Mayor Island was the largest single site of obsidian in New Zealand, and the island's Māori name, Tūhua, is also the Māori word for obsidian. You can see the obsidian exposed in the rock face of the island in patches or veins of black. The obsidian crumbles off the rock face and into the ocean below.

Obsidian in the Rock Face

As soon as we dove to the base of the rock face, we were beset by a fairly aggressive Sandager's wrasse. It followed us for half the dive and even nipped at my fingers.

Sandager's Wrasse

The obsidian is abundant on the site. Everything from tiny shards to massive pieces. I even found one with a Paua attached!

Obsidian

Because we were quite shallow and so close to the rock face for the dive, the surge was pretty good and we got tossed around a fair bit.

Surge

Location: Tauranga, Mayor Island, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

Dive Number:   187 Bottom Time: 49m Time In: 4:59 p.m. Tank In: Max Depth: 8.40 ft Table Used:

Mix:   Air Safety Stop: 3m Time Out: 5:48 p.m. Tank Out: Average Depth: 4.50 ft Start Pressure Group:

Surface Interval:   1h 4m End Pressure Group:

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