After being told a dozen times by Karissa to enjoy myself rather then hover over her being sick... I listened and tried to enjoy the trip and its views as much as possible.
On our way out, just minutes from the harbor, a cup of coffee just finished and dawn barely 30 minutes behind us, we coasted up next to a pod of dolphins bobbing around at the surface of the water. This is apparently how they sleep, turning off one half of their brain at a time to rest it, allowing them to just swim along slowly.
Riding against 4'-6' swells along the southern coast of Kauai we made out way to the channel and along this mix of cliff and broken red rock slopes, occasionally punctuated with pristine white beaches that grow and shrink throughout the year or a waterfall fed by rainwater trickling through the porous rock. The ship's captain brought us in close at a few points, but during the winter the surf on the north shore is rough, keeping any boats from coming in to land.I could talk forever about the gorgeous views, instead, I'll just show you some of the ones I loved:
The passage from Na Pali to Ni'ihau was about an hour and a half, running with the currents rushing through the straights. Long pitching motions turned the ship into abit of a ride, with most of us staying inside the cabin to stay dry, when not having to make motions to the rail.
Lehua island is just starting to sprout vegetation. Why it's happening now and not previously I honestly don't know, nor was told, however the next few years should be amazing, before Karissa and I are dead, it should look as lush as Ni'ihau only a few hundred yards across the water. This is the place we dove, and more to come on that later.As we left the snorkeling spot and headed back into the channel we caught a whale breaching. Apparently, with the motor of the engine nearby, they get curious and will breach inorder to see what's going on above the surface. We got to see her on three seperate breaches, but my timing with the camera was less then perfect.
Our last bit of nature was as we were coming into dock. A sea turtle was just hanging out below the surface of the water... our first (and only) honu in the Hawaiian islands.
2 comments:
DJ, Wow doesn't do this post justice. The colors of the water alone are magnificent. The scenery, and just the thought of seeing the dolphins and the whale was exciting. You are soooo lucky to experience this. Thanks for the pictures and thanks for worrying about my kid:) Susan
So jealous. Awesome job on the post DJ i love it when there are a lot of pictures.
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