Maui - swimming with sea turtles

I think my favorite part of the trip was swimming with sea turtles. We saw several on our snorkel trip and I saw one or two almost every time I went snorkeling right from the resort beach.

Most of the turtles we found were large, about 3 feet from the front of the shell to the back. They would be slowly swimming along and you could swim right with them, they mostly just ignored us.

The let their back flippers just hang behind and swim with just their front flippers.

I found this one just resting on the bottom, covered with sand.

After a while he decide to swim away.

This was the smallest I saw. I was snorkeling along and spotted him hiding under some coral. He was maybe half the size of the rest we saw.

Maui - swimming with the fishies

We took a snorkel trip one morning on a catamaran that was parked just off our beach. Right before we left for the trip I picked up a new waterproof point and shoot camera so I have photos and videos of snorkeling, if I can figure out how to post the videos I will.

Our boat pulling up on the beach to pick us up.

Our first stop was Molokini Crater, lots of coral and fish but it was a little rough and the water was stirred up which cut down on visibility.

Our second stop was a spot on the south shore of Maui to try to find turtles to swim with.

There were lots of various fish at Molokini Crater.

The most colorful coral was close to the shore but you had to be careful not to get too close since it was a little rough.

I couldn't explain this if I tried.

After a couple of stops to snorkel and a quick lunch, they put up the sails and we moved maybe a couple of hundred yards before they fired up the engines and took us back to the beach.

Maui - Haleakala Crater, first time

Several people said we just had to take the bike ride down the Haleakala Crater after watching the sunrise so we signed up. The bus picked us up at our resort at 2am, made stops at several more resorts to pick up additional people then stopped at the bike company. After a quick breakfast, safely video on how to ride bikes, and handing out helmets and rain gear they drove us up the mountain. On the way up it was so dark you could look out the window and see millions of stars. Once we got near the top it started a light drizzle.

We reach the top of the mountain an hour before sunrise, it's freezing, wind howling and driving rain. You can't see across the parking lot, let along the sun rise.

At the official sunrise time the crowd starts singing or chatting in Hawaiin, not really sure, but it's still blowing and pouring rain and you can't see anything.

After the "sunrise" they drive us back down the top of the mountain to just outside the national park where we pick up our bikes, in the pouring rain.

Riding down in the pouring rain. The good part was out of 28.2 miles, only the .2 is not downhill.

Half way down it finally stopped raining so we took a quick stop for sightseeing.

The view of the south Maui shore from half way down the mountain.

As we neared the coast it warmed up enough we could stop and strip off all the rain gear and enjoy the last bit of the ride. I think this was the .2 miles that was not downhill.

After all the cold, rain and wind we finally reach the beach where's it's 85 and mostly sunny. It doesn't look sunny but that's the mountains in west Maui, they were always cloudy.

Maui - from above

Our first full day on Maui we took a helicopter tour of the whole island, what a fun way to see the island.

One of the many waterfalls on east Maui, the rainfall here about 360 inches a year so there were a lot of waterfalls.

The north coast of east Maui.

The road Hana, we drove this road a few days later.

If I remember correctly, this is the last pineapple farm on Hawaii.

The north coastline of west Maui.

The mountains of west Maui, we flew up a couple of these canyons.

Kaanapali coast.

West Maui mountains.

Molokini Crater.

Makena Resort where we stayed, that's Molokini Crater just off the coast from where we stayed.

After flying over west Maui we stopped upcountry and had champagne before we toured east Maui. The goofy yellow packs we're wearing are flotation devices, just in case.

Chris ignoring all the scenery and texting his friends instead.

Most of the photos shot through the doors came out with reflections and weird colors because Yuri sitting in the front seat was wearing a wild colored Hawaiin shirt, instead of dark colors.