LWS's Dive Log

This is a very nice snorkel site at a very reasonable cost of 7.50 per person; children under 12 free. It's a bit of a hike up & down from the parking and entry to the beach, however the walk down/up is very doable. A shuttle is available if you prefer for 0.75 down, $1.00 up, big bags extra, or 2.50 all day. Although somewhat crowded (but much less so than Waikiki beach and the downtown hotel beaches) we always found an acceptable piece of beach to call home and layout the towels and gear. Entry into the water is easy in the center beach and to the east. The West 1/3 is very rocky next to the shoreline and difficult on bare feet. The reef starts very close to the shoreline in about 2' deep and continues out. Their are several major channels which can be viewed from the aerial photo, and there a tons of nooks and crevasses to explore. Fish can be found in as little as a few feet which is great for the kids. Saw a 12' puffer right next to the shoreline. Most of the inner bay is 4-6 ft deep with some nice channels and reef walls 8-12ft deep. Did not have a reason to go out to the outer reef and this was highly discouraged by the lifeguards, as there was great snorkeling on the inner reef. Overall, I found this to be an excellent value for family snorkeling. The water was shallow and calm enough the very young, and novice snorkelers to learn and enjoy (my son is 6 and daughter 17); while interesting enough to keep the intermediate and maybe even advanced snorkeling entertained. The reef has lots of fish and I spotted 4 different sea turtles on one midafternoon outing. Thus, this is a must do dive if you can make to east side of the island. Koko head is close, but I don't recommend trying to do both in one day.