Monday was a beach day. We drove to Makena and walked the Big Beach, then climbed over the hill and checked out the Little Beach. What a great way to get some rays. Big Beach is still one of the world’s best beaches. Little Beach was bigger than I remembered and the trail was easier. Probably because more people have been using it since the ‘blue book’ became popular.
Tuesday we decided to try Honolua Bay, one of our favorite snorkel spots and one of the places we’ve had the good fortune to swim with a pod of dolphins (coincidence–I think not). The first misgiving came when we reached the stream on the short hike in to the beach. In the past, we’ve just skipped across the rocks without even getting our feet wet. But it had rained in West Maui overnight and we waded across in knee-deep water. We snorkeled on the right of the bay and found a lot of deterioration in the coral. As the morning went on, the river kept bringing mud and debris into the bay and the visibility got worse. We left early and had lunch at D. T. Fleming (still didn’t find Bonnie’s watch).
In the afternoon, we stopped at Kahekili and enjoyed a second snorkel. Lots of coral and fish, a great beach with easy entry/exit, showers and washrooms and a grassy lawn for sunning. This has always been one of our favorite spots on Maui but, for some reason, we usually seem to end up here only in the afternoon. We’ll be coming back–in the morning.
Wednesday, we hiked out to ‘the Aquarium’. It’s another 25-30 minute trek across the lava but the trail isn’t as well marked as the one to ‘the Fishbowl’ so, as we scrubbed rust off memories of past visits, the trip out took almost 50 minutes. At least, we didn’t get blown away by the on-shore winds. The snorkeling was great. Lots of fish, including many large groupers. The highlight for me was a five minute encounter with a large moray eel. He just kept swimming from rock to rock and didn’t go to ground for long stretches. Usually, we see eels sticking their heads out of rock crevasses but this trip we seem to be specializing in swimmers. We’re not complaining.
Tuesday we decided to try Honolua Bay, one of our favorite snorkel spots and one of the places we’ve had the good fortune to swim with a pod of dolphins (coincidence–I think not). The first misgiving came when we reached the stream on the short hike in to the beach. In the past, we’ve just skipped across the rocks without even getting our feet wet. But it had rained in West Maui overnight and we waded across in knee-deep water. We snorkeled on the right of the bay and found a lot of deterioration in the coral. As the morning went on, the river kept bringing mud and debris into the bay and the visibility got worse. We left early and had lunch at D. T. Fleming (still didn’t find Bonnie’s watch).
In the afternoon, we stopped at Kahekili and enjoyed a second snorkel. Lots of coral and fish, a great beach with easy entry/exit, showers and washrooms and a grassy lawn for sunning. This has always been one of our favorite spots on Maui but, for some reason, we usually seem to end up here only in the afternoon. We’ll be coming back–in the morning.
Wednesday, we hiked out to ‘the Aquarium’. It’s another 25-30 minute trek across the lava but the trail isn’t as well marked as the one to ‘the Fishbowl’ so, as we scrubbed rust off memories of past visits, the trip out took almost 50 minutes. At least, we didn’t get blown away by the on-shore winds. The snorkeling was great. Lots of fish, including many large groupers. The highlight for me was a five minute encounter with a large moray eel. He just kept swimming from rock to rock and didn’t go to ground for long stretches. Usually, we see eels sticking their heads out of rock crevasses but this trip we seem to be specializing in swimmers. We’re not complaining.
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