UPDATED 2021: Description of activity subject to change without notice due to new limitations and updated capacities. Thank you.

Schedule:

• Availability: Daily
• Tour Time:  7:30 AM
• Duration: 3 Hours 15 Minutes (approx.)

Tailored for more experienced divers, our deep and shallow dive will take you to the some of the best sites off the coast of Oahu. We usually start with a 100-foot plunge to a shipwreck. Because the wrecks are significantly further from shore, we often see more pelagic fish, turtles, sharks, dolphins, and—if we’re lucky—whales! The second dive is usually a reef around 40-60′ deep depending on where we feel like going.

With an experienced enough group, we’re able to guide you to more adventurous areas of the underwater world. These are fun dives for certified divers, we have the freedom to choose the best sites that match what you want to go see.

Recommendations:

• Swimsuit
• Sunscreen
• Towel
• Waterproof camera. 

Requirements/Restrictions:

• Minimum age is 14 years old.
• Wrecks are located significantly deeper than our reefs.
• Divers should have experience diving to 100′ (30 meters) and have a minimum of 25 dives before participating in this particular excursion.
• Preferably, you should be certified in Advanced Open Water and have dived in the last year.
• We welcome people to ride along on the boat and snorkel if they wish, however, we cannot guarantee optimal snorkeling conditions on scuba trips.
• Nitrox Tank upgrades are available for divers with Nitrox Certification. Must show Nitrox Certification at check-in.
• Before flying, please allow at least 12 hours after a single no-decompression dive, and at least 18 hours after multiple dives or multiple days of diving. You should also avoid hiking or driving to higher altitudes (over 1000-feet / 330m) after diving.
• There are medical requirements for diving, if you have questions, please call to discuss this before you book. If you answer “Yes” to any question, a doctor’s approval is required before you show up. There will be no refunds if you arrive at the boat, answer “yes” on our form, and do not have an accompanying doctor’s note.

Location: Hawaiian Diving Adventures, Kewalo Harbor, Pier A, Slip 3.
Address: 1125 Ala Moana Blvd, Honolulu, HI 96815
Google Maps: https://g.page/HawaiianDiving?share

Parking: There is paid parking at the harbor. It costs $1 per hour and accepts cash or cards. We recommend paying $5 to ensure you do not receive a parking ticket. Please do not park at Ala Moana or the state park behind the harbor.

Check-in: Look for us on the left-hand side of the harbor at the first long dock after the small booths that face Ala Moana Blvd. Look for the sign above the gate that says “Pier A”.

Certified divers, please arrive 15 minutes prior to set up equipment.

Special Notes:

• We can provide all the diving gear and equipment, or bring your own.
• We welcome people to ride along on the boat and snorkel if they wish, however, we cannot guarantee optimal snorkeling conditions on scuba trips.

Dive Sites:

• SEA TIGER

Length: 168 feet / 51 meters
Sunk: 1999
Max Depth: 120 feet / 37 meters

On February 17, 1992, authorities caught the Taiwanese commercial fishing vessel Yun Fong Seong #303 sneaking 93 illegal Chinese immigrants into Honolulu Harbor. The ship did not answer any of the harbormaster’s radio calls. Only three harbor police officers were on scene to stop the illegal immigrants. Each immigrant probably paid about $30,000 for the voyage. Every single one of them was deported. Paul Watson’s Sea Shepherd Conservation Society bought the boat at auction for the minimum bid of $40,000. The ship’s intended purpose was to prevent illegal drift netting off of Hawaiian shores. When these plans fell through, a Vietnamese fisherman bought the ship and renamed her the Sea Tiger.

The fishing vessel sold in 1994 to a man that had endless trouble and bad luck with the ship. It leaked oil and fuel into Honolulu Harbor, upsetting U.S. Coast Guard and environmental inspectors. It then lay abandoned at the pier. Voyager Submarines bought the Sea Tiger for $1 and spent $250,000 preparing her as an artificial reef for their underwater tours. The following year, Voyager Submarines went out of business, and left the wreck for scuba divers.

• YO-257

Length: 174 feet / 53 meter
Sunk: 1989
Max Depth: 99 feet / 30 meter

This U.S. Navy ship first started as the Yard Oiler Gasoline YOG–72, a self-propelled gasoline barge. She was built in 1943-1944 at the Navy Yard in Puget Sound, Washington. Her job was to fuel the Pacific Fleet, with a fuel cap of 6,570 barrels. It is not known if the ship was active before the end of World War II. In the 1950s, the YO stationed at Port Apra, Guam. Sometime later, she was re-designated Yard Oiler YO-257 and mothballed. In 1963, the YO was loaned to the U.S. Coast Guard to carry asphalt for a runway and establish a LORAN-C Station on Yap.

The YO is a yard ship, meaning it usually operates just in the harbor. The Coast Guard had to modify the ship for the 500-mile open-ocean voyage. There was only enough water on the ship for drinking. The crew had to use seawater for cleaning and bathing. They even transformed the rear gun mount into a shower!

As part of their submarine tour, Atlantis Submarine bought and sunk the ship in 1989, in just 99 feet of water. The wreck is located on the south side of Oahu off Waikiki, less than 100 feet from the San Pedro wreck.

• NASHUA NAVY TUG

Length: 109 feet / 33 meters
Sunk: 2010
Max Depth: 75 feet / 23 meters

The USS Nashua is a U.S. Navy Natick Class Large District Harbor Tug (YTB 774). In 1965, the Nashua stationed at the Subic Bay Naval Station, Philippines. The vessel would use its 2,000 HP diesel engine to tow and berth Navy vessels, from submarines to battleships. The Navy tug did waterfront fire prevention, inner harbor patrol, and rendered assistance in emergency and disaster situations. The Nashua probably worked alongside the YO-257.

After the closure of the Naval Base in Subic Bay in 1992, the Nashua transferred to Pearl Harbor. It retired from service in 1994. Later, the Pearl Harbor Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit One acquired the Nashua. They sunk it here for submersion and underwater salvage training. The Nashua sits intact, listing to its port side.

• WWII LANDING CRAFT (LCM)

Length: 56 feet / 17 meters
Sunk: Year Unknown
Max Depth: 63 feet / 19 meters

The LCM (Landing Craft Mechanized) 6 is a World War II-era landing craft that began service in 1943. Known as a Mike Boat, it was a larger version of the Higgins Boat. It was used for amphibious operations including landing and/or retrieving up to 20 troops, small vehicles, or a single tank.

The landing craft could beach itself on an enemy shore, lower the bow ramp, load cargo, and then return to the sea. The Mike Boats first saw combat during the invasion of Tarawa. In 1959, the LCM 6 made way for the larger LCM 8.

Not much is known about the LCM off of the South Shore of Oahu. Judging by the large coral growth, missing engine, and a good portion of it being buried in the sand, more than likely the LCM was intentionally scuttled a long time ago.

• SAN PEDRO

Length: 111 feet / 34 meters
Sunk: 1996
Max Depth: 75 feet / 23 meters

The San Pedro #50 was a South Korean commercial fishing and supply ship for the fishing fleet. On September 15, 1975, in heavy seas off Oahu, the Pedro caught fire when a large tank of diesel splashed on the hot engine turbine. The engine room turned into an inferno. The crew fought the fire for hours, but lost use of the water pumps, main generator, and communication system. They even used all eight of their fire extinguishers.

The crew happened to have 420 gallons of soy sauce, so they used that to fight the fire. Then, they used the empty barrels to form a bucket brigade. This continued for three days and three nights until the fire was finally beaten back. The disabled Pedro was adrift. Salvation came on October 29, when two tuna boats found the Saint Pedro off of South Point, Big Island. The crew survived on rice, kimchee, and water from the refrigeration system used in the fish holds (imagine the taste!).

Locals referred to the San Pedro, now only a damaged, burnt hulk, as the “Teriyaki Boat” because of the burnt soy sauce smell. The San Pedro sat at Keehi Lagoon, abandoned for 20 years. Throughout that time, homeless people squatted on the ship. State officials labeled the San Pedro a toxic dump due to the presence of stray animals (alive and dead), human waste stored in 55-gallon drums, and hundreds of containers leaking hazardous material on deck and into the ocean. Atlantis Submarines bought the ship for $1 and spent $360,000 to clean it up. Then, they turned the wasteland into a water haven by sinking the San Pedro next to the YO-257 as an artificial reef.

• CORSAIR

Length: 60 feet / 19 meters
Sunk: 1945
Max Depth: 115 feet / 35 meters

On April 17, 1945, Marine pilot Second Lieutenant William H. Holden of Marine Fighter Squadron 215 (VMF-215, The Fighting Corsairs) was on a training mission from Homestead Field Molokai to Ewa Field, Oahu. He noticed his engine RPM fluctuating, and then oil started spraying on the windshield. He suddenly experienced a loss of engine power. Lt. Holden safely made an emergency water landing and ditched his aircraft off of Hawaii Kai. His only injury, a cut above his right eye, occurred while climbing out of the plane. The Corsair is one of the few ‘actual’ wrecks in recreational depths on Oahu.

Although little more than the wings are still distinguishable as an airplane, it is still a great spot to dive when the conditions are favorable. Eels, octopuses, and a wide assortment of reef fish call the wings and rubble home. Garden eels are found in the sandy areas just off the wreck. This is also a great dive site to watch for larger pelagic species like spotted eagle rays and schools of amberjacks. Even whales buzz through this location during the winter season!

• MID-PACIFIC ‘WINGS’

Length: 105 feet / 32 meters
Sunk: 1991
Max Depth: 115 feet / 35 meters

The Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation YS-11A is a Japanese-built twin-engine turboprop airliner. The plane was in production from 1962-1974. Locally, Mid Pacific Air used the 64-passenger plane from 1981-1988 for low-cost inter-island flights.

Atlantis Submarines sunk two of the 86-foot aircraft in 60 feet of water. One broke apart during the sinking, but the second landed intact on the seafloor. In 1992, Hurricane Iniki severely damaged the two YS-11s, dragging them into deeper water. This left only the wings, with a small section of the fuselage around them. In 2013, HURL found a small part of the tail in about 700 feet of water!