~Manta Rays, Kona, Hawaii~

I have had so many people ask me about diving with the Manta's that I decided to blog about it. Perhaps that way I won't forget either how wonderfully terrifying the experience was. I really do have to say that it was one of the best and worst experiences of my diving career and can honestly say now that I would do it again but, at the time I was not sure if I would EVER want to dive with those "things" again! They are amazing creatures. HUGE amazing creatures! The big ones have a wing span of about 30 feet and can weigh close to 1500 lbs. They are very gentle and eat only very tiny sea life. NO humans...although you could swim right through them if they didn't have a tiny little tail! They swim right at you with their mouth wide open and you can look right at their rib cage and into their bellies!

Because I have a hard time with one of my ears when I dive the Dive Master sent me down before everyone else to try and equalize...This particular dive is a "night dive" so all I had with me was a rather large light. I dove down under the boat and stayed there with my light shinning up at the bottom just like the idiot dive master told me to do...paying little attention to the turbulence in the water all around me I wasn't all that worried until there was a sudden disappearance of the bottom of the boat as a very large object glided just above my head inches above my light and the bottom of the boat...all you divers out there... have you ever hyperventilated with a regulator on? Dry compressed air through a small round tube under several feet of ocean. NOT GOOD! My light was reflecting off the bottom of the boat attracting the Manta's right in to ME!

The Dive Master and the rest of the divers finally after what seemed like an eternity made it to my rescue and because hand gestures are all that you can communicate with underwater, I gave him a couple! I think I made his night, he didn't leave my side the entire dive, can you say "BARNACLE". Honestly, I was annoyed, a babysitter...PLEASE!