Not the best sleep last night. Never known so many noise air conditioners as there has been in Hawaii. I was hoping the rocking of the boat would make me sleep but no, so pretty tired this morning when it was time to get up. Brekky was at 8am followed by Snorkel 101 where we got to check out our gear and made sure it fit plus they ran through some safety tips. Then it was time to board the smaller boats and get taken to our first snorkel site, Pawai Pt. Visibility was good and lots of colourful fish hanging around the lava rock wall and ledges. Mum did great getting into the water and giving it a go. She sent me off to enjoy myself but eventually I got back to her and grabbed her noodle that she was using for buoyancy and dragged her over to the rock wall to see more of the fish as she was hanging around the deeper part which still has some fish you could see. She even managed to spot a moray eel so she was happy she spent the money on the prescription lenses. Before long it was time to get back aboard and get taken back to the ship.

After showers, it was lunch time and then we were on the search for any mammals that may be hanging out today. Our expedition leader also gave a talk on local fishes and what we could expect to see when snorkelling and I think lots of napping also happened, including for mum and I. Mum had started to feel a little sea sick so tried to sleep.

Just before we dropped anchor we did have some playful bottlenose dolphins stop by to show off. We were then served an early light dinner while the Manta ray specialist gave his chat about what to expect tonight. He did advise they really hadn't seem them this week so it didn't sound too hopeful but his talk was great. We then grabbed our snorkel gear, got our swimmers on and were given wetsuits to put on. Been years since I put one on but the 3mm are pretty easy to get on. Helped mum on with hers who was determined to give it a go. Out in the zodiacs to the spot where after we jumped into the water, we hung onto surfboards which had lights attached and headed towards the 'campfire' where torches had been placed down on the bottom to attract the plankton and hopefully the manta rays. There were 5-6 people on each board plus a guide who dragged us around. There are no restrictions on how many people can be in the water at once which seems a shame but we were told tonight was a 'quiet' night. Would hate to be out here on a busy night. Lots of smaller fish were attracted to the plankton and it was cool snorkelling at night, but unfortunately the manta rays had decided tonight was not to be. Mum did great giving it a go, but about 30mins in, her shoulders and neck started to ache with how you had to hold onto the board so she got taken back to the zodiac...she wasn't the first and she wasn't the last. After 45mins we all headed in, disappointed we didn't get to see them but glad we got out.

Another hot shower and then they had some light bites and dessert for us and a chat about what is happening tomorrow. Sounds exciting. Lets hope for some better animal sightings.