by  Dean Christener

Dolphin Swim Kona, Hawaii is not something you hear about every day, much less have the opportunity to experience. But I was lucky enough to enjoy a tour on one of the best boats based on the Big Island’s on Kona Coast, that takes visitors to swim with wild dolphins every day of the year.

While a number of boats offer swimming with wild dolphins in Hawaii, most take large groups of people, which just doesn’t give you the personal experience I enjoyed with only three others on the boat, although Captain John Float told us he could take up to six.

It was a sunny, warm morning when we departed from Honokohau Harbor, Kona with captain John Float, one of the nicest and most knowledgeable guides in Kona.  The Kona Coast is the leeward side of Hawaii’s Big Island. It is  somewhat remote, with an abundance of lava fields, because the Big Island still has active volcanoes.

Captain Float told us on our way out that he had been swimming with Dolphins for over 30 years. He started when he was only 20, traveling all over the world seeking them out. Hawaii dolphins migrate in large pods of maybe 30, up and down the coast of Kona Coast, he explained.

So to start off our Big Island Dolphin tour we first headed North out of the Harbor, because that’s where dolphins normally are in the mornings, he said. Our boat ride was a bit bumpy, due to a large south swell that was currently hitting the south shores of Hawaii, but this made the adventure of finding the dolphins all the more exciting, because we were able to watch the surfers along the coast catching beautiful waves that crashed against the black lava rock shores.

Cruising offshore along the amazing Kona Coast really provides a good idea of how big the Big Island really is, especially when coming from a neighboring island like Maui, that is dwarfed by it. Heading up the coast beyond Kailua-Kona, we passed the famous NELHA marine research lab with its numerous conservation and research projects like Ocean Rider Seahorse Farm.

The lab is located just at the Big Island’s western-most point, where two of Hawaii’s biggest sea currents meet, creating rough waters that are plentiful with sea life. A lobster and tuna farm are also located offshore here, as well as facilities for bottling Hawaii Deep Seawater.

Not far up the coast from here, sure enough, just as John promised, we found the dolphins. There were so many more than I ever had expected to see! At one point that’s all I could see – dolphins playing, jumping, riding swells; it was so cool to watch!

I guess they were extra playful because of the south the swell that day, and as we rode the waves on our little boat, the dolphins surrounded us nearly close enough to touch over the sides – truly one of those feelings that you cannot describe, you just have to be there and experience it.

It amazed me how fast dolphins swim. As our boat was speeding down the face of a wave,  the dolphins would stick to us every bit of the way, weaving in and out of each other through the pod. Shortly, John told us he was going to lead them to a shallow reef, where we could  jump in and swim with them.

The excitement was overwhelming when we leaped overboard – there were dolphins everywhere I looked. Watching the dolphins swim below me, I did a couple deep dives to see how close I could get to them, and sure enough they were almost in reach of touching.

I was amazed at how close I was able to get to them, but even more amazed to hear how loud they sound underwater. Even with my head above water, I could hear their songs vividly. The adrenaline would be so intense at times that even when I was almost out of air I would just keep pushing myself to descend further so I could get closer to the pods.

I didn’t have to always dive deep to get close to them though; it just gave me more of a thrill. There were many times when a group would fly past from behind, and I would go from seeing just the deep shade of blue from the depths, to being engulfed by dolphins. Truly no better or comparable feeling!

Captain Float provided assistance when we were in the water, pointing us in the right direction to where the dolphins were, and if we needed to catch a breather aboard the boat, gave snacks and drink that he brought along.  While taking breaks on the boat, all we could see were dolphins, and John would repeatedly be on the scene, getting ready to set us up for the next dive with them.

After about three and half hours, when we had done all the swimming we could, and gotten our fill of watching dolphins for a lifetime, we headed back toward the harbor, enjoying the scenic coast once again. This activity, like I had said before, is something that everyone needs to experience first-hand, because my attempts to describe it, does not do it justice. Between the scenery, the dolphins and John’s extensive knowledge of Hawaii, it was a great and unforgettable experience!

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by Dean Christener

Kona Sunset Dinner Cruise Big Island, Hawaii - It was setting out to be another day in paradise as my buddy and I were in the town of Kona located on the west side of the Big Island. The area was very similar in ways to other places I know in Hawaii, yet possesses its own unique characteristics. These features consist of a large amount of lava rock in most places, as the Big Island still has active volcanoes on it, as well as the vog that is produced from them.

We had made plans to go on a Sunset Dinner Cruise aboard The Spirit of Kona, a large vessel, double-decker in fact, painted in yellow and blue; you honestly couldn’t miss it as it lay in the pier.

Approaching it, we could already see a line of people waiting to be checked in, as they all looked well dressed, a little more than I can say we are used to here in Hawaii. However, is set the mood well, and promised to be a very pleasurable evening upon the Spirit of Kona.

The air was humid and you could hear a man’s roaring voice cut through it, at his Canoe team as they raced back and fourth through the harbor right next to our vessel. I was quite excited for this Kona Sunset Dinner Cruise on the Big Island, especially after hearing there was going to be live music, which we could already hear from the dock, and it sounded great! Along with other compliments that were offered with the cruise such as the open bar and a broad selection of delicious fresh cooked food; I could hardly wait to begin!

Once aboard the Spirit of Kona, we were immediately taken care of by a very nice crew. I took a seat at the bottom of the boat, as it seemed that’s were everyone was, and we were given a nice introduction by our live singer, a local man, who had more songs than I could remember. The crew did not waste a second to start, as the open bar was immediately available. I wanted to definitely go straight there to get things going. The menu offered a variety of drinks such as their Maita’i, Vodka with pink lemonade, fresh lava flows, and other amazing drinks with fresh passion juices.

While waiting for the food preparations to be complete, I went out to the bow of the boat and saw one of the coolest yet most beautiful sunsets. I think it was because of the vog, but the sunset had the most iridescent colors, yet smoothed out by the white air. It was truly paradise: sunset, that moist smell of saltwater, with a cold drink in your hand, “life I don’t think gets much better than this,” I chuckled to myself in bliss. My impressions of the Spirit of Kona Sunset Dinner Cruise here on the Big Island of Hawaii were already exceeded and the night had only begun.

Things were just setting in, and right when I thought the compliments couldn’t get better, I was told to come to the buffet where mango marinated chicken was offered, with a varieties of salads, a great stir fry rice, with many other delicious foods. I was able to take my food up top where the view was even clearer.

A beautiful dinner set was prepared where people could enjoy a romantic dinner upon the sunset. Once the food had set in, I heard our live entertainer call everyone downstairs for some fun entertainment. Everyone descended quite quickly, with drink in hand, very noticeable I might add, everyone seemed to loosen up more and more.

Looking out upon the ocean now, the sunset was swept away with the night, but still lit up by the moon’s gaze, and the many small lights from shore cast off by Kona Town. The Kona Sunset Cruise was more than underway as people were dancing … and did I mention our Hula dancer? Watching her was pretty funny, as she was grabbing people to come dance with her left and right. We got so swept up in the entertainment, we hardly realized that we were pretty much back to the harbor as our captain gave us the heads up.

It seemed activity ended as fast as it started if that makes sense, because we enjoyed the whole thing so much. Walking off the cruise I had a great feeling that I kept with me for the rest of the night, filled with excitement yet put me at ease. Such a great activity if you are ever in Kona and you want to have a romantic evening complimented with a dinner try Sunset Cruise Big Island aboard Spirit of Kona.

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by Dean Christener

Maui Downhill Bike Ride Tour is a great adventure that I’ve been aware of my entire life living here on Maui. Growing up and driving up and down Haleakala (House of the Sun), our renowned Volcano that stands tall here on the island of Maui, I would always watch the many cyclists that participated in the Maui bike tours, speeding down the windy roads.

Haleakala, said to be less than a million years old, stands at over ten thousand feet, its highest point reaching 10,023 feet. Haleakala, although not quite as tall as its neighboring volcanoes on the Big Island – Manakea and Manaloa – would tower over even Mt. Everest if you were to measure it from the sea floor.

Haleakala is technically not an active or a dormant volcano, but an inactive one because it last erupted only about 200 years ago, in 1790. It exploded along the southwest rift zone forming the large lava deposits of the Ahihi Kina`u/La Perouse Bay area of South Maui, which today is  covered by sharp black lava rock, with not much plant life growing there.

Hearing the ring in my ears from my iPhone, I quickly went to turn off the alarm only to see that it was 2:30am, and I had to be in town by 3:00 to meet for my Haleakala sunrise bike tour. Although this is not the usual way of getting to the check-in point for Maui Downhill, as normally you get picked up right from your hotel half an hour earlier than this and are taken straight there.

Nevertheless, arriving in Kahului, the main town of Maui, even though we like to think of it as our little city, we were escorted by tour buses up to the Maui Haleakala National Park where we would initiate our bike tour. Having been up to the crater, as we refer to Haleakala, several times, I think many of the people underestimated how cold it is up there, as they must have thought, “hey this is Hawaii, how cold can it actually be!” from the looks of what they wore.

But when we finally pulled up to the very top, and people awoke to cold air chilling their skin, boy were they in for a surprise. Seeing already glimpses of deep reds and oranges on the horizon, I could tell this was going to be a beautiful sunrise. You could see people huddling together over the railing that overlooked the large crater of Haleakala that stretched seven and half miles long and two and half wide.

The wind chill was definitely a big factor, as it seemed I just could not get the warmth I was looking for, even though I came quite prepared with heavy layered clothing. When the sun finally started creeping above the horizon, you could hear the people next to you gasp in amazement, as their expressions were left in awe. Having seen this a few times already, the sight really never gets old as I still found myself standing there stunned by the magnificent colors that the sun spurred out across the cloud cover.

Looking down into the crater, you could see the sunlight find every dark crevice as it crept from the east end and up the cliffs to where we stood. Cameras were heard clicking numerously amongst the people, and then as the sun lifted itself over the clouds, people could be seen scurrying back to the vans in preparation of the activities.

We headed back to our tour van that had, Maui Downhill Bike Tours written on it, and were told to fasten up and get ready for the activity we had all come to partake in. Heading down the windy road again to the Haleakala National Park entranceway, which has been there since 1960, we were given our bikes that we would ride down Haleakala. The blood seemed to still be flowing after watching the Haleakala Volcano sunrise, because peoples’ faces were lit up and ready to kick off.

Helmets on, windbreakers zipped, we were off and riding on the smooth road that winded through along the north face of Haleakala. Taking little breaks here and there, the ride went by quick as we were flying down the highway that hugged the cliff side. Watching the cattle go by on either side of us with the wind finding holes in my helmet, I was overtaken by the thrill of the ride.

Riding steadily for about 30 minutes, our group found ourselves at a little store in the Town of upper Kula, where we were able to briefly snack and take a bathroom break. The air was still chilly, but nothing when we started, so I sat in the grass eating a candy bar while enjoying the birds chirp around me.

Only a couple minutes later, however I found myself back on my bike again clutching the cold handlebars. The further down we rode, I noticed that the surroundings got denser with greenery, and the smell of Eucalyptus was ever more evident, giving a soothing smell and touch to the experience. Although we covered many miles of road, the activity went by fairly fast, but left everyone extremely content and happy with smiles on their faces.

I was definitely ready for a nap when it was all over, but I would do the Haleakala downhill tour in a second again, especially with Maui Downhill as they did an exceptional job leading us down the mountain as well providing us with a great service. Having now done this activity, I will tell others about it as well and how fun it is, as it is a must do whether living on Maui or just visiting!

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by Dean Christener

Who would of known how great a Jet Ski tour is especially going with Xtreme Jet Ski Hawaii, an awesome experience filled with adrenaline and excitement. It was cool to see how well organized this activity was, as my friend and I had just done an activity with Jet Ski Rental Honolulu Hawaii, which was a really fun xtreme parasailing activity connected with the same company that we would participate now in a Oahu Jet Ski tour.

It was great, because as soon as we end parasailing, we were shortly afterward picked up by a van that would take us too our destination where the jet ski fun would begin. The driver was great, he gave us a preview of what to expect out on the skis.

We had to drive through a bit of Honolulu to get to the Waikiki Jet Ski Hawaii, only taking about 10 minutes, so it was good seeing some island-style city life, which probably differs to your average city life.

Arriving where we would drive our Jet Skis, it was a beautiful area, sheltered from the wind, in a large lagoon you could say. The water was a deep blue surrounded by sand banks with lush tropical undergrowth on them.

Shortly after being dropped off, a boat took us at the dock where the Jet Skis were tetheredin the middle of the lagoon. Here we were first escorted and introduced to the Jet Ski guide who would explain the activity.

It was quite a thrill being taken out to this “floating dock” in the middle of the lagoon where all the machines were kept. Our guide on our arrival showed us the course where we would be skiing.

It was nice how much freedom you had, as though there was a course, but it was large enough to allow for much personal enjoyment.

When we were finally on the skis, I never wanted to get off! Being able to accerlerate across the water at full speed, we then judged the how the ski handled on the turns. It  was more fun then I ever had expected!

Whether racing others who were also participating on the Xtreme Jet Ski tour, or just riding and seeing how fast you could go into a turn, while trying to make as much spray as possible off carves, it was all an absolute thrill.

The Jet Ski facilitator was more than nice as well as he allowed us to ride much longer than we were supposed to, and this was greatly appreciated because you don’t know how fast time flies when your having that much fun out there on the water.

Concluding from this experience, I could not have asked for a better initiation to riding a jet ski, especially in this isolated lagoon, that really gives you the sense of being in paradise with freedom in the grip of your hands, as you go almost where you want. Definitely an activity that is a must-do, especially so you can say you did a Honolulu Jet Ski ride!

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