Kealakekua Bay

Kealakekua Bay sits on the Kona coast of the Big Island of Hawaii, a marine life conservation district protected for its coral and clear water beneath the Captain Cook Monument. Access is typically by boat or kayak across the bay, since the surrounding cliffs make shore entry difficult from most points. The site is known for calm, sheltered water most of the year, spinner dolphins that frequent the bay, and healthy coral cover along the drop-off near the monument, with visibility generally rated great over the reef bottom. Depths run from shallow reef flats down to a wall that descends well past recreational limits, so many dives are kept fairly shallow to focus on the reef itself, and the site is rated a beginner dive. Divers have also reported manta rays and whales passing through the bay. It suits a range of experience levels in typical conditions, since the bay is protected from the open ocean swell that affects much of this coastline.

Confirmed by our research team, reported by independent divers, or observed nearby via iNaturalist — each entry is labelled with its source.

• Yellow TangZebrasoma flavescensReported here · unconfirmed
• Goldring SurgeonfishCtenochaetus strigosusReported here · unconfirmed
• Black TriggerfishMelichthys nigerReported here · unconfirmed
• Dusky SurgeonfishAcanthurus nigrofuscusReported here · unconfirmed
• Saddle WrasseThalassoma duperreyReported here · unconfirmed
• Pacific Orange-spine UnicornfishNaso lituratusReported here · unconfirmed
• Bird WrasseGomphosus variusReported here · unconfirmed
• Pacific Bullethead ParrotfishChlorurus spilurusReported here · unconfirmed
• Ornate ButterflyfishChaetodon ornatissimusReported here · unconfirmed
• Manta rayManta rayReported here · unconfirmed
• WhaleWhaleReported here · unconfirmed