Capturing the Moment

  At first we thought we were seeing a tall dorsal fin sticking out above the surface of the ocean. There is any number of cetacean that it could belong to, from beaked whales to false killer whales to offshore dolphin species. The Big Island of Hawaii is one of premier destinations for cetacean experts to encounter and study these rarely seen creatures. However, as we got closer we realized it was something even rarer. It was a huge dark bird floating on the water. Our captain Colin shouted, 'Black Footed Albatross.'    All but 2.5% of the black footed albatross (Phoebastria nigripes) population resides in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands. Every once in a while we spot them flying offshore. They are immediately recognizable with their 7.2ft wingspan. I had spotted a couple over the last two weeks but I was very surprised to see one resting on the water. I was even more surprised at what happened next.    I slipped on my snorkel gear and grabbed my little ...

Ancient fish pond Looking down at Halawa Valley    Molokai is known as the Friendly Isle, and for its large population of native Hawaiians. It is a place of no chain restaurants, high rises, or stop lights. Ancient fish ponds dot the coastline, tucked in behind the largest barrier reef in Hawaii. If one follows the state highway until it dead ends at the Northeast corner of the island you will find a hidden world of ancient Hawaii hiding away from the hustle of the rest of the state. This hidden gem is called Halawa Valley. Uncle Polipo Greg blowing the Pu    Halawa Valley is blessed with copious rain, a protected bay, an idyllic stream, and up to nine waterfalls cascading down the back of the valley. The valley was once a bustling farming community, but this all changed when a tsunami washed 1.7 miles up the valley on April 1st, 1946. It is moving hearing the story of that fateful day from someone who was there, watching and listening to the destru...

   The mantas that frequent the Kona coastline have been not so frequent of late. In fact we've been getting skunked way more than normal this past year. So it was very refreshing to have multiple mantas back at the campfire for the famous Kona manta night snorkel last night.    At one point we had six mantas in our sight. The plankton was pretty dense in the cove and the mantas were definitely enjoying the plethora of food. We watched them glide over the scuba divers at the bottom, before swimming straight up under the snorkelers at the surface. These pictures of of the manta as it barrel rolled inches under our board. Our underwater lights lit up the white underbelly of the 8+ft coastal manta. The black spots and splotches on the belly are how we identify individual mantas. Over a hundred have been identified at this spot alone on the Big Island.   It is always a good time when you have to remind your snorkelers to lift up their feet so they don't acci...