wildwahinepaddler

Yes, I couldn’t believe it!  After I had just paddled down to the boat ramp in great conditions with a consistent Kona wind…..and enjoyed seven turtles all to myself, I come in to rinse my board off and tie it on my racks…..and when I get back down to the beach to go for my swim, I see dolphins frolicking out there!!!!  I was tempted to run and grab my board but I knew they could be long gone by the time I got out there…..BUT I watched them from the beach frolicking for a good fifteen minutes!  There were three Spinner dolphins and they were putting on quite a show just outside Charley Young Beach!  OH well, I don’t know where they were when I was out there.  The Kona wind stayed consistent and just comfortable, so swimming was a joy.  The water is so clear right now.  I hope I see dolphins tomorrow!

nice artwork!

This card was made for me by one of my Hanai Grand daughters and she is quite the budding artist!  She knows what I like, doesn’t she??  I love the turtle of course!  This morning I got a later start than I planned.   I woke up too early and then went back to sleep and didn’t hear my alarm right away…..so, I didn’t get out on the water until 8:30 a.m.  I have been trying to get out by 8:00 a.m., but not today!  The conditions were nice, but since I was late, I headed straight down to the boat ramp.  The water was pretty glassy down there and I was the only one there.  I wasn’t there long when my first turtle surfaced.  I paddled over to it and it was very friendly, then two more turtles surfaced and I was immediately in the turtle triangle!  I sat there immersed in them for quite a while, just watching them pop their heads up and dive down under me.  I noticed that one of the turtles was quite small so I paddled over to it to get a better look.  It spooked and dove down, then it swam under me and surfaced on the other side of my board, and then it spooked again and dove down!  I think it was playing!  When they disappeared, I spotted a turtle in closer, so I paddled in.  It was a really big turtle and it swam around me and then popped its head up directly in front of my board and the only thing I could see was this long neck!  I think it was the angle, but it sure looked strange.  I sat on my board for a few minutes and no other turtles seemed to be around, so since I was later than usual, I headed back.  It was great paddling back until I got to the end of Kam II, when I ran into my paddling friend and she alerted me that there were white caps coming in!  Before we knew it, in came the wind roaring towards us.  My friend headed south to Kam II and I made my way in at Kam I.  I was close, but it still took me a while to get in paddling against the wind.  The wind lasted about thirty minutes and then backed off and it was nice for about forty minutes while I swam, then it came back in.  The wind just couldn’t decide what it wanted to do today!

more buddies!

Well, the wind on Friday was quite a struggle to paddle against, all the way from the boat ramp, so I ended up with a sore neck and a sore right arm!  I took Saturday off to rest but this morning I was raring to go.  The day looked fabulous with perfect paddling conditions, so I paddled down to the boat ramp.  It’s Sunday and  I know that more people are out on the water and more boats and jet skis around,  so I just prepared myself!  Well,  it was busier for sure, but there were only two other stand up paddlers hanging around.  I paddled just south of them and spotted my first turtle!  It was a big friendly turtle too.  Then,  a second turtle surfaced and I was sitting right in between them!  Before I knew it, turtle #3 also popped up and joined us.  I was so happy just sitting there watching the turtles swim around me and then swim under me!  I like it when they pop up and look at me, then dive down and swim under me, and then surface again on the other side of me and pop up and look at me again!  It’s so funny to have turtles checking you out.  Just as I had counted eleven turtles visiting me, I wondered if I should stay longer in hopes of a twelfth.  Suddenly, turtle #12 surfaced and I had my dozen! But before I could say “dozen”…..two more turtles surfaced creating a turtle triangle with me sitting in the middle!  Oh wow, what a finale, and with that, I headed back.  Passing into Kam III, I ran into a paddling friend who was headed for the boat ramp.  Conditions stayed perfect all the way back and when I passed Kam II, I ran into another paddling friend.  We paddled together all the way down to Cove park and since the conditions were so very nice and glassy, we hung out there and chatted.  Suddenly the wind started to blow slightly from the south, so my friend decided to paddle back to Kam II.  We spotted a turtle out there but it didn’t stick around, and then as I was heading into Kam I,  I looked down and saw a big turtle swimming under me!  That made a grand total of 16 turtles for today!  Conditions stayed just perfect for my swim and it was still perfect when I left the beach. It was great to get such a perfect day for a change!

It started out mellow!

This was the scene this morning, mellow for the most part, but out on the water it was a bit “loopy” which meant that there was wind blowing out there somewhere.  The breeze was blowing out of the north and then it turned south…..so I headed south.  I ran into a paddling friend and then the water got mellow again, so we headed down to the boat ramp.  There were some kayaks there already, but I had spotted the first turtle passing Kam III, right in front of my friend!  Then she saw a second turtle.  We headed into the boat ramp area and a third turtle shot up out of the water head first!  I recognized this turtle.  It does this thing with its head that is different from most of the other turtles…..it shoots up head first and then goes down and does it again.  It came right past me!  Then my friend said there was a turtle behind me, so I turned to look.  It was hanging out right behind me and I hadn’t noticed!  Then my friend decided to head back.  I think she was concerned that the wind might change directions, but I stayed at the boat ramp and visited with a couple more turtles.  Suddenly I noticed a change coming over the water and within seconds, the wind came charging in!  I decided to paddle back in hopes that the wind would die back, but NO luck there!  It got worse and pretty soon it was difficult to hang on to my paddle in addition to getting belted with wind waves and white water!  I just kept paddling.  When the wind waves get to the point they are breaking over you…..it ceases to be fun anymore, at least for me!  But I kept paddling!  Before I knew it I had caught up with my friend and she was struggling too.  Lucky for her, she was right at Kam II where she goes in, but I had to make it through Kam II, get past the rocky point, and then make my way in at Kam I!  It took forever and the wind was relentless.  Finally I made it in and I saw that the lifeguards had taken their jet ski out and rescued some tourists on rented paddle boards.  I’m glad I wasn’t one of their rescues!  Just about the time I came in, the wind backed off some and my swim was nice.  Some days are like that!

lovely day!

Finally a perfect morning!  Calm seas and no white caps in view, just the way I like it.  I ran into a paddling friend and we paddled down to the boat ramp together.  I promised to listen to her if she saw white caps, since we got caught in the wind yesterday!  Just as we arrived at the boat ramp, and lifeguard came flying out of the boat lane on a jet ski, which unsettled the water for a few minutes.  Other than that, we were the only ones there!  I spotted the first turtle directly in front of us, and paddled over.  It was a big turtle and very friendly!  Then another turtle popped up out farther, so we paddled out.  It was also friendly.  Then two really small turtles surfaced in closer to the rocks.  I paddled in and sat right between them!  Then my friend told there was a turtle right behind me.  I looked around and it almost seemed like it was following me!  Before long, I had counted a dozen turtles in all, and my friend decided to paddle back.  That was a good number of turtles, so I decided not to be greedy, and I paddled back too!  It got nicer as we paddled back and even glassy!  I paddled in and it stayed nice all the way through my swim too!  It was a really nice day!

turtles!

It started out windy this morning and then it backed off just like yesterday.  Almost immediately, a turtle popped up right by the inside buoy and then another one popped up further north.  I hung around for a few minutes to enjoy them!  Then  I ran into a paddling friend who had been gone for a few weeks so we chatted and then we decided to paddle down to the boat ramp together.  I told her how the wind had been backing off the last few days, but just as we headed into Kam III,  she questioned the wind and said she saw white caps out there.  We continued to paddle until the wind really did start to blow!  One big turtle surfaced at Kam III, so I stayed a few minutes with that one, then another one surfaced as we turned around.  The wind came in strong and the white caps came in with it!  OOPS…. I should have listened to my paddling friend, but at least she was close to home at Kam II.  I had to paddle all the way back to Kam I and it was a lot of work, but I didn’t mind!  Just as I made my way to Kam I, the wind totally backed off and it was nice again and it stayed nice for my swim too.  Some days the wind is pesky like that!

lovely skies!

The morning was nice, but the ocean was “loopy” again and it was already windy!  I decided to go out anyway, so I paddled against the wind going north.  When I turned to paddle south, the wind totally backed off and it was smooth paddling all the way to the boat ramp!  As I arrived, I saw two kayaks sitting out from the boat ramp, but they were out farther than I usually go, so that was good.  Almost immediately, I spotted my first turtle!  It was a smaller turtle, and then we were joined by another smaller turtle, so I was sitting in-between them!  When they swam away, I spotted another turtle out farther popping its head up, so I paddled to it.  When I got to it, five more turtles surfaced and I was sitting in the middle of six turtles!  Boy was I excited about that!  One by one, the turtles disappeared, but then I spotted another turtle nearer the boat lane, so I paddled over.  It was a big turtle and super friendly!  It swam around me and then under me, then it swam away.  I was about to leave, when three more turtles surfaced and I was in-between them too!  Wow, twelve turtles today and I didn’t have to share them with anyone!  Paddling back was fun with some bumps coming through, but the wind stayed out, and it was nice all the way through my swim!  It was another really nice summer day on Maui!

my buddies!

It was a beautiful morning much like yesterday, except no wind was blowing.  I did see it blowing much earlier this morning….but it backed off by the time I got down to the beach.  There were a few other paddlers out, but it was a very quiet, peaceful morning for paddling. I paddled down to the boat ramp in hopes of visiting with some turtles, but when I got there, a kayak with a man and a child in it was already there.  They sat there and I sat there, but no turtles were to be seen.  Finally the kayak left and I spotted my first turtle!  I hurried over to it and hung out with it for a few minutes until it dove down.  Then I spotted turtle #2 out farther so I paddled out.  It was a very friendly turtle coming right up to my board!  Then in closer I spotted turtle #3, and when I got to it, it ended up being two turtles and I sat in between them for a few minutes.  Before I knew it, the two turtles turned into four turtles…..and I was sitting surrounded by four turtles!  Suddenly two more kayaks came into the area with a woman and a boy in them.  Just about the time a big turtle surfaced next to me, the boy yelled to his mom, “Look mom, the turtles are coming up right next to her!”  And the boy paddled furiously to get over to us.  I know this was kind of mean, but I paddled bit forward and cut him off from the turtle!  (I know, I know, that wasn’t very nice…), but hey I was there first when the turtle surfaced by me!  The kayaks didn’t stay long which was good, and then three more friendly turtles surfaced for me to visit with.  The conditions were still good when I paddled back and all the way through my swim!  It was another very nice day for the beach!

Turtles!

My goodness…..I forgot to post two days of paddling from last week.  I guess it was a busy week!  Thursday was a beautiful day with much nicer conditions than the previous days, and I enjoyed five very friendly turtles down at the boat ramp all by myself!  Then suddenly the wind came up from nowhere…..and I had to really work to paddle back.  Some times that just happens!  On Friday, I ran into a friend down at the boat ramp.  I had the place to myself until a guy brought five stand up paddlers right to my area!  Before they arrived, I had already enjoyed seven turtles all  by myself and then my friend arrived too.  We stayed a little ways away from them….and the turtles were surfacing one at a time…looking around.  We wondered if they were confused with so many people there.  Finally the group left, and my friend and I enjoyed quite a few more turtles, and then she headed south and I paddled back.  The wind stayed out paddling back and I ran into one last turtle between Kam II and III!  It was a really big turtle and it hung around me for a few minutes, swimming around me and under me before disappearing.  The conditions stayed good through my swim too.  It was a really nice day!

Now today was Sunday, and I wanted to get an early start, so I was in the water around 8 a.m. (which is early for me!).  The wind was already threatening and another paddler told me he was just going to stay in the area due to the wind.  I went out and decided I wanted to paddle down to the boat ramp, so I did!  The wind stayed variable, changing from north to south and back, but stayed about the same strength, so it wasn’t a problem.  At the boat ramp, I had the place to myself, which was odd for a weekend day, but I wasn’t complaining at all!  I spotted my first turtle and paddled to it, but it turned out to be three turtles and I was in the middle of them.  Then another turtle surfaced out farther and when I got to it, the one turtle ended up being four turtles, and again I was surrounded!  I love being surrounded by turtles!  Suddenly coming from the south were quite a few paddlers, so I decided to leave.  Paddling back was really pleasant and the wind held, even through my swim!  It didn’t start to get really windy until later and then it was time to go home!  What a nice Summer day on Maui!

Turtle fun!

It was another beautiful Summer day on Maui, and I was overjoyed to be getting out on the ocean!  I ran into a paddling friend right away and so we paddled together.  The ocean was still “loopy” today, but there was no wind blowing, so we paddled down to the boat ramp.  As we paddled in, I could see a small boat there and some tourists snorkeling.  The tourists were really loud and one of them was chasing the turtles!  My friend spotted the first turtle out farther and we paddled to it, but the snorkeler was swimming to it too.  We got there first, but as soon as the snorkeler got there, the turtle swam away.  The same thing happened a few more times, with a few more turtles, which was getting annoying, but eventually the three of them got tired and swam in.  My friend and I sat there, waiting for the turtles to surface, but I was afraid they were still hiding.  Then suddenly the turtles started to appear!  On big turtle popped up and hung around me for a while……intermittently popping his head up to look at me.  Then a smaller turtle surfaced and we hung around with that one for a few minutes.  I was starting to think that just might be it……until my friend yelled to me that there were two turtles behind me!  I turned around and she was right, but then two more turtles surfaced and  I was surrounded!  The four turtles hung around for a few minutes and I got to sit right in the middle of them!  We saw a couple more turtles out farther too, but they disappeared when we got to them.  I had counted seven turtles before the tourists left, so I don’t know if the rest of the turtles were the same seven coming up…..or if it was twelve or so turtles all together.  I guess I’ll never know, but it doesn’t matter, it was all fun!  The day stayed nice and we paddled back over the swells, and it stayed nice right through my swim too!  It was a great day to be at the beach!