Whales From Shore

Posted on February 11, 2017February 11, 2017 by Dusty Roads | 6 Comments

Everybody said I’d be able to see whales from shore in February and they weren’t kidding. I found my turn off but there weren’t any surfers there today but I was able to drive down much further.

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I found a little surfboard memorial. I guess its like the crosses on the side of the road. Somebody died there. A surfer didn’t return.

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As I turned away something caught my eye. I’d swear I saw a huge splash but there were a lot of white caps so after watching for a few minutes I went back to the car. As I was turning around I saw it again only this time I was looking right toward it. Right after the splash was a blow! I decided the first one was probably a whale too. By the time I’d driven up the dirt road I’d seen 2 more. Cars were lining up along the road and people were running around with binoculars.

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A bit too crowded for my taste I headed on up the road looking for pull offs where I could either find scenery or a view of the ocean for whales.

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Everywhere there were people lined up. Pull outs were full of cars. Some regular visitors I spoke with said they had never seen it like this.

From the shore you glimpse the whale but its more the splash that catches your eye. There’s not much to photograph at that distance.

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I figured I’d continue on a bit. I wanted to try to locate the park Sandy and I found in November. I know it was on the Road to Hana but I don’t recall it being very far along it. I have no desire to drive the bad parts of that road; single lanes, no room to pull off, massive cliffs. No thank you.

The Great Whale Photo Search

Posted on February 2, 2017February 2, 2017 by Dusty Roads

I’m starting to get excited for my trip back to Maui. My timeshare called me. They tried to hook me up for a Luau and a special evening of wine and food put on by the executive chef. I said no to both. I’ve done enough Luau’s now that the thrill is gone. They are enjoyable but my mouth doesn’t hang open in wonder any more, not even for the fire dancers. As for a special culinary evening, I don’t drink and I’m not an adventurous eater. Probably the most exotic thing I like is escargot. Calamari? Not a fan, salmon? Nope. Even with dessert I prefer plain and simple. Flans and crème brulee? Not interested. I’ll take a dish of chocolate ice cream, a slice of apple pie or a strawberry shortcake. A foodie vacation would not interest me.

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What does interest me are animals. I’ve chased Elk all over from South Dakota

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(where I struck out) to Tennessee (where I finally caught up with them)

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So this trip to Maui is all about the whales and the posts on Facebook are really getting me in the right frame of mind. Just look at this photo taken by Anna Smith on a sunrise Whale Watch out of Lahaina. What an awesome shot!

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Then there is this one from the same place captured by naturalist Jackson Kowalski. Hats off to this photographer too.

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I want to capture my own version of this behavior. I’m ready. I can’t wait!

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!

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Whales or no Whales????

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

When I spoke to the concierge from Diamond Resorts he said the whales hadn’t arrived and that the whale watches weren’t running.

I told him it made my Facebook feed that the first whale had been spotted. He said it was possible a few were there but still no trips. He suggested we watch for them from our balcony.

Well now I have more news:

Pacific Whale Foundation

13 hrs ·

The whales are most definitely here! This #amazing photo was taken by Jamey Baumgardt, one of our guests on board Ocean Voyager during Molokini & Turtle Arches Snorkel cruise. Mahalo Jamey! We don’t officially offer our first #whalewatching cruises until Nov.7. #maui

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And check out the date! Whale watches start November 7. Looks like we’ll get to go after all!

Mystic Aquarium

Posted on August 21, 2016August 21, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Its still, as the weathermen say, HHH. High Pressure, Hot, Humid, 3 H’s. I like the heat but I will admit the humidity is starting to wear me out. The forecast was for a break in the humidity if not the heat so Nancy and I decided to take the kids to the Mystic Aquarium. I was thinking it would be inside so we’d avoid the oppressive outdoors anyway. I’ve never been to Mystic Aquarium so what did I know. I based my opinion on Boston’s Aquarium.

Anyway, quite a bit of Mystic Aquarium is outside and to my way of thinking some of the most unique and best exhibits.

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It’s not a bad drive to Connecticut and we made it right on time according to the On Star directions and that was with several minor traffic back ups.

The Beluga exhibit is right there when you first go through the entrance.

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I could have spent the whole visit there even though it was hot and humid. The whales are sometimes called the Canaries of the Sea because of the multiple vocalizations they can make. They did not disappoint us. They blew and chirped and stuck their heads out of the water.

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At the observation windows they seemed as fascinated by the humans as we were of them.

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Following the path toward the Penguin exhibit we passed the seals & Sea lions.

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Then it was decision time, right took us through the “Marsh” on a boardwalk and left took us to the Penguins. The kids made a bee line for the boardwalk and eagerly inspected the duckweed and plants for turtles and frogs.

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