Hawaii Day Six: Whale Watching

March 4, 2009

Growing up, I always wanted to be a Marine Biologist. I don’t know how or why this started but I’ve always had a fascination with aquatic animals – dolphins, whales and manatees in particular. However this profession was not meant to be mine as I am allergic to cold temperatures (literally – I break out into hives, can die – the whole nine yards if I am cold) and I couldn’t do a lot of what is required to work with these amazing animals up close because it isn’t always in warm tropical waters. I never have lost my deep love for the marine life though and was gutted when our local Sea World was bought out by Six Flags. Last year for our honeymoon, my husband and I swam with dolphins which was one of my dreams. It was amazing. Another one of my dreams was to see whales in the wild. I’ve seen dolphins from the shores of the Outer Banks but that’s as wild as it’s got for me when it comes to whales. When I heard that the whales should be present during our trip to Maui, I started begging my husband to go on a whale watching cruise with me. I was afraid due to the schedule for the workshop time wouldn’t allow it but things ended up working out and we were able to get on the early cruise on our last day in Maui. It was the PERFECT end to our vacation.

From almost the minute we got into the open waters, we had a friendly ‘teenage’ Humpback Whale pay us a visit and show off for almost the duration of the cruise. He was later joined by a fellow teenager and in the distance we saw about 3 or 4 more whales jumping and spouting around us. In a word, it was amazing!!!! I was lucky enough to capture a lot of their antics on camera and was the envy of most on board that quickly found out their point-and-shoots didn’t quite have it when it came to trying to capture the whales in action. If you are ever in Maui, I highly suggest taking a tour with the Pacific Whale Foundation. You will NOT be disappointed!