Underwater Encounters with Cathedral Cove Dive & Snorkel
The ocean floor suddenly comes to life – a grey winged creature unveils itself. It takes flight, gliding effortlessly along the sand. The stingray – or ‘whai’ in te reo – can be found in abundance on our coast during the summer months. Belonging to the same family as sharks, whai also have skeletons of cartilage. They bury themselves beneath the sand to hide from predators and flee when they feel threatened. Whai feed on crustaceans, worms, molluscs, fish and zoo-plankton. Their barbed tails – ‘hoto’ in te reo – contain venom that is released when used to puncture.
Whai have been on earth since the Upper Cretaceous period more than 65 million years ago. Despite having existed for so long, much is still unknown about these elusive creatures.
Following the unfortunate incident with Steve Irwin, they have earned a bad reputation. However, in New Zealand there have only been a few reported incidents involving injuries from stingrays. We want to help debunk the myth that they are dangerous creatures. They are more curious than aggressive, and if given their space they pose no threat.
Whai can often be seen in our dive sites, with some sites having a few residents during the summer months. Whether you are scuba diving or snorkelling, there is an opportunity to see them cruising around.
On our trips, a variety of marine life can be seen. Being situated so close to the Te-Whanganui-o-Hei reserve allows us to appreciate how our marine environments thrive when looked after.
The volcanic coastline of Hahei offers a variety of dive sites to be explored. With many sites having a diverse underwater terrain, we often combine SCUBA and snorkelling trips on the same boat, giving everyone a chance to see the beauty below the sea.
Hapuku Reef rises up out of nowhere to 6 m, from a depth of 25 m on the ocean side. The most startling feature is the sheer 20 m drop off to the sand on a wall covered with jewel anemones, mauve finger sponges and colourful encrusting sponges.
Okorotere Island, only a five-minute ride from Hahei Beach, is one of our favorite snorkelling spots. The rocks are well covered with encrusting sponges, orange and pink golf ball sponges, and eclonia kelp. Many resident sand dagger, moki, brilliant blue maomao, red mullet, rays and crayfish live in this protected area, with schools of mackerel, kahawai, kingfish and koheru visiting in the summer.
We have four snorkelling trips and three SCUBA trips operating daily. If you aren’t a swimmer – no worries! We can provide buoyancy devices to keep you afloat. So much of the beauty of Hahei is located under the water, don’t miss out!
Ph: 0800 223 483 – International: +64 7 866 3955
Words by Rebecca Rushing
