I was lazy and neglected to ask around early enough yesterday to secure a dive partner (gas is expensive) and started asking around at the last minute just as I was starting to think about going to bed. One wasn't interested in diving, another was grounded by his wife, another had to work, another had class, another had to work, and then I got a drunken text from another about finding a certain bleeping house and having beer on him so I knew that partner was out for the next day.
So I set out solo. Stopped at the Corsair and noted that the Molokai express was in full force. Saw a fish down at the wreck I wanted to shoot, but the current/wind combo was too dangerous so I didn't dive down for it.
Started to move on and then a huge school of flying fish erupted only 300 feet away. "Marlin!" I thought to myself. I immediately splashed overboard minus fins with my gun and searched/waited. Nothing... Then a cattle scuba boat motored right past me less than 50 feet away asking if I was okay. Bah. Climbed back onto the PWC.
I kept going east with the waves. Tried to stop at the artificial reefs off of Hawaii Kai but a scuba boat was there already so I decided to keep going. Jumped in at the Diamondhead buoy, but there was nothing hanging around.
Kept going east to the YO-257. The Cat had just left, there was another boat waiting for the buoy. Bah. Jumped in with just mask/snorkel to check out viz, lo and behold, there were two onos within range. FARK! Scrambled back onboard, threw my gear overboard, went hunting without fins but they had left already. Chased down my PWC, put on fins and resumed looking around. Plenty of opelus and lais. No onos. Wind was blowing me and the pwc away.
Got back on, motored over to the other wreck, put my flasher overboard, and slipped into the water to see one big ono and one 40+ kahala moving away quickly from my flasher. Too late. Argh. I screwed around with the submarines, hamming it up for the tourists in there, and looked into both wrecks. Nothing good hiding out in them.
Jumped back onto the PWC and kept moving. Jumped out 2 more times to explore for new structure/areas before tying off at a place I've dived at before. Swim way down, first drop and I come face-to-face 2 uluas and 1 omilu. Biggest ulua is pushing 80#. Omilu is leaving. I let it go. I take aim as the two uluas swims towards me. 50# turns about 8 feet away. 80# keeps coming.
A series of thoughts flash across my mind...
Remember what Darrell said about shooting it along the spine line...
That ain't a 100+ pounder, damn it...
Don't forget that I'm on a shaft restriction now by the wifey. Must... Not... Bend...This...One....
Do I want to wreck this brand-new shaft? My slip tip/threaded shaft arrives next week at MSG... Maybe I shouldn't.
Yes, I should.
No.
Ulua turns broadside 3 or 4 feet away from the tip of my gun.
Eric told me last night he doesn't need any more ulua meat...
This is too much meat just for Jennifer's OC6 coach.
I don't have a dive partner with me today to divide this brute up with...
Ulua turns around and starts to follow the 50# one away
Should I shoot it in the ***?
No, guarantee bendage!
Screw it, where did that Omilu go? Perfect size for Jennifer's coach.
Omilu was nowhere to be seen, so I returned to the surface, saying good bye to the two uluas as they swam away into the depths.
I jump back on the PWC and move to a wreck that has a underwater mooring buoy that I stumbled upon one day while exploring. It's not located on any of the common gps coordinate listings on the internet. It sits in 93' feet of water, and I find a bunch of kahalas immediately. I aim at the biggest one of them as a few swim towards me, and just as it turns broadside, I see 3-prong scars on it's shoulder.
Feeling sorry for it, I put down the gun and return to the surface, letting it go. On my way up, I see a big uku hanging out nearby.
I decide to break out the camera and get some footage of myself picking up an uku for some more Paulism (inside joke) over at the Hawaii Skin Diver forum
No partner so I clip the camera to my floatline , throw out a spoon, and then press record.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkwi4TX2JhM
Oops, something else came instead.
It came flying out of nowhere at about 70', going nuts over my spoon. There turned out to be 4 ukus at the bottom but they all steered clear of the spoon and the crazed ulua which kept attacking the spoon all the way to the bottom despite me jabbing at it a couple of times.
As I approached the bottom, I started thinking again...
Remember what Darrell said about shooting it along the spine line...
That ain't a 100+ pounder, damn it...
Don't forget that I'm on a shaft restriction now by the wifey. Must... Not... Bend...This...One.... Well, this one is too small to bend my shaft I think...
Would be good practice (shooting at the spine line)
Yes, I should.
No.
It's a good size for Jennifer's coach.. Yeah...
BLAM!
Ulua wasn't stoned.
Argh!
Don't forget the spoon!
Grab spoon, start pulling ulua up, decide I should pull it up from the surface instead so I let go of the gun and run my float line through my hand as I swim for the surface. Ulua is whipping my shaft in every which direction, looks like it's bending the shaft too...
Gently horse it up to the surface, grab it, wave it in front of the camera, brain it, power off camera.
And thus ends my time-water of a Blair Ulua Project. Shaft still appears straight thankfully.
Note shot placement mark. Goes to show I truly am cursed when it comes to proper shot placements. Apparently if I shoot 'em in the right place, it doesn't matter at all. They never, ever just roll over and die for me.
-Paul
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