wildwahinepaddler

Well, sort of.  The conditions today were great with some bumps coming in from the North.  It worked well on the way down to the boat ramp since I got to ride them!  I ran into a turtle just outside of Kam I and stopped to visit.  It floated around for a few minutes and it looked around, but then dove down and disappeared.  The ride was nice down to the boat ramp!  Coming back was not as easy, since on the way back, I was paddling over the bumps, but it was fun anyway.  When I got back, a paddling friend asked me if I could take some photos of her because she was making a music video for YouTube.  I took some stills and a couple of short videos and they came out pretty good!  I can’t wait to see the music video and Wildwahinepaddler gets the photo credits!

Yes, it was a beautiful day for paddling and the water clarity is starting to clear up after the south swell.  There was a breeze blowing from the south when I first went out, but it backed off and the ocean got glassy!  The sky was a mixture of puffy clouds and overall light cloud cover with the sun shining through, which made it a very comfortable temperature.  I paddled down to the boat ramp and ran into a friendly turtle.  It came very close and popped it’s head up.  Then it dove under my board and surfaced on the other side, popping it’s head up again to look at me again!  I was happy to see that it was a very healthy, young turtle.  Then a paddling friend caught up with me at the boat ramp, and we paddled together for a while.  We called for the dolphins, but they weren’t answering today!  The sad part was, when I came back from paddling, my family was there to say good bye.  I visited with them and played with my grandson, then he gave us lots of hugs!  It was so hard to see him go and know it will be 5 months until I see him again.  He will be so much bigger and I will have missed it!  This is the hard part of living on Maui and away from family.

That’s what happened this morning!  I paddled down to the boat ramp, stopping to visit with a turtle outside of Kam III, when another paddler came towards me and said, “Did you see the dolphins”?  I yelled, “no, where are they”? Then she told me they passed right by me….,  so somehow I missed them!  I can’t believe it!  I was enjoying looking at the coral and looking for more turtles and I let the dolphins slip right past me.  I really hate when that happens!  Oh well.   I paddled out to the quiet zone and stayed out there while I paddled back, in hopes I would see those elusive dolphins, but to no avail.  The clouds and rain over near the island of Kahoolawe seemed to follow me back to Kam I, until Kahoolawe and Molokini Crater,  both disappeared from view.  The wind had picked up and it looked as if it was going to rain!  I’m glad I got my swim in.  Hopefully I will see the dolphins next time I go out paddling, that’s if I am paying attention!

The island of Kahoolawe and Molokini Crater disappear into the clouds!

Yup, that’s what happened while I was off my board, snorkeling!  After the storm of yesterday, the conditions this morning were perfect.  I decided to take along my mask and snorkel, just in case it was clear down at the boat ramp.  The paddle down was very enjoyable and the ocean was glassy.  When I got down to the boat ramp, the water was not as clear as yesterday, but I finally found an area that was quite clear.  I don’t know how long I snorkeled, but I was really enjoying the varied colors of the coral.  There were yellow hues, light pink, light orange, blue and even a violet!  I was enjoying two schools of fish I came across, when out of the blue, a turtle was in my face and almost ran into me!  It really startled me and I think the turtle was as shocked as I was.  It quickly dove down and avoided a collision!  What an experience.  I really like this paddle – snorkeling, and it makes the paddle back so much cooler after being in the water!

You wouldn’t know it by this photo, but this absolutely gorgeous morning turned into a stormy sky that brought some rain to Kihei!  My paddle down to the boat ramp was wonderful.  Only some interesting clouds were in the sky, with some of them draping the mountain top.  It was a bit windy when I got to the beach, so I decided against taking my mask and snorkel.  I saw a turtle just outside of Kam I and stopped paddling so I could look at it.  The turtle floated on the surface for a few minutes, popped it’s head up two or three times, and then dove down and disappeared.  When I arrived at the boat ramp, the water was crystal clear, much clearer than yesterday!  I really wished I had taken my mask and snorkel!  I paddled the quiet zone back to Kam I and really enjoyed the solitude, until a jet ski roared out of nowhere and ended that.  I really don’t like jet skis because I think they ruin the ambiance out on the ocean.  When I got back from paddling, the skies started to turn gray and it was clearly raining out further in the ocean.  Later, Kihei ended up getting some rain too!  Hey, Kihei can always use the rain, it’s all good!

No sign of rain on this gorgeous morning!

This morning the skies were bright and the sun was shining.  The storm stayed on the other side of the island, so Kihei didn’t get any rain or lightning this time.  The ocean was not as calm as yesterday, but paddling was great!  I took my mask and snorkel with me and I snorkeled for a while down by the boat ramp.  The water was not as clear as the other two times I went, but it was still fun looking at the coral and fish!  I paddled back on some fun bumps generated by the outside wind line and after putting my board up on my car, I swam again!  It was semi clear down by the rocks and I saw (I hope I spell this right….) Humuhumunukunukuapua’a fish; rainbow fish, trumpet fish, and an assortment of yellow tropical fish.  Yes, another nice day on Maui!

We had very stormy, dark looking skies this morning.  It looked like it was going to rain like crazy, but then it didn’t.  The paddling conditions were perfect, but the ocean took on the dark color of the skies.  It was the first time I can remember that the “dusk to dawn” light under the lifeguard tower was still on when I got back from paddling!  It was a nice paddle, but the water didn’t make you want to fall in since it was a little spooky out there.  That’s when it’s nice to have a friend to paddle with!  Mahalo my friend, tomorrow is another day!

Yes, I did it again!  I got a little bit of a late start, but  the morning was beautiful and conditions perfect for paddling.  I paddled north to Cove park and then turned around and paddled to the boat ramp.  On my way down, I ran into two paddling friends paddling back to Kam I.  They had started out earlier in the morning and paddled to Keawakapu Beach. That is further than I paddle, but one day I plan to get an earlier start and paddle there too.  Today I took my mask and snorkel with me and snorkeled again out from Kam III and the boat ramp!  The water was nice and clear, and I saw a big turtle swimming towards me.  I hoped it was going to surface, but instead, it dove down and hid under a coral shelf.  That is probably a good place to hide if you are a turtle!  Then I saw the same large school of fish I saw yesterday, so they must be hanging out there.  I really enjoyed just swimming around looking at the beautiful coral, and watching fish chase each other around!  I also saw some Hawaiian Damsel fish today and they are some of my favorites.  The “paddle-snorkel” is becoming a habit….a good habit!

Maui welcomes me on a most perfect day!

What a great Memorial day at the beach!  Today I paddled with a friend and we took our snorkel gear along with us.  We paddled down to the boat ramp and put our snorkel gear on and went snorkeling.  It was great, the coral formations were amazing out there and undisturbed.  We saw a turtle sleeping on the bottom and another turtle swimming.  The swimming turtle had tumors all over it…so sad.  I saw a large bright blue parrot fish, numerous other tropical fish, and a school of about 30 good sized fish with black stripes on their bodies!  The school of fish swam right by me and it was so exciting. I tried to swim after them, but they were way too fast.  I guess when the turtles don’t come to us,  we can always snorkel out to them!  It was a great addition to my paddling workout and I really enjoyed it!  Maybe I’ll do it again tomorrow.

This morning I ran into one of my paddling friends so we paddled and chatted for awhile.  It was nice to see her.  There was a south wind blowing and we had to paddle against it down to the boat ramp.  By the time we were passing Kam III, the wind backed off and it got really nice!  Down at the boat ramp we saw a turtle, and I paddled awhile longer and saw a second turtle.  The paddle back was very enjoyable and the day so beautiful!  During my swim down to the rocks and reefs, I was glad to see the water clarity there had improved.  I saw about 14 or 15 Trumpet fish congregating; two Humuhumu’apua’a; two rainbow fish and an assortment of other bright yellow tropical fish.  I was so happy to be able to see the coral and fish again!  It couldn’t have been a nicer day at the beach!