By Oahu Volunteer Dive Team Coordinator & Photographer Ken Staples
Aloha from Hawaii!
We had another terrific cleanup dive near the Spitting Caves area on Oahu’s East side on Saturday, February 16th.
The Island Divers’ boat Sea Fox departed with 13 ODA-Hawai’i (ODA-HI) volunteers onboard. We cruised out of the bay and made our way to the cleanup spot.
On our way, we were treated to a special show by two humpback whales enjoying our tropical waters. Sorry to say, we didn't capture the moment!
We quickly geared up and like a well-oiled machine entered the water to start our mission. There was a large amount of lead and monofilament line all over the coral beds and hung up on the wall.
We spread out over a 50-foot area and got to work. Our depth was about 45 feet and the current was evident, but not too strong.
We very quickly filled two large buckets and several mesh bags with debris. After 47 minutes, it was time to surface. Unfortunately, we had to leave a lot of lead behind. We’ll be back to get it soon enough.
Be sure to look at the excellent photos at the end of the article -- including a couple series -- which really illustrate the problems with the fishing line entangling the coral.
As we ascended, we all enjoyed listening to a couple of whales singing their song off in the distance. This is why we do what we do. It’s truly rewarding to share these moments with others who are passionate about safe guarding our oceans.
Big Mahalos to our volunteers and our partner Island Divers (ID): Scott Barrel, Mary Christensen (ID Master Instructor), Laura Damiani, Ryan Gabel, Chris Hart, AJ Jaeger (ODA-HI Coordinator), Christina Klemme, Andrew Monnig, Joel Moribe, Mathew Negaard, Christine Pang, Glenn Roberts, Ed Sisino, and Bruce.
Our crew was happy to display our “Catch of the Day”: Total lead. 128lbs and total fishing line 750 feet.
We’ll be back for more next month! If you want to join us, please check out the sign-up page on Island Divers website.
