wildwahinepaddler

I finally got back out there today!  It’s been so windy for days…. But I’m not complaining because the wind is taking care of the awful vog that has been plaguing us for days.  I can finally see the top of Haleakala!  It was a beautiful day but I could see the white caps hanging out there just waiting to come in.  I paddled south to the end of Kam 2 and ran into a paddling friend.  We both agreed that we were not trusting of the wind!  The wind has been so crazy!  Suddenly the wind completely backed off and it got so perfect.  We still didn’t trust the wind!  I paddled north to Charley Young Beach and turned around.  I was worried that if the wind blew in I would have a hard time putting my board up on my racks.  Sure enough the wind kicked up while I was doing just that!  By the time I went swimming….. the wind backed off again.  It felt so great to be swimming!  The wind kept threatening but hadn’t fully come in until after I left the beach.   I’m glad because I needed to get out on the ocean!  I hope the wind cooperates tomorrow morning…..we will see…

Wow!  What a perfect day out on the wster!  The wind was cooperating so I headed to the boat ramp.  I ran into a paddling friend at Kam 3 and we stopped to chat…… Suddenly a turtle surfaced right in front of me!  It was Bumpy!  The turtle headed in my direction and I fumbled around to get my camera ready.  My friend told me not to run into him and when he didn’t move….. I dropped my camera to move out of his way.  Just as I used my paddle to push away….. Bumpy tipped sideways and dove under splashing me!  I was all wet!  My friend said Bumpy was making a statement….. Like what the hell are you doing?  I got the message loud and clear!  I waited for him to surface again but he didn’t.   I could see him way down by the ocean bottom.  I guess he was mad at me…..that turtle!  I headed down to the boat ramp but the snorkel boat was already there.  Five turtles surfaced anyway!  I got some photos.  It was getting late so I headed back.  Just as I was passing Kam 2….. The wind kicked up and the conditions got choppy.   My swim was very enjoyable too because the water visibility is good right now and the bonus?   I got to swim back with another turtle!  That made a total of seven lovely turtles for the day!

Finally some relief from the vog!  Overnight winds blew a lot of it out and the wind continued today blowing more vog out.  We could finally see the mountains and a vague view of Lanai today.  I heard that the wind was supposed to change again this week and bring in more vog…… I sure hope it’s just a rumor!  It was windy but I decided to go out paddling anyway.  At least I knew which way the wind was blowing so I could adjust my workout.   I paddled north into the wind down to Cove Park and then turned around.  I didn’t see any turtles today but the ocean was choppy.  On the way back I had the wind at my back and it gave me an extra push!  I passed Kam 1 and headed into Kam 2 and then turned around.  Now I was paddling against the wind again!  It was a good workout.  I made it back to Kam 1 and managed to get my board up onto my racks despite the wind.  The water visibility is good!  I really enjoyed my swim but the water felt cold…… I honestly was cold!  I tried to swim faster to increase my body heat and thought about how I was chuckling at another swimmer going out with part of a wetsuit on.  I guess the joke was on me!  I promised to not curse the wind as long as it blows the nasty vog away….  So far it’s still windy. We will see what tomorrow brings….

Well it was a decent paddling day!  The wind is still light… Blowing from the south-west bringing in more vog.  I headed down to the boat ramp.  As I was passing Kam 2…. I noticed they had red flags posted.  My paddling friend confirmed there were some sporadic waves crashing onshore there.  I saw no sign of that at Kam 1.  We paddled down past Kam 3 but my friend turned back.  I continued down to the boat ramp but noticed some good sized swells rolling in under me and then crashing onto the rocky shoreline.   That made me uneasy.  I turned around and paddled north.  Passing Kam 2….. The same swells were rolling under me.  The paddling was really nice out there though!  By the time I paddled back to Kam 1….. Some swells were apparent there too.  I made my way in…… waiting for a lull but just as I was close to shore, a small wave pushed me towards shore so I jumped off my board.  My board flipped over and  I was able to grab it but I got soaked!  It was good to see that my supposedly waterproof case for my phone did its job and it was dry.  By the time I swam a few more waves picked up so I just went out and back stroked.  It was a really beautiful day!

Finally a good paddling day!  There was a little bit of wave action but I got out okay.  The huge swell on the north side has had little impact on this side…. But we still get some effects.  Yesterday I just swam and the visibility  was not that great.  Today was a beautiful day!  I paddled down to Kam 3 and ran into a paddling friend.  She asked me if I saw the big wave crashing onshore at Kam 2…… but I had not noticed it.  No red flags were posted today but I’m not sure why not.  It was definitely sporadic….. But there was the occasional cruncher rolling in.  I didn’t see any turtles out paddling but when I went swimming…… A turtle zipped by me heading north!  I quickly turned around to swim with it but the turtle out swam me!  How funny!  It was still good to see a turtle.  The winds are light right now so in moved the vog….. We can’t do anything about Mother Nature over on the Big Island with active volcanic activity!  Hopefully the regular trade winds will return soon and blow it all away……

Yesterday….. paddling early would have been possible…… But I ended up getting down to the beach later so I missed out.  It was a beautiful Maui day, though, so I went out swimming with my mask and fins.  The water was reasonably clear and I had a great swim!  I swam down to Charley Young Beach and back ….one way against the wind….and the way back swimming with the wind.  Today it was just wind blown from the start and also red flags……. I hope the conditions improve soon!

What a windy, stormy day!  I went down to the beach and the ocean was crazy white caps and blowing sand!  Definitely not a beach day.  The dark clouds moved in and then it rained!  Right about sunset….. The rain stopped….. and now hardly any wind is blowing.  Maybe there is hope for tomorrow…….   Rain is good though…..we do need it….