In 12 years of snorkeling in Hawaii, I’ve only seen a shark one time–in 2021 at 2 Step on the Big Island. My wife and I were swimming parallel to the shore and the white-tipped reef shark passed in front of us a few feet, headed straight to the shore. We were a little concerned about other people, but nothing happened. It was a bit of a thrill to me, but not to my wife!
The chance for getting attacked by a tiger shark on Maui is pretty good. Hawaii’s economy is not driven by pineapples and sugarcane. Their economy is supported by and depends on tourism. I grew up in Hawaii and knew as a youngster not to even get in the water on Maui!
It never ceases to amaze me how uninformed so many visitors are, to swim or snorkel in murky waters. After heavy rain, one would want to stay clear of areas where the runoff enters the ocean as the debris seems to attract sharks.
Was this poor souls snorkeling alone? No mention of family or friends with her. One would never, ever wisely snorkel alone.
The oceanic variant les in Hawaii are different than many other places. The tips y’all gave about snorkeling in a previous article were very good. Prayers for this woman’s recovery.
Completely agree Cindy. Last year there was a big rainstorm in the Kihei area. There was so much rain it was actually washing cars into the ocean. The ocean was brown with filth. Things like dead carcasses, oil and all kinds of garbage were in the ocean. That kind of garbage tends to draw predictors into the beach. I was talking to a native woman and we couldn’t believe all the nutty people in the water. Not only could you get bitten but you can get very sick too.
I have been fortunate (unfortunate?) to have seen numerous black and white-tipped sharks at Black Rock. The first time scared the bejeezit out of me – it was swimming towards me about 20 feet below me.
I stopped swimming so as to not splash and tried to hide my jewelry.
Once it went past me I swam slowly keeping my fins below water to prevent splashing.
Since then I have had numerous sightings but these have all had the sharks down by the sand.
Certainly scary the first time, but exciting each time thereafter.
Thanks for keeping me jonesing for the islands with informative articles. Look forward to them every day.
When I lived on Oahu not too long ago they still had shark feeding tours for the tourists. I think they outlawed that on Oahu. I do hope it’s also not legal to do that on Maui. Nothing good can happen from sharks learning to expect food from humans.
Over the years we have gone snorkeling with sharks many times. Mostly white and black tipped reef sharks, and a few hammerheads. That tip about not splashing around on the water surface is a very good one. That’s what a fish does when it gets in trouble. Reef sharks tend to be territorial. When they put their pectoral fins down and then get a humped look it’s time to leave. That’s when they are being territorial. If you obey a few simple rules you’re unlikely to be attacked. One of the big rules is to stay out of murky or sandy water. Frequently a shark cannot tell what it is biting at in water that is hard to see in. Maui seems to have that problem more than the other islands. If you see a tiger shark it is also time to leave.
Is it ok to snorkel after it rains? How long should you wait after it rains to snorkel.
In 12 years of snorkeling in Hawaii, I’ve only seen a shark one time–in 2021 at 2 Step on the Big Island. My wife and I were swimming parallel to the shore and the white-tipped reef shark passed in front of us a few feet, headed straight to the shore. We were a little concerned about other people, but nothing happened. It was a bit of a thrill to me, but not to my wife!
The chance for getting attacked by a tiger shark on Maui is pretty good. Hawaii’s economy is not driven by pineapples and sugarcane. Their economy is supported by and depends on tourism. I grew up in Hawaii and knew as a youngster not to even get in the water on Maui!
Statistics will tell you that driving to the beach is more dangerous than being bitten by a shark.
Don’t snorkel alone is so important. Cut the chances in half that it will be you. 😉
It never ceases to amaze me how uninformed so many visitors are, to swim or snorkel in murky waters. After heavy rain, one would want to stay clear of areas where the runoff enters the ocean as the debris seems to attract sharks.
Was this poor souls snorkeling alone? No mention of family or friends with her. One would never, ever wisely snorkel alone.
The oceanic variant les in Hawaii are different than many other places. The tips y’all gave about snorkeling in a previous article were very good. Prayers for this woman’s recovery.
Completely agree Cindy. Last year there was a big rainstorm in the Kihei area. There was so much rain it was actually washing cars into the ocean. The ocean was brown with filth. Things like dead carcasses, oil and all kinds of garbage were in the ocean. That kind of garbage tends to draw predictors into the beach. I was talking to a native woman and we couldn’t believe all the nutty people in the water. Not only could you get bitten but you can get very sick too.
I have been fortunate (unfortunate?) to have seen numerous black and white-tipped sharks at Black Rock. The first time scared the bejeezit out of me – it was swimming towards me about 20 feet below me.
I stopped swimming so as to not splash and tried to hide my jewelry.
Once it went past me I swam slowly keeping my fins below water to prevent splashing.
Since then I have had numerous sightings but these have all had the sharks down by the sand.
Certainly scary the first time, but exciting each time thereafter.
Thanks for keeping me jonesing for the islands with informative articles. Look forward to them every day.
When I lived on Oahu not too long ago they still had shark feeding tours for the tourists. I think they outlawed that on Oahu. I do hope it’s also not legal to do that on Maui. Nothing good can happen from sharks learning to expect food from humans.
Over the years we have gone snorkeling with sharks many times. Mostly white and black tipped reef sharks, and a few hammerheads. That tip about not splashing around on the water surface is a very good one. That’s what a fish does when it gets in trouble. Reef sharks tend to be territorial. When they put their pectoral fins down and then get a humped look it’s time to leave. That’s when they are being territorial. If you obey a few simple rules you’re unlikely to be attacked. One of the big rules is to stay out of murky or sandy water. Frequently a shark cannot tell what it is biting at in water that is hard to see in. Maui seems to have that problem more than the other islands. If you see a tiger shark it is also time to leave.
This poor woman lost an arm and was also mauled, not sure why it’s only being reported as a “serious bite” other than to avoid alarming tourists.
Perhaps privacy for the woman whose life just changed?