Tuesday

I'm starting to get it all mixed up in my head. So I have to get going on this.

Tuesday we went to Captain Cook's memorial. It is in a lovely bay and the memorial is where he was killed by the natives. The only problem is that you have to go there by boat. Last trip it was the others favorite site.

This time, the environmentalists had scored a  victory and it was off limits. Only very limited people had permits to go to the memorial, and there was no snorkeling. I took a few pictures.

This was as close as we got to the Captain Cook Memorial. It seems pretty silly to me to have a memorial that nobody, or very few people -- depending on your political connections -- can go see.

This was a sacred spot to the islanders. There was a temple, or the remains of a temple. You couldn't climb on it. But I got a few pictures.

The little monument in front of the temple is where a crew member from Cook's boat was killed. This created a problem, because the natives started thinking that the Europeans were perhaps not gods after all. They had been received in a similar manner as Cortez and Pisaro. Only the Hawaiians got off a lot better.

The walls around the corner.

The walk way to the point.

Not a sandy beach. It had these black round stones. I think it was still lava, but not the jagged kind.

The experienced vacationers were trying to figure out how to get out on the bay. I looked at it and thought it was very big and a whole lot scary.

When absolutely no way was found, we drove around the point to two-step. This was open water -- a lot like Cook's Bay. I started getting ready. Really, it was a determined, teeth-set, get a hold of your self moment. I put on the glaringly yellow vest, my mask and went to the steps. The rocks formed a two step ledge into the very deep water. This would be the first time that I would not be able to stand up if I got a bit freaked out.

Sandy was already in the water, Craig said he would follow me in. Sandy had a boogie board, and that is all I thought of. Get in the water, swim to the boogie board, and don't let go. Sandy was my buddy for most of the swim. But eventually she had had enough of me bumping the board into her, and she transferred the board over to me.

That meant I was in water way over my head with just a mask and a boogie board. Craig saw the transfer and he swam over and became my buddy. This was the best swim for me so far.

The most fish that we saw on the whole trip were the yellow tangs. The biggest fish in these from the shore swims were the parrot fish. I got a few images from the web to share.

One of the more elusive fish was the coronet fish. They blended in with the water. The right angle really helped to spot these fish.

I was so excited to see these parrot fish. They were the largest fish I saw. I think Brad was disappointed to not see a shark. But I was relieved.

Craig and I saw the yellow trumpet fish only once, and only for a few seconds. I was very excited about this one.

The water was this clear, and this is kind of what the reef looked like. It was down deep (for me), and only a few fish swam anywhere close enough for me to think that I might be able to touch them. They were just teasing me, but I was enchanted.

After a while, the vest was more of a nuisance than a help. I deflated it and then I took it off. It disappeared.  I think Brad took it away. It was just me, the boogie board, Craig and the ocean. It was magical.

We swam out looking for fish and then we noticed we were at the drop off. I was not brave enough to look over that, and then we headed back. Craig showed me how far out we were, and then I focused on getting back to the far away shore. He had to keep getting me back on track, I just started kicking. He tried hard to steer me, but we made it back.

I was awkward getting back up the two steps. Total strangers literally pulled me from the water and Craig pushed me out. I was exhilarated and exhausted -- but triumphant.