Jerry GoDiveMaui.Com's Dive Log

Also called Scenic Lookout, on Highway 30 nearest mile marker 9, the signs for Scenic Lookout are one mile out on either side. Large paved parking area is a good lookout for whales in season. This site is easy to find but best done with an experienced guide. The path down the hill is steep and currents around this point can complicate the dive plan. The entry is a rocky ledge to the far left. You can do a giant stride here. The exit is easiest at high tide. This is a mini wall dive with a lot of ornamental fish. I don't see many game fish, which begs the question, why so much fishing gear on the bottom? If you turn south from the wall you'll reach depths fast and on the way find small out-croppings with every kind of eel.

Maliko gulch is located on Maui's north shore. Just passed Hookipa Beach Park on the road to Hana you'll top the next point then head down hill to the bridge that crosses Maliko stream. Immediately on the other side of the bridge turn right and follow the road beside the stream and under the bridge. We're not supposed to use the ramp as an entry but most divers do. You can enter to either side with just a little more difficulty. Carry a dive flag here just as you should anywhere you dive in the state. There are photo directions and a site map on our web site, godivemaui.com This site review will be for the right (east) side of the bay. The east warrants it's own review. You can often dive the east year round in the absence of rain, though it is best in summer. Additionally. There is a separate entry for the west, albeit for mountain goat/diver hybrids. The steam ship anchors and most interesting Crevasses are on the east side of the bay. There is a small wall at the end of the east finger. At its base and 5 meters north are the 2 steam ship anchors. The hard corals at Maliko bay are healthy and the topography is interesting. If you continue around and to the east you'll find 3 deep ravines in the cliff side and any of them lead south west back into the bay. Going this far requires good air consumption, a hot fill and a long surface swim. Turtles are common here but shy. They see few divers here on the wilder side of Maui. This is a good place to spot Devil Scorpion Fish, Spiny Lobsters, Ridge Back Slipper Lobsters. Lots of little caves hide surprises such as large Conger eels and Spanish dancers. Some of the caves are large enough to enter but use caution. They are sometime less easy to get out of. Inside the Bay there are lots of octopus, puffer fish and parrotfish. Many first time Maliko divers are content to stay in the bay and venture only as far as the wash rocks where I've seen groups of baby squid more than once on calm summer days. Take a dive flag. It's the law and there is boat traffic here from the launch (local fishermen). The Stream can make the Bay muddy after a good Mauka rain. When this happens the big guys have reportedly been seen in the bay, perhaps to eat toads washed out of the stream. I've probably been diving at Maliko a dozen times per summer since 2002 and I haven't personally seen anything more threatening than wana. In any case if you can't see what's in the water you might want to go dive south shore.

There are 2 ways to dive Mokule`ia. One is from the East side of the bay which gives the diver easier access to the West point of Honolua bay. This dive is something like a mini wall dive. The hard corals at Mokule`ia and Honolua bays are some of the healthiest on Maui due in part to the protection from rough seas by the horizontal depth of the bay and, no doubt, to their status as marine-life sanctuaries since 1978. There is a higher likelihood of a dolphin encounter here than just about any where on the Island other than La Perouse Bay, which has been made all but inaccessible by the County Government. To dive the East side of the Bay, there is a semi-treacherous trail covered in slippery pine needles starting at the East end of the chain link fence along the road side parking area. At the bottom of the trail there is an outcropping running North into the bay. Make your stride entry near the end. Make this dive with the sand to your right on the way out and left on the way back. Lots of crevasses offer hiding places to tons of turtles. Hawaiian sea turtles are on the protected species list, so DO NOT TOUCH. The sand harbors lots of Kona Crabs, but you can't catch them here. This is a good dive any time the winds are light and the North swell is small to nothing. These conditions are most often found in Summer but I've been there in winter for some of the best dives of the season. Nearest facilities are a short drive southeast at D.T. Fleming beach park.

The most popular refresher and training dive beach on South Maui, Ulua has good facilities (parking can be difficult later in the morning), and an extensive reef that can be reached with little or no surface swimming. We rarely, if ever, see sharks at this beach but occasionally Manta and Spotted Eagle Rays cruse by. Turtles are common as are eels, octopus, and a large variety reef fish including Trigger fish (Humuhumunukunukuapua'a), Butterfly fish, Moorish Idols, many species of wrasse, Puffers and the occasional Frog Fish and scorpion fish. For those certified divers with conservative air consumption, there are satellite reefs with Bicolor Anthias and cleaner shrimp at a depth of 50 feet.

This dive is most unique among Maui's accessible South shore dives due to number of lava caves and likelihood of a friendly white tip shark sighting. The Landing is inside a cove which offers some protection from early noon Maui trade winds. Like most of the reefs, we dive the coral growth which follows the contours of ancient Hawaiian lava flows. Here we also see turtles, eels, octopus, and a variety reef fish including butterfly fish, puffers, trigger fish, Moorish Idols, (Humuhumunukunukuapua'a) and the occasional frog fish. Facilities include parking lot, showers and toilets.