One of the dives that the Kona area of Hawaii is famous for is the manta night dive. On my recent trip to Kona I did the manta dive three times, in the hopes of seeing some of these graceful creatures. Any time you go diving looking for something specific, you may be disappointed. I definitely was not. 
On the first night we saw at least 15 mantas, 16 on the second night, and 21 or more on the third night. It was a spectacular experience. Sometimes there are so many mantas they fill the frame.
I went out with Jack's Diving Locker on the dives. The manta dive takes place at a dive site called Garden Eel Cove. There is an area on the bottom in about 35 fsw called the Stone Circle. It is a large sandy area with a few rocks strewn about, surrounded by stones placed in a circle. Jack's does a late afternoon dive at the site where we searched for a variety of critters, all the while hoping to see a few of the mantas arrive early. We weren't disappointed. Several mantas swam lazily around us and above us as we explored the reef. At the end of the afternoon dive the crew places a container of lit flashlights in the center of the stone circle. The flashlights are left there during the surface interval to attract plankton, and hopefully some mantas.
During the surface interval we could see mantas swimming near the boat. As the time slowly ticked away we were given the briefing. Our guides would take the divers down to the stone circle and place us in position. We were asked to stay on the bottom and not float up in the water column, so we were encouraged to carry extra weight. There can be a large number of divers at the site each night. The snorkelers were asked to stay on the surface and refrain from freediving. As it turned out the rules are in place for a good reason. The mantas come right to the snorkelers at the surface, so there is no need to drop down and get in their way. The mantas also come remarkably close to the divers on the bottom, often gently brushing up against them.
We eagerly got into the water and were immediately greeted by mantas. We made our way to the stone circle where we took up our positions. Then the show got underway. Mantas. Oodles of mantas. The interaction with the mantas is constant. They swoop over your head from side to side as they work their way around the circle. They come at you from straight ahead. And they sneak up on you from behind. I think this fellow was wondering where the manta was:
Each diver carries a bright flashlight which they hold high in front of them pointed up. The plankton are attracted to the light. The mantas are attracted to the plankton. The mantas pass close above the divers' lights.
If you don't hold your light high enough, you better duck your head!
My children were certified in Grand Cayman a year ago and have since been diving in Maui, Bonaire and Kona. They accompanied me on the manta dive one night. How did they like the dive? AWESOME, Dad! Here they are hanging out with 8 of their new friends:
The mantas come very close indeed. So close that they often more than filled the frame of my Tokina fisheye lens. They would come straight at my Fix light and skim just above it. There were literally hundreds of encounters each night. They would often rise above my camera giving me plenty of opportunities to shoot the telltale marks on their undersides which uniquely identify each individual.
Mantas are graceful swimmers, able to avoid collisions with each other at the last second. It was truly a pleasure to spend time with these amazing creatures.
More manta photos are available in my Kona Manta Gallery.
