Sharks?

Hawaii does have sharks.  Occasionally. very occasionally, someone gets bit. Statistics indicate it’s not a problem. Drowning is a much higher probability. But thinking about sharks adds some excitement to the morning and afternoon swim. Just spent two weeks on the North Shore of Oahu swimming twice a day (most days) in the area between Keiki Beach and Waimea Bay.

Waimea Bay (swim straight out to the farthest rock and back along reef and rocks)

Entry points were Waimea, Three Tables and Shark’s Cove all part of the Pupukea Marine Conservation Area. The hordes of tourists don’t arrive until around 9am. In the morning one can have Shark’s Cove to one’s self. But when you finally get out of the water you’ll find dozens of scuba divers suiting up. Because of the many underwater caves in the area Shark’s Cove is popular with both scuba and free divers and if there are no fish or turtles (a rarity) there’s always scuba divers to watch. Shark’s Cove has interesting underwater terrain. It’s a popular place for big wave surfers to train in the summer. They free dive the caves and carry rocks across the bottom to build stamina. Here are some free diving photos someone put up on Myspace. Note the cave photos half way down.  At Three Tables, located between Shark’s Cove and Waimea Bay the best swimming a snorkeling is outside the tables. At Waimea we swim out to the farthest rock through the deep water then snake back through rocky, reefy channels that abruptly become underwater cliffs. One guy we swam with actually saw a white tip shark in a cave at Shark’s Cove when he was scuba diving the day before. That report was enough to keep my head on a constant swivel and

added excitement to the swim. I can report that  Joe's Earplugs continue to work magnificently. And I have perfected the art of changing to dry shorts in the parking lot whilst wrapped in a towel. I’m back on Puget Sound safe from shark attack.

Shark's Cove aerial view.