MEET THE EXPERIENCED AND EXCELLENT CREW OF THE MAKENA MELE!
When all is said and done, most of the dive boats on the south side of Maui are offering a pretty comparable dive trip. Without a doubt, what makes the difference between a good, safe, fun dive trip and a bad one, is your crew.
Jonathan Lata (Captain)
Originally hailing from Lyndeborough, New Hampshire transplanted to Haiku in Maui, the steady, confident, knowledgeable and gregarious, CAPTAIN JONATHAN LATA became Yonegan’s first full-time captain of The Getaway in Starting February of 2021. In that time, he’s navigated her across most of South Maui delivering one-of-a-kind experiences to visitors and locals alike. Additionally, he’s helped lead the Maui Reef Rescue charity hauling over a ton of sunken lead, fishing lines, traps and other discarded materials from the floor of the South Maui Coast during its maiden run in the spring of ’21. Selected as part of the US Freediving team representing the US in Sardinia in 2014, Jonathan’s passion for the water expresses itself in his every decision and choice of destination. In addition to his labor-of-love/time-served aboard The Getaway, Jonathan is an avid fisherman, hunter, proud family man and new first-time home owner!
Brian Jaynes (Dive Master)
Dive Master BRYAN JAYNES grew up in Columbus, Ohio, graduating from Ohio State University in 2013 with a degree in psychology. Craving adventure, he travelled to Sydney, Australia where he seized the opportunity as a Dive Master Trainee on the Seastar, off of the Great Barrier Reef. The wonders of the biodiversity and beauty changed his life forever. From there, Bryan advanced to become a PADI Dive Instructor in Phuket, Thailand. Following this, he pin-balled around Ohio, Florida and Colorado before settling in Maui in 2017. The beauty of Maui increased when he met his Brazilian-born wife Camila. When not in the water, Bryan indulges in golfing, reading, hiking and his passion for photography. The Getaway signed him as a Dive Master in the Summer of 2021.
Benja Iglesis (Dive Instructor & Photographer)
Benja was born and raised in Chile and is a well-known professional photographer. He has had his photos in magazines such as Sport Diver, Alert Diver, Spare Air, Ocean Kayak, and Aloha Airlines. He has shot pictures— above and below the sea— in 48 countries. Benja is fluent in Spanish and English, and speaks Italian and some Portuguese. Go to www.benjaiglesis.com
CERTIFIED DIVERS
No matter what your dive experience, we have awesome dives off the coast of Maui!
EVERY DAY OFFERS GREAT DIVING off of our vessel the Makena Mele, however, these guidelines might help you choose when to go.
If you are a newer diver, or haven’t been diving in a while we recommend you dive with us any days except Tues. and Friday as those are reserved for more experienced and current divers. We will likely take you to the Reef’s End dive site at Molokini for the first dive and in along the Makena/Wailea coast of Maui to dive with the magnificent Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle for the second dive. These are great dive sites for both experienced and inexperienced divers because the boat is moored so you have a descent and ascent line, there is 100+ feet of visibility, lots of sea life and you can’t easily get too deep. Consider diving M, W, TH, S, SU
If you are an experienced diver or have dived the front side of Molokini several times, you may want to consider coming on our Expedition Dive Day on either a Tues. Or a Fri. As that is when we do more advanced dives, the Back Wall of Molokini, drift dives, and different dive sites than our daily routine. Expedition Dive Day requires that you have good buoyancy control and are comfortable descending and ascending without a line. T, F is Expedition day…. Every other day is a great day to go as well.