Today began really early, 6:10 at the Kihei boat ramp for a two-tank dive to the Molokini Crater and then a boat transit to a reef and lava tube dive at Makena. The sun doesn’t really get going here until closer to 7, which is about when we left the slip.

This is the Molokini Crater, or what is left of it, in open water halfway between the island of Maui and the island of Kaho’olawe.

The back wall of the crater drops down to almost 300 feet – we all drift dive around a 60 to 70 foot depth along the wall.

And quite a few of white tip and gray reef sharks. These sharks are at a cleaning station, where smaller fish (wrasse) have a symbiotic relationship with the sharks, cleaning them of parasites and other non-essential stuff for the sake of a meal.

Some reef dwellers are camouflage masters – the Frogfish lies in wait for smaller reef fish. Take a close look and watch for the movement:

Crevasses and overhangs provide some protection and fish congregate here.

Another reef predator is the Crown of Thorns starfish, which feeds on the tiny animal creatures on a healthy reef.

As a distraction, the divers air bubble streams do some cool things when the converge:

Back at the boat ramp by noon, there’s gear to rinse, get lunch, pack (a bit) and catch a final sunset from the balcony before dinner.