Mahukona Beach Park

This is an overview of the diving area with the parking to the left. Park away from the entry area and the shower to allow larger vehicles access to the boat crane. The entrance is very easy to locate. Take a left and travel to the T in the road; turn right, and after about 100yds, you'll find the parking area. You can also head to the left (South), and find more interesting diving. Head straight out to sea about 100 yards, and take your first right. You'll find plenty of coral, fish, and a wreck or two right there in the shallows.

Dived two tanks today as refresher after a year off. Easy as ever, but entry a little harder at tide low. Can't just stride in. Watch the surge while having your partner hand down your fins. Saw a manta swim through, plenty of reef fish, several morays, a conger in a pipe, lobster in cave. Viz a little murky, often is, maybe 35'?

Had a great dive. Very easy entry and exit reef was nice. Good visibility once you get out 50 yds or so. Ran into 2 large manta rays that swam with us for 5 minutes or so. Clearly highlight of the dive. Warm showers definitely a plus.

Fish have been decimated by harvesters. Mostly small juveniles under 4 inches long, a few larger fish near shore on the north side of the entry, which have not been caught yet. Makes for a mediocre dive.

Good dive but strong current pushing north. Hard swim back. Good fish life and reef appears to be in fairly good condition. Shower and accessibility are definitely a plus. Do not expect pristine conditions but it is a fun healthy site .

Perfect site for beginning scuba & those who want a break from fighting wave action & rock battering. You can gear up right at the tailgate & hop or climb one or two steps into the water. We saw the train car, the anchor & several large chains to follow, got inked by an octo, lots of reef fish. Only caution is to stay out far enough from the shallows on the left to avoid surge.

We went during high tide so it was just an easy step-into the water. Coming out is easy too. Parking is not so great on the weekends but weekdays are fine. This is a good place to find out how much weights you need.

Nice easy entry and exit but only go during the week so the locals don't give you 'stink eye' and ruin your day.

Night dives are great! There is a huge chain to follow back in.

Easy entry from dock, then we snorkel out to the clear water. Healthy finger coral. Avg fish. Can listen to the whales.

Easy entry. Swim out to the middle and drop down. Follow the chain out and take a tear drop loop to the left and back around. Very good coral and lots of life.

Don't go on weekends, unless you like getting stink eye from the locals. Easy entry and exit but really not much to see. Nice beginner dive on the island.

This dive can be very dangerous when there is a western swell - so be careful. No one has reported this. My husband and I dove here the summer of 2008 and it a great beginner/practice dive site. However, we just dove there this November 2009 and there were huge swells at the entry/exit. We went out (stupid us) anyway, timing the swells on the way out. On the way in, we miss timed and it was really bad. I lost my mask and my snorkel and almost got swept into the rocks. Thanks to my husband that didn't happen. However, the folks that came after us, in kayaks were not so fortunate. One of the kayaks flipped tossing the guy into the rocks. He suffered a serious laceration on his ankle which required a trip to the hospital and he lost all of his gear. I really wish we had been alerted to the danger at this site, before we went.

Good dive, park on the pier, walk to the end and just fall in. Out to the right there is a small wreck. Lobster, eels, lots of fish. Ladder to get out. Hot shower to rinse. Paved parking lot so your feet don't get covered with sand.

I dove this site twice with my 2 boys on March 21st, 2008. Really easy to enter and exit. We saw the largest Manta Ray I have ever seen. He was digging a hole on the bottom, and I estimated him at an 8 foot wingspan. The site was so easy to get to that we decided to come back after dark for my boy's first night dive experience. All the locals were fishing off the pier, but didn't seem to mind us being there. (just keep your car/truck lights off as you drive in) It was just as good as the first dive. Saw a few Parrot fish sleeping in their balloon of gel. Another dive not to be missed.

We dove this site two times because it was so easy to get in and out during a period of high surf when every other dive site was off limits. We saw numerous eels, Hawaiian puffers, and fish. It would also make an excellent night dive site. There is a shower in the parking area which is very handy for rinsing out equipment.

Truly an amazingly simple night dive with all kinds of unexpected treats. Upon entry, swam with a two foot squid for a while. The dive is simple as you follow an old anchor chain out and back, but if you dive it on a full moon you hardly even need a light. Saw the largest frogfish you could even imagine. Wonderful!

Dove Mahukona and had a great time here. We went straight off of the swim steps, but I would suggest a giant stride off the dock. Check water depth first. Straight out there is a wreck in about 30-35 feet. We saw old steel wheels and a large chain. Lots of yellow tang and other fish. Also go south around the rocks for a good dive. Overall a great site with absolutely no people. Be careful if the swell is up because it can be rough in the chute or canal.

Been diving here several times. Best entry is from the ladder, or simply step off the wall at the NW corner. Vis sucks (for Hawaii; better than any on mainland West coast, though ) until you get out a couple hundred yards. If you follow the anchor chain out, there are the remnants of a sunken freighter of some sort in about 35 fsw. If you don't mind a short swim, follow the shore line south about 1/4 mile and submerge. This area is a protected marine sanctuary, and the sea life is abundant. Visibility is much better also. Current can be a mother out here sometimes, so if you are unfamiliar with this site, I would only dive it when the seas are calm, and always let someone know where you are diving and when to expect you back. Check the tide tables as well, best to dive at slack tide (duh). Some friends of mine tell me there is another wreck in about 70 fsw, but I have not personally tried to locate it. According to them, you simply continue on the same compass heading you were on while following the anchor chain out to the first wreck, and this will get you in the general area. Don't worry, the vis is good at this point, so it shouldn't be a problem.

My wife and I dove this while camping out next door. Had hot water showers and what not. Since it was so shallow, we were able to spend 90 minutes on the bottom. The wreck makes for some interesting pics. Also, with all the bricks, we made a small wall!

Paved road takes you down to the park, with stairs into the water. There is a bathroom on the far side of the park. The vis was poor because of all the wave action, and the bottom was beat up compared to most other places I dove. Probably because it mostly runs at 20' and the waves have more affect on the reef.

More and bigger reef fish here than anywhere on the Big Island. I need more dives to see it all, chain and boiler are extras for topography. Saw an eagle ray here on my wife's birthday, her favorite present.

We decided to take a drive without our dive gear. All we had was snorkel gear. But we decided to snorkel Manukona. Very easy to get in and out. The vis was down due to a storm. Large chain in the middle of the dock area at about 25 ft.

Easy entry, easy exit, easy road access, good visibility, not very deep, but enough critters to keep your interest, friendly locals, fun dive, what more is there to say about this site.

Easy entry and very clear water. Decent variety of animal life, less variety of plant life. Worth the trip to see the chain and rotor on the bottom in about 25 ft. of water.

Shallow dive, with lots of interesting reef formations. I've only dove here once, and the visibility was more than an astounding 200 feet (we counted kick cycles to a coral head to estimate the distance). There used to be an old ship's boiler underwater, but it was up on shore the last time I stopped by. Visibility and conditions vary greatly, so if in doubt, dive somewhere else. Great on a calm day.

Nice spot, easy entry down the steps. The dive is shallow , I don't think I hit more than 40 feet. Large anchor chain, and parts of an old ammo ship, prop, drive shaft and motor. Some locals snorkeling, not to many divers during the week. Dive Puako in the morning, get a fresh tank at Kohala Divers, then head up to Mahukona.

Its a weekend party spot for the locals, so I would try to get there early in the morning to do your dives. Usually by mid day, parking gets really tight and you might get blocked in. Access in & out of the water is easy. There might be a slight current coming in & out of the harbor, but once you're past that, the sights of the wreck and plant, fish & coral life is just amazing!!

Very easy entry. Nice parking and a warm shower. Locals were OK with us. Dive was shallow, but lots to see. Get Dick Dresie's book for a good description of this site.