We headed to one of the local beaches known for awesome snorkelling first thing in the morning. Waialea Bay is a marine life conservation district. Although there is a beach, there are many giant Kiawe trees, so almost the whole beach is shady – my perfect place! Only the first 4 or 5 steps into the water have a sand bottom, and then the rocks begin, which is perfect for spotting marine life. I had a snorkel set courtesy of our host family, and I had brought a floaty belt from home, since I swim like a rock.
Some lucky people have their properties right on the beach. I had to have a photo of the very interesting set of stairs that some enterprising people had built down to the sand. It felt very Swiss Family Robinson...
Once I was in the water with my snorkel on, I was delighted. There were fish visible within just a few feet from the edge of the rocks! Did I see any of the Hawaiian state fish, the Humuhumunukunukuapua’a? Yes I did! Along with some parrot fish, yellow tang, convict tangs, butterflyfish, black sea urchins (yes the really poisonous ones), Hawaiian sargeant fish, orange band surgeonfish or Achillies tangs (it’s hard to tell), and a whole lot more. The water clarity was amazing.
My first trip out – heading to the far end of the big lava rocks sticking out of the bay – I didn’t bring my camera. I didn’t trust my waterproof phone holder to actually be waterproof! Of course that was when I saw the most amazing things, dozens of different types of fish. I had turned around and was making my way back (it was harder swimming in) when I noticed all the fish suddenly moving VERY FAST off to my right. Huh – what were they afraid of? I looked to my left, and then I saw a giant sea turtle right there! He was within touching distance of me, just checking me out, seeing what I was looking at, swimming right along my side just below me. I had to work very hard to not accidentally touch him. Since they are a protected species, you aren't supposed to touch them or approach them, but apparently he could approach me! He was quite large, maybe about 2.5 feet wide and more than 3 feet long. He didn’t look worried about me at all! So cool!
I did go back out with my camera in the waterproof pouch, but it was a bit of a fail – I couldn’t take any photos under the water. However, I was able to take some videos. The sea turtle was long gone though.
After snorkelling we headed over to see Hapuna Bay. It was gorgeous, with the nicest sand and waves to play in! It’s very popular, in spite of the parking and admission cost ($10 per car plus $5 per person for anyone who isn’t a resident of Hawaii.) If you wanted a quiet beach, this isn't it. Unfortunately it doesn’t have any shade, so my redhead skin wasn’t too happy about that part. We walked the whole beach from end to end, and went up on the hiking trail at the north end of the bay for a bit, so we could take some nice photos.
