Settling In

I have been here in Maui for just over two weeks and still find myself running around with tons of little things to get done but I am getting used to the pace. Training with the Pacific Whale Foundation has been amazing. Luckily I already had the boat knowledge in place so docking procedures, working with lines and knots and the such came easily. Learning all the new fish and becoming a humpback whale expert are what I am working on now.
As a naturalist on board the Ocean Odyssey I give interactive lectures over the microphone while underway, lead snorkel reef tours, work the boat as part of the crew, and act as interpreter for whale behavoir. We have a few on-island programs that I will lead as well from moonlit tidepools, to whale watching lookouts, research on odontocetes (toothed whales such as dolphins), and invasive species removal on top of Haleakala (our largest volcano).
I have finally found enough time to do a bit of surfing on the north side of maui, and Heidi and I have gone around to tall the different cruises offered by PWF including the reggae cocktail cruise and the sunset dinner cruise out of Lahaina. We are still waiting to move into our long term place in Kihei on the 1st. We are counting down the days!
The picture above is of four flying fish, called Malolo in Hawaiin, caught in the action of skimming the surface. It happens so fast it looks like they are actually flying but as you can see they are still propelling themselves by zigzaging their tail fin through the water.