Bye Bye Maui

Posted on December 14, 2016December 14, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Every Hawaiian Island has its own flavor. Different paces and feelings.

The Big Island will always hold a special place in my heart. Maybe because it was the first Island we visited?

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But Oahu was special too. It was a much more urban Island. After all, it’s the “Gathering Place.” But Oahu will always be linked to Pearl Harbor for me. Very emotional. Everyone should visit the Arizona Memorial. Watching the History Channel specials about the Pearl Harbor attacks took me right back to the feeling I experienced the day of my visit.

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Maui falls somewhere in between. It seemed to have more commercial/urban areas but there was a lot of unspoiled area too. Of the 3 islands Maui was the hardest to drive around. The “Road to Hana” was without question the most dangerous and challenging. Its the only island I did not drive around completely myself. We took the tour.

We didn’t get into the interior too much. That area is the wet section and is probably similar to the Hilo area on the Big Island. The road to the interior was washed out and closed. I hope to explore it more when I go back in February.

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Maui was filled with things to do. We kept busy on the sea , in the air and under sea. We filled our days with sunset dinner cruises and luaus, helicopter rides over Haleakala and a submarine journey 127 ft under the sea. Great adventures all. And all in a tropical paradise.

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So which Island do I like the best now? I’m still not sure. I’m beginning to think it depends on what I want out of the trip.

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Its interesting that Sandy said the one regret she had about this vacation was that we didn’t go on the whale watch. That had been high on our must do list but the whales were just arriving while we were there. We probably would have seen some but the general scuttlebutt when i asked was that it would be a blow or a tail here or there. Not the wild antics Hawaii is known for. That comes later in the season. So we, or maybe it was me, made the decision not to include a whale watch trip this time. Maybe with the wisdom of hindsight, that was a mistake.

We’ll just have to time it better next time we go. And there will be a next time!

aloha

Maui Luau

Posted on December 10, 2016December 10, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Everyone should experience a Luau at least once. Sandy and I are getting to be old hands. We went to a Luau on the Big Island. The imu with the kalua pig was a pit right next to the beach.

On Oahu we attend ed a huge luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Now on trip 3 we wanted to be sure Kathy had a chance to enjoy the experience.

This time our Luau was at the resort, Kannapali Beach Club better known as the “Pink Pyramid”. The luau was held on a large flat lawn behind the pool. There was a stage and the Imu pit was just off to the side of the stage. Tables were lined up filling the area. The buffet tables off to the left.

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Each group was welcomed and shell leis given out. We were then directed to the bar for our complimentary Mai Tai.

There is a well known Luau in Lahaina which is purported to be the mist authentic Luau in the islands but it doesn’t have the fire dancer. The Fire dancer may not be “traditional” or “authentic” but its always a good show so I wanted to be sure that this would be a part of the luau we attended and it was.

Once everyone was seated the imu pit was ceremoniously opened. It was quite windy but the luau progressed anyway as napkins and light weight objects were blown around the area. No one let that stop the fun.

Shortly after the Imu pit was opened the buffet was opened and everyone went through table by table. Once everyone had their food the show began.

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My favorites were the children or Keiki. Seeing them perform so young gives some insight as to how they can all be so confident and relaxed as adults.

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And finally the fire dancers. There were 2.

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The larger gentleman was very funny too. His amazing sense of humor really came through.

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Then the finale! A great show and a good time.

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Maui Ocean Center Revisited

Posted on December 8, 2016December 8, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Vacation was nearing its inevitable conclusion. Time was running out.

Kathy had leave the next day. It seemed suitable to attend a Luau for her last evening on Maui but we needed to keep busy until then.

First stop was Lahina to pick up some souvenirs.

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A pair of grass skirts and coconut bras for the little grand girls would be perfect.

From there we made our way to the Maui Ocean Center. I know we told you about our previous visit but Kathy hadn’t arrived then. It was time to show our cuz the cute aquarium.

It’s taken a quarter of a century for the aquarium to grow to its current size. Maui Ocean Center isn’t just an aquarium, it focuses on the flora and fauna of the oceans surrounding the Hawaiian Islands. Many of the species are found no other place on earth.

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All of the exhibits faithfully replicate the natural environment. Its one of the only aquariums that specialize in caring for live corals. In the living reef building all of the corals are alive, not imitations.

The official sate fish of Hawaii is the reef triggerfish.

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Its Hawaiian name is Humuhumu-nukunuku-a-pua’a. It means trigger fish with snout like pig. Now That’s a mouthful!

The Maui Ocean Center takes part in the Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle Educational Loan Program. They host baby sea turtles from hatchlings up to 2 years old when they are released into the ocean.

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That’s just touching on the Aquarium, from surge zone to ocean depths it’s all here for you to see and experience.

Under the Sea

Posted on December 5, 2016December 5, 2016 by Dusty Roads

I’d like to be under the sea
In an octopus’ garden in the shade
He’d let us in, knows where we’ve been
In his octopus’ garden in the shade

After my solo adventure you’d think I’d have had enough of being underwater but no. I love the ocean with all the fish. I miss scuba diving. I think it is much easier than snorkeling. I forget that I have to keep the snorkel tip above the water in order to get air. I’m just so used to being able to breathe easily through a regulator!

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Anyway, we scheduled a ride on a submarine and it was today! Sandy’s willing to go “Under the Sea” as long as she doesn’t get wet. Kathy said she had been on a submarine before so she stayed behind.

We’ll be going more than 100 ft below the surface. That means entering a blue world as colors will slowly filter out as we descend.

To get to the submarine we boarded a smaller boat to cruise out to the dive site.

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Once there, the surface support boat let the Atlantis know that the next group had arrived.

Roxie, the surface support boat

Pretty soon we could see a ghostly outline as the gleaming white sub rose toward the surface.

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Then there was bubbling and rushing water as it broke the surface.

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Hatches were opened and the previous group transferred from the sub to our boat. Then it was our turn to board the sub.

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Inside seats run down the center of the sub facing the portholes.

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There’s room for 2 people per window.

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There was a map on the wall between the port holes of our undersea cruise. I forget if there were 4 or 5 stops before we had to surface. At one point the depth gauge read 127 ft.

My favorite was the artificial reef called the Carthaginian. This ship was scuttled in 2005 and it hasn’t taken long for the fish in the area to take up residence.

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As long as we were on or near a reef, there was plenty of activity. We saw a huge puffer fish, some reef sharks and even some spotted eagle rays.

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Lots of reef fish schooled around but the minute we left a reef and headed over the sandy bottom we left the fish behind.

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Our 50 minutes under the sea passed quickly. Too soon we were the ones making an exit so the next tour could board.

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Going down! Dive, Dive Dive!

Lanai

Posted on December 2, 2016December 2, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Its time for my solo adventure. Kathy backed out and Sandy said Nope, No Way. But I really, really wanted to get in the water. Snorkeling in Hanauma Bay was a high point in my trip to Oahu. So I was determined to try snorkeling here on Maui. Shark or no shark I was ready.

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I left Sandy and Kathy at the resort and took the car to Lahaina Harbor to meet up with my snorkeling tour.

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It was the small tour. Our boat was a pontoon boat similar to a Zodiac. There were only 35 of us on the trip. Today’s trip was to Lanai across the channel from Maui.

I’d heard lots of stories about how difficult the crossing from Maui to Lanai could be but the channel was relatively calm as we started out.

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Once we reached the Lanai coast it was a different story. The first place we stopped was too rough for snorkeling but we interrupted a pod of spinner dolphins that were sleeping near the surface.

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We traveled along the coastline to another bay which the captain pronounced safe for snorkeling. I admit I was nervous, especially when he announced that we all had to “buddy” up. I was the sole solo person on board. One of the couples said I could Buddy with them so it was set. In we went.

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The water was warm and very clear. It wasn’t long before we were caught up in watching a school of reef fish seemingly pour over the coral. It was fascinating to watch.

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The school seemed to pick up more and more members as it flowed along.

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Next thing I knew I felt a strong current tugging at me. I looked for my buddies and they were being slowly pulled closer and closer to the rocky shoreline. Wimp that I am I bailed and swam back to the boat. A few minutes later my Buddies joined me. They admitted they had gotten so engrossed in watching the school of fish that they forgot to watch their surroundings.

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After that the dive master told me I could snorkel on my own as long as I didn’t stray too far. Once everyone was back on board we were served turkey wraps and chips while we motored to our next stop. The 2nd stop was really nice. I had a great time wandering around after the many reef fish. One of the other snorkelers said he saw a sea turtle. He was on the opposite side of the bay from me. Another one saw an eel. Nothing so exotic for me but I still had a great time.

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Back on the boat we ran into the pod of dolphins again. This time they were more awake and were splashing all around us. All too soon it was time to head back.

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The return crossing to Maui was not the smooth sailing we had in the morning. We were hanging on with both hands as we flew from one wave crest to the next. Sometimes we missed the timing and you could actually count the seconds as we dropped into the trough only to be showered as the wave broke over the bow. Wild!

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