Capturing the Moment

  3 MIN READ 546 WORDS Rainbows and basking sea turtles, what more could kids ask for. We just returned from three and a half weeks in Maui with the family. Knowing that our time there was so short, we really packed in a lot of activities. We took the kids to Iao Valley, surfing, the aquarium, a snorkel trip to Molokini Crater, to crazy pools, the Lavender farm, and countless times to the beach. As the kids get older they can enjoy the beach in new, fun ways. We tried out many different beach around Maui. We didn't venture to the West side, as we wanted to give Lahaina a little more time to breathe and recover after the destruction from the fires. We went to a lot of favorite spots in Kihei and Wailea, as well as venturing to a new spot on the North Shore. Some beaches we couldn't help but go back to over and over because they were just so nice. It turns out that you would need a lot more time if you wanted to explore all the beaches on Maui. Maybe a lifetime. On the southside ...

  Art in nature - the wrapped up arms and spines of a crown-of-thorns sea star. I love spending time underwater. Especially in a place like Maui, Hawaii. I have logged hundreds of scuba dives here, all around the island. This dive took me back to one of the places where I have dove before, a place called 5 Graves or 5 Caves. Snorkel boats come here often, looking for sea turtles. But the snorkeling miss a world of small and unusual creatures living in the cracks and crevices and caves down below. That is why I geared up for scuba diving and went out for a hour-long underwater search for charismatic micro-fauna. The entrance for this dive is down a gravelly path, past a small graveyard on an tradition coastal access trail. It would be very easy to drive right by if you didn't know what you were looking for. The entrance into the water is a small, rocky cove, that can be quite tricky, especially if you have heavy scuba gear and a large camera. The waves surge into the bay, sending th...