Land ho! After six sea days — note to self, that’s too many in a row, unlikely to do another repositioning cruise though this one has been a worthwhile experiment — we anchored off the cost of Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii. Unlike most cruises I’ve been on, this one started with immigration, specifically US immigration. The system seemed well-oiled, though with an early excursion we got to go through early, apparently there were complaints from those who had to wait their turn for a tender to shore.
There was a bit of hurry up and wait, but after that got all sorted out we tendered and met our zodiac captain Rick and sidekick Deonte (or very close to that). Today was Deonte’s 56th birthday, though looking at home one would assume he’s considerably younger, impressive for someone who spends to much time in the sun. Sixteen of us loaded onto a zodiac raft, put our belongings in a spot that would remain dry, took our shoes and hats off, tucked our toes under a rope, held onto a rope on the edge of the raft with one hand, and hung onto a handle with the other hand. Apparently we were only going about 20 knots, but it felt much faster as the rubber raft bounced on the water. Rick gave us a couple of breaks to stretch our hands as we went to Captain Cook Monument near Kailua-Kona for some snorkeling. There’s a reason that no one with back problems should participate on this tour, and several hours later my back is a bit sore from the experience (but not sore enough to require even Tylenol).
It was anything but a dark and stormy night — indeed it was a bright, clear day. Through my polarized sunglasses the water was a stunning lapis blue, with the shallow parts a pale green.
The snorkeling was fun. Lots of coral, far more than I saw in Cabo San Lucas. And a variety of different (pale) colors — white/gray, green, yellow, orange — and shapes. That said, the coral did not appear to be at its healthiest. Plenty of familiar fish….tangs, parrotfish, some black fish with a cobalt blue “line” at the edge of its body and fins, what seemed to be a small pufferfish. Lots of vibrant bright yellow fish, pacific teardrop butterfly fish (seemingly two-dimensional yellow, white and black fish with little snouts,), and plenty more.
For perhaps the first time ever, I saw an octopus while snorkeling. Reddish brown, swimming then hiding into a rock crevice. Fascinating!
Lots of sea urchins with black needles. Something that looked like dark brown balls of yarn. And something that looked like sea urchins on steroids with large, red and black, straw-sized “needles” that I don’t know that I’ve seen before.
The pièce de resistance was the spinner dolphins that came near the boat just after we finished snorkeling. There were about a dozen of them, and they entertained us for a few minutes. There was a mother and baby, and others that were (one assumes) mature females. Apparently there is not a specific mating season for dolphins.
After returning to the port via the Zodiac, June and I set off for a walk. Some might say we set off to go geocaching, and, well, that would be a reasonable interpretation. We found quite a few adventure lab stops for a couple of labs, a webcam and a traditional cache. We also had the perfect lunch — half a pound of peel and eat shrimp — which truly hit the spot after a morning on the water.
We admired some impressive banyan trees on Alii Drive. If that road name sounds familiar, it might be because it’s the start and end point for the Ironman Triathlon. The trees are formidable, with lots of roots handing down from the trunk and branches to the soil. We also saw two very bright yellow finches, likely Saffron Finches according to my nephew the birder (I was able to take a decent picture which I shared with him).
By the time we returned to the ship both June and I were tired from a busy day in the sun. I chose to go to the pool — nice to get wet in chlorine instead of salt, and playin the water. I chatted with a couple of people I’ve met on the ship and a new person.
After returning to the room and showering, I unsuccessfully searched for something I know I brought with me. One would think a geocacher could find a small ziplock bag containing a few objects in a small room but no, the bag remains elusive despite checking everywhere I can think of. Oh well, a small blemish on a wonderful day.
It sounds like you had a great day! I recently learned that if you take a photo of a bird with your apple phone, it will identify it, just like with plants and dogs.
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