Maui....

Ah, Maui.....our first love. Had the opportunity to be there last week to train our new staff....not much time to play, but still enjoyed some quality time at the beach....watching the whales and the turtles....and enjoying the sunsets.....

Aloha!

Warm Tropical Rains...

A sudden and very loud rainstorm from our lanai....

North Shore Big Waves on Christmas Day

We got the fabulous experience of being at North Shore on Christmas Day with 40' swells....all the beaches were roped off....this video was taken from the road. The sight and sounds of these waves hitting the rocks and shore was unforgettable.....the cove in the foreground here at Pupukea is normally a extremely calm snorkel spot....that day it was crazy....

North Shore Waves

The waves have been huge at North Shore....up to 40'...and we have been dying to get up there....finally drove up and spent the day checking out the surf, hiking at Kaena Point, looking for seaglass and watching the whales......blissful...

Monday sunset melting into the ocean...

And whale season begins....

Beautiful sunny day at top of Diamond Head beach....clear sky and calm sea....first we saw a pod of dolphins swimming and jumping in the water. Then the blows and tails of a group of five or six humpback whales on the horizon.....a calf breached for us....we watched them surface several times as they made their way toward Hawaii Kai...
It was a familiar sight....and we are so excited that another whale season has begun here on the islands...

Sunny Thanksgiving Day....

It was a relaxing, lovely Thanksgiving Day as we all went up to Makapuu Point....with our thanksgiving sammies and pumpkin pie picnic. Sat out on lawn chairs and watched the ocean and listened to the waves. Alas, no whales were spotted....but it is early in the season and soon there will be too many to count.
The sky and the clouds were magnificent today...it was a beautiful show.
And Todd found these crazy flowers on a cactus plant.....

Aloha and hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving, as well.

We missed you !

The Vibrant Colors of Hawaii...

Rainy beach day...

It was a rainy/sunny mix day at the beach...with some crazy encounters along the shore.... A school of humuhumunukunukuapa'a (hawaii's state fish) and familiar to all those who have snorkled here...

And.....a huge slimey eel, moving in and out of the coral. I just missed photographing his mouth wide open !!