timistravels

poor turtle had only one front fin, but it didn’t seem to bother him

this is from above looking down on the cover; this is the view on the way BACK from the blow hole

On our ongoing trips to Maui we have discovered that a drive around the NW end of the island is a must.  We try to snorkel as much as we can while we are here and today’s snorkel was one of the best ever and it occurred in Half Moon Bay.  Turtles, moray eels, and all sorts of fish highlighted the day.  To get to this bay you simply drive NW out of Lahaina and go along the shore line, past the last of the resorts and housing areas.  About 4 miles later you will wind down into the base of a valley and see a parking space for about 10 cars, and typically there is a local selling fruit and drinks.  (We bought a yummy papaya from them)  The trail in is about a 5 minute walk through a beautiful rain forest canopy with chickens and roosters talking to you the entire way!

Getting into the water is more of the challenge here, there is no ‘easy entry’ as there is no sandy beach.  Once you make it in, head towards the right and after about 1/4 mile you will start to see the coral and the beautiful sea life!  Often there are boats with tours on them, and lots of folks snorkeling off these boats.  You can NOT go onto the rocks on the shores as it is a protected area.  They also ask you not to wear sunscreen because it damages the coral.  This is the turtle we saw while snorkeling here, sadly he was missing his front left fin?  Who knows why, but it didn’t seem to bother him!

blow hole

starting to blow

Once you are done snorkeling hop back in your car and continue to head away from Lahaina for about 5 more miles.  When you see mile marker 38 you will see a pull out  with about 5 car parking spaces, you DON”T want to stop here, you want to go another 1/2 mile to a bigger parking lot.  Park and head down the trail to see the blow hole.   The trail is rocky and can be slippery (wet or dry) so don’t do it in flip flops, instead wear hiking sandals or tennis shoes.

my favorite spot on the island!

An added treat to being down at the bottom to view the blow hole is the opportunity to see my favorite site on the island, the natural Heart Shaped Rock that is cut out of the rock.  To find this rock, as you are standing looking at the blow hole, take a share look over your right shoulder and head that way.  You can’t see it from there Blow Hole, but if you head that way you should find it.

It was a great way to spend the day, and because it was Sunday we also stopped at the Art Under the Tree in Lahaina, which highlights local artists each Sunday.  To end the day we stopped at the Maui Brewing Company for some munchies.  Food was okay but the beer is yummy!

PS during the drive we saw a bunch of tents and such on a point, so we stopped to investigate.  It was a women’s surfing championship sponsored by Target?  Who knew!