Sailing with Whales, Swimming with Turtles, and Cliff Diving

Jesse and I are jet-lagged and sunburned (just a little) but very happy after our lovely week-long trip to Maui.  It was our first time on the island and we had a lot to do and explore.  We arrived in Maui late Saturday afternoon, and after checking into our suite at the Ka'anapali Beach Club, we enjoyed dinner on the beach at Duke's Beach House.  

We started our first morning off right with a delicious breakfast (I had a banana macadamia nut pancakes) at the Gazebo, which is a cute spot on the beach.  After breakfast, we headed to the port town of Lahaina, where we walked around cute shops and restaurants.  We also snapped pictures of the biggest Banyan tree I have ever seen!

   

Next, we headed over to Iao Valley State Park, where we took a short hike up to see the Iao Valley Needle.  We also tested out our water-hiking shoes by standing in a stream (very cold!)

We headed back to Lahaina for our sunset whale watch sail aboard the Scotch Mist II.  We arrived in Maui at the very end of whale season.  We saw some large splashes and blowhole sprays in the distance and even saw whales jumping out of the water very far off into the horizon.  There were a couple whale sightings near our boat where they just peaked up a little bit and allowed us to take a couple pictures.

The next morning we headed to Black Rock to snorkel.  It was ah-amazing.  Black Rock itself is on a beautiful stretch of Ka'anapali Beach, and Black Rock creates a protects a reef that is full of fish!  We bought an underwater camera that Jesse used to take great pictures of the gorgeous fish, including  Humuhumunukunukuapuaa, Hawaii's state fish.

As you can see, we saw a number of beautiful fish [I am getting a Nemo vibe from that last picture -- doesn't it look like the school of fish are making a picture of another fish?!?].  We got out of the water to warm up (the water was a little cold) and rest, but decided to go back in, and I am so glad that we did.  Watch this video and you'll see why!

If you listen closely to the audio, you will hear some unusual noises.  It might sound like Jesse has bronchitis, but we are pretty sure that you are hearing whales!  

Jesse spotted this turtle underneath some coral and then we followed it until it met up with a friend!  We are so blessed to have been able to swim with turtles!

Another popular activity at Black Rock is to cliff dive.  At first, both of us said ummm no.  But after Jesse saw some teenage girls do it, I think he decided that he had to.  Not only did Jesse jump, but he did it with style:

We ended the night with a lovely seafood dinner (and macadamia nut mousse) at Black Rock Steak & Seafood and watched a lovely sunset.