My patience had run out. The humpback whales usually appear on our side of the island at the end of December, but we hadn’t seen them yet. So, this morning I hauled DH out of bed, threw some stuff in the car, and hied us over to the Kohala coast, where we knew they would surely be seen. Vog has been heavy this week due to lack of tradewinds to blow it away, but today was exceptionally clear.
We drove to Lapakahi State Park and sat on a bench at the the seaside. It didn’t take long for a whale to appear:
…followed by several more.
We then drove up to Mahukona State Park. I have a rule. I don’t go to the beach to swim on weekends, because EVERYBODY ELSE DOES! Except today. Tho it’s not really a beach, the water at Mahukona is warm, clear and easy in and out. And today, there were only a few snorkelers in the bay. So in I went. Then we sat and watched a few more whales…..and looked at Maui in the distance:
We headed back down the coast, headed toward Huggo’s on the Rocks to eat lunch. While driving, we noted a pod of whales breaching, and we pulled off the road to watch. Remember the movie line “if you build it, he will come?” Similarly, one car stopped on the side of a coastal road during whale season is a signal to all other “watchers” to also stop. Soon, there was a crowd of people watching the scene. One woman said “Can you imagine living here?!” “Why yes,” we smiled, “Yes, we can imagine it very well!”
After a lovely lunch, enjoyed while our toes curled into the restaurant’s beach sand “floor”, we headed home….but not before one more stop at “69” beach just in time to watch the sunset:
Our dear friend on another island was heard whispering to her husband one day while we all lay on the beach…in January: “We *****’n live here!”
Yeah. Ditto…..
***UPDATE**** So, this morning I take my eggs, toast and coffee to the lanai, and first thing I see is a juvenile whale breaching just off shore directly in front of me. My year is complete!
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