checked only 2 reefs today - the first was the tiger shark reef.  A few uhu and a couple decent goatfish, but nothing really exciting.  A school of trevally circled closely a few times, but nothing of size.  I've seen a tiger shark over 2/3 of the time I've hit this spot, so not seeing a shark was a good day!  Took out the camera and made another couple random videos.


In the first video, you can briefly see a tahitian black pearl oyster right in front of where I lie down.  Rest of vid is just watching the fishies swim back & forth.
http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=7ygct9g&s=1

The second video is just another batch of randomness - tons of small surgeonfish and a few goatfish(I don't shoot these particular type).
http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=6t1zwjt&s=1


I knew there was another reef nearby, but I couldn't seem to find it.  Picked up my anchor and started towing my kayak in the direction I thought the reef might be.  Nothing but sand for a while, then I swore I was starting to swim through fish poop...  looked up & saw a huge wall of nenue(chub... fish name, not Tote's son).  I've seen the school near the reef before, so I was pretty sure I was close.  Didn't want anything to do with these fish, so I kicked on.

Less than 20yards from where the nenue were milling about, I saw the beginning of a familiar reef.  Found it!  Marked it with my GPS to make sure I wouldn't lose it again and set my anchor.  Put away the camera and it was time to dive for real!


Hundreds of fish blanketed the reef, but it was readily apparent that the desirable ones could sense my intentions.  From the surface, I spotted a small herd of Mu (big eye emperor).  By far, one of the hardest fish to shoot in Hawaii, this school had seen divers before.  I made a very quiet stealthy drop 50ft away from them and they bolted!!!  Never saw them again...

Still in my "selectivity" mentality, I stalked a herd of uhu(parrotfish) and chose the largest one to target.  They were wily and just would not let me come close.  Uhu are a very funny species to hunt.  They use their beaks to gnaw off chunks of coral and basically turn the rock into a fine sand.  When the uhu runs, its body contracts and squeezes this fine sand out of their butts like a mini trail of sandpoopsmokescreen!   

Watching their pattern, it was noticeable that they always approached a particular rock when returning to the area.  Using this to my advantage, I stealthily dropped and sniped the largest of the pack with a clean headshot.




The blue uhus are the males, whereas the redish/brown uhus are females.  Similar to many other fish (like our california sheephead), the females turn into males at a certain maturity level.  These uhu tend to get a bit tougher to bake/steam when they get larger, but are still very popular for sweet/sour fish.

Trying out a new cooler bag, I slipped the fish into my hatch to chill.




Checking an outcropping of the reef, I noticed a lone mu on the sand/rubble flats.  Finding an ambush point, I dropped and scratched the reef with a rock.  The mu came closer, but paused, hovering just out of range.  Running out of breath, there was no way I could get this fish without taking a body shot, so I was about to concede defeat.  As I pulled my gun back to prepare to ascend, an uku (grey snapper) swam by.  A few sweeps of sand with my spare hand and it zero'd in on the activity.  Thwack!  A small, but tasty uku was added to the fish bag.   




The herd of uhu had returned and as the sun was dropping, I really didn't want one of these big fish struggling on the end of my spear.  It would basically be ringing the dinner bell for the sharks (they feed more readily at dusk).  The uhu sensed my reluctance to pull the trigger and circled around closer than ever.  One of the fish in the back looked a little odd to me... when it came closer, I realized that it was actually a Munu (Joe Lewis or doublebar goatfish).  That quasimoto hump on its back and cho-cho lips meant it was a good sized fish.  As my time counted down, I picked a spot that the munu was headed for and focused.  Locking my elbows and pointing my speartip, the moment the fish crossed that imaginary crosshair, I gently squeezed the trigger and secured my catch.




At this point, the sun was getting low and I had to get home.  So I picked up my anchor and paddled towards shore.  Another tough day, can't wait to do it all over tomorrow!

Really enjoying this series Fuzz.  Makes me realize just how long its been since I last went to Hawaii.  Thanks.

Great Report,

  Thanks for the Island dreams.......

 

beutiful report fuzz. those parrot fish are delicious.what island are you on?

Damn awesome reports.  You really know how to make the most of your vacation time.

Not only do I hate you....but your lifestyle as well  When are you coming back to the REAL WORLD?

On Oahu and here till the 18th.   

Had the best day of diving so far today... so much so that I didn't get any on the water pics.  Will post some test & photos of carnage later.   

great report! 

I'll be packin a bag-lunch tomorrow in hopes that i'll have a "lunch&learn" with the FUZZ!
thanks for the good reads and pics!    if they taste, as colorful as they look? 
then you are livin it GOOD!     thePROOFisALREADYinthePICS!   keepem'comin!

Ahh.. Livin the life.

Are you sure your not using rebreathers.  Almost drowned trying to hold my breathe while watching the vid.   

Awesome!!

Are you sure your not using rebreathers.  Almost drowned trying to hold my breathe while watching the vid.   

Why are you watching the vid underwater?

Hey Fuzz,   Your reports and pics are always great to see.   Thanks!

When are you going to lead a free diving/ spearfishing class for us North Coast beginners at Van Damme?      -Matt in Mendocino