I like turtles better than sharks!

Well, we know they are always out there but we hope to never encounter a shark in a negative way (negative, in that they bite our board or us!!).  Yesterday Kanaha Beach was closed because this is exactly what happened to a paddler who was paddle surfing.  Apparently the shark bit his board and knocked him off and he fell right on the shark!  Then the shark wasn’t letting go of his board, so he hit it with his paddle.  The problem was that when the shark did let go, it ended up being between the paddler and his board!   Then he hit it with his paddle and his hand until it moved and then he quickly climbed back on his board!  Now that is a story that no paddler really wants to star in!  It’s amazing that he was unhurt and even more amazing that he lived to tell his story.  Okay, today was a gorgeous day and I thoroughly enjoyed  paddling down to the boat ramp.  I couldn’t help  but think about the shark story…..but I tried to focus on the turtles!  The turtles did not disappoint either.  I paddled right into a triangle of turtles and then a few minutes later, I paddled into another triangle of turtles!  Then I paddled more south, and ended up surrounded by four turtles.  The next three turtles came up independent from each other, so that was thirteen turtles for the day!  The conditions were so nice and as I started to paddle back, I ran into a paddling friend I hadn’t seen for a week.  We chatted for a while and two turtles surfaced!  Then we paddled down to Kam II and two more turtles surfaced!  When we got down to Kam I, two more turtles surfaced and when I paddled in I ran into a third turtle so I stopped to visit with it for a few minutes!  Just about that time, the wind was starting to blow and the ocean got choppy.  It stayed choppy throughout my swim, but it was still very enjoyable!  Luckily I didn’t run into any sharks today…..but at least I know I have a paddle for beating it if I have to!!!!!