dia de las tortugas
There are some events I meant to write about at the time but was too mellow to actually do the work. So, even though we are home and sweltering in the heat and humidity (humidity here! what horror!) I give you some more shots of Hawaii.
We did go to the turtle beach. It was the only beach that actually smelled like a beach. It was swamped with people and with good reason.
We lounged around on the beach, just checking the place out when a turtle emerged from the surf. She crawled up onto the beach, using each push of surf to maneuver her further up the beach until she arrived at the perfect basking spot. She had a big hole on her back because she was hit by a jetski a few years (years!) ago. The turtle volunteers used an epoxy to patch her shell. There was a very knowledgeable woman answering questions from the crowd while she pulled a rope around the turtle, marking the boundary for as close as one is allowed to get to the basking turtle. Many people thought the basking turtle was dead and hurried their children away. She rested there with her eyes closed until she was completely dry.
These Hawaiian turtles are called "green sea turtles" not because of their shell but because that is the color of their...insides. When cooked. Which apparently doesn't happen anymore because they are an endangered species. And I certainly do not know this from experience, I read it. In a book. About turtles. Anyway, this is the best shot of the turtles and the crowd. This woman was snorkeling around looking for turtles when a turtle swam up behind her. She nearly jumped out of the water. Her delight was infectious.
As more turtles showed up, Rwr could not resist getting in the water to swim with them and to get a closer look. I was pretty content watching from the shore, the chaos of all the people made me too nervous to enjoy the water. But Rwr the brave and adventurous got right in and up close for a turtle encounter. He took a bunch of pictures while swimming with the turtle. This is the best one, despite the strap on the right side.
ETA: It was chaos in the water with the turtle. There were at least 15 people all around the turtles, standing in waist deep water or (trying to) snorkeling around them. Rwr was v. brave to be in the middle of that mass of humanity and sea life.
We have named this vacation The Turtle Vacation. From the first day we went snorkeling in Waimea Bay we saw turtles in the wild. They are truly magnificent sea creatures and can swim really fast. I tried to follow one but she left me in the surf after a while. Really cool to see. Everytime I saw one I was thrilled.
We did go to the turtle beach. It was the only beach that actually smelled like a beach. It was swamped with people and with good reason.
We lounged around on the beach, just checking the place out when a turtle emerged from the surf. She crawled up onto the beach, using each push of surf to maneuver her further up the beach until she arrived at the perfect basking spot. She had a big hole on her back because she was hit by a jetski a few years (years!) ago. The turtle volunteers used an epoxy to patch her shell. There was a very knowledgeable woman answering questions from the crowd while she pulled a rope around the turtle, marking the boundary for as close as one is allowed to get to the basking turtle. Many people thought the basking turtle was dead and hurried their children away. She rested there with her eyes closed until she was completely dry.
These Hawaiian turtles are called "green sea turtles" not because of their shell but because that is the color of their...insides. When cooked. Which apparently doesn't happen anymore because they are an endangered species. And I certainly do not know this from experience, I read it. In a book. About turtles. Anyway, this is the best shot of the turtles and the crowd. This woman was snorkeling around looking for turtles when a turtle swam up behind her. She nearly jumped out of the water. Her delight was infectious.
As more turtles showed up, Rwr could not resist getting in the water to swim with them and to get a closer look. I was pretty content watching from the shore, the chaos of all the people made me too nervous to enjoy the water. But Rwr the brave and adventurous got right in and up close for a turtle encounter. He took a bunch of pictures while swimming with the turtle. This is the best one, despite the strap on the right side.
ETA: It was chaos in the water with the turtle. There were at least 15 people all around the turtles, standing in waist deep water or (trying to) snorkeling around them. Rwr was v. brave to be in the middle of that mass of humanity and sea life.
We have named this vacation The Turtle Vacation. From the first day we went snorkeling in Waimea Bay we saw turtles in the wild. They are truly magnificent sea creatures and can swim really fast. I tried to follow one but she left me in the surf after a while. Really cool to see. Everytime I saw one I was thrilled.