Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/832257
some sweet rides. Next up was Chun's Reef with larger waves that roll over a reef. Big waves and reef equates to expert-only surfers, not a place for beginners, unless the waves are small. Standing on the beach of Chun's, I stared out at the sea, won- dering if I could handle its size and strength. I had Sommer's words circling my mind. " e waves can grow larger in seconds in the waters of Hawaii. Take extra caution." As I walked down the beach, a very kind lifeguard at Chun's asked if I was going out. As it so happened, he was from my town back home. He gave me great advice to pass along to anyone going into the waters of Ha- waii. Here are few pointers: Watch the water for about 30 minutes prior to swimming or sur ng. Study the size of the waves, and wait to see how big the sets are, which appear every 15 minutes. ese are the largest waves at that time. Ask the lifeguard about tides, strong currents, and any rip tides. Also inquire about the ocean oor, whether it has reefs, sand, or rocks. Find out how and where to safely enter and exit the water. Know your limit, trust your intuition, and "when in doubt, don't go out!" By trusting my intuition, I experienced safe sur ng, swimming, and snorkeling. By feeling safe, I believe that one feels the true meaning of vacation. Snorkeling Shark's Cove Beach was a treat, packed with huge, colorful sh that were fun to watch riding the currents underwater. Relaxing on the white sand beach of Waimea topped o the day and a delicious meal of seared ahi sh tacos at Luibuenos in Haleiwa on Kamehameha Highway closed the night. On the day of the shark dive, I felt a tinge of normal anxiety. is is only because I was part of the generation that grew up on the movie Jaws and its ride at Universal Studios. No wonder everyone my age is afraid of the ocean! Skydiving was quickly bumped down my "bucket list" spot as I eagerly approached the boat in the early morning. e founder of ONE Ocean Diving was a woman appropriately named "Ocean." I was amazed that this woman who spoke very so ly and sweetly swam with huge sharks daily. She and her helpful sta were most welcoming and taught us about the sharks, what species we may encounter, how to interact with them peacefully and appropriately, and how we should swim underwater with them. We were in their home, not the other way around. Ocean Ramsey founded ONE Ocean Diving with Juan Oliph- ant, a shark specialist. ey both grew up in the waters of Hawaii and she attributes the majority of shark research to him. Ramsey is the dive safety o cer, head eld researcher, and founder of the Pelagic Research and Animal Interaction Program or what many refer to as, "the snorkel with sharks without a cage" experience. e rst time Ramsey snorkeled with a shark, she was only eight years old. Since then, her heart belonged to the leaders of the sea. She has worked with over 32 species of sharks worldwide. As a youth, she had no doubt of her true calling in life and quickly became a marine biologist and shark conservationist. From her Master's research in ethology—animal behavior and psychol- ogy—she founded ONE Ocean Diving. She speci cally studies sharks' behavior, body language, how they interact with each oth- er to establish hierarchy, and how they interact with other species. "One of my studies is seeing how the sharks interact with hu- mans," Ramsey explained to Whole Life Times of her mission. " e practical application of my science is actually empowering people to realize that sharks do have a social hierarchy; they do communicate with one another. We can learn what their ecolog- ical role is, how they adapt with their behavior, and how we can adapt our behavior to their behavior. We should not ask the shark to change its behavior for us, we actually need them to do their ecological role." On the shark diving boat, we were taken out to a speci c area Photo: Jay Greiner June/July 2017 21