Travelog (Day 16) – Whale Watching in Maui

Ever since I arrived at Ron’s home in Maui a few days ago, I have been seeing whales splashing around in the Pacific Ocean from my window. This morning we decided to get up close and personal with these huge creatures. Down at the harbor there are people that organize something called “whale watching”. Basically, you sail out into the ocean in high speed boats and look out for whales. When you spot one or more whales, you race across towards them, sneak up behind them and hope they don’t notice you. The boats are required to maintain a distance of at least a hundred feet from a whale. I am glad there is that restriction. I don’t want to be too close to a pissed off 50 foot whale.

These whales are humpback whales all the way from Alaska. They swim down to Hawaii every year to have their babies. These whales were almost hunted out of extinction, but their numbers are actually increasing now.

Here are some pictures that I took. Click the images for larger views.