Go SCUBA Diving

Kauai boasts some of the world's top diving sites. The isle's clear ocean waters immerse divers in a world teeming with marine life, and local dive shops will introduce you to this wondrous undersea world with a PADI SCUBA certification course.

A variety of courses, ranging from open water diver to enriched air instructor, are regularly offered with flexible scheduling. Fees include comprehensive instruction books and all necessary equipment. Many classes begin around a hotel pool with a dive instructor explaining the use of the breathing apparatus, air tanks and other basic equipment. These skill development sessions properly prepare you for your checkout dives from a calm beach or from a dive boat.

Clad in a wetsuit with a tank of air on your back and seemingly heavy weights around your waist, you ease yourself into the ocean. Breathing a little fast at first, you head downward; 10 feet, 15 feet, 20 feet deep, adapting quickly to this new way of breathing through a rubbery mouthpiece. Your instructor and dive buddy will give you the signal and you're off exploring.

Some of the most popular and accessible diving sites are:

— Sheraton Caverns, off Poipu, known for its mythical ledges that start at 30 feet and go as deep as 60 feet. There are caverns under most of the ledges where turtles, sharks and eels reside. This spot is considered by many to be the No. 1 diving site on the island for its abundance of fish.

— Black Mountain, near Kipu Kai on the southeast side of the island. The area is subject to strong tradewinds, but when the winds slacken, it offers some of the best visibility with large amounts of lobster and plenty of fish.

— Aquariums, near Nawiliwili, is a great and easy shallow dive spot approximately 30- to 60-feet in depth with ledges that start at 10 feet. There are lots of big boulders in this region and it's home to many octopus and lobster.

— Brenneckes Ledge boasts two big caves and rare black coral growing under ledges. This spot is considered a must for South Shore diving. The ledges start at 50 feet descending 90 feet to the ocean floor where large varieties of fish abound.

Other good snorkeling and SCUBA spots that are accessible from shore without a boat include Tunnels on the North Shore, the Beach House in Poipu and nearby Koloa Landing.

If you're into hard core diving, you'll want to take a dive charter to Ni'ihau. You're likely to see an abundance of marine life and birds and some fish native only to this area. The area is home to the endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal, big Hammerhead Sharks, White Tip Sharks and Manta Rays. Water clarity is generally excellent and wide varieties of coral can be seen.

A number of diving companies are available on Kauai. They include: Terry Donnelly's Ocean Odyssey, Dive Kauai SCUBA Center in Kapaa, Seasport Divers and Mana Divers

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