Monday in Maui

Another day in paradise- although believe it or not, it was partly sunny most of the day.
We woke up around 6 (I swear no one in Hawaii sleeps in past this time) and went to Fred's again for breakfast- it may seem crazy that we eat there all the time but it is probably the only place where you can spend less than $30 per couple on breakfast.

After breakfast we decided to brave the cold Pacific for a little snorkeling. I literally thought I would hyperventilate from the cold- once we got moving it was worth it. Lots of amazing fish and finally a sea turtle- their movements are the epitome of beach life- take your own pace. Also we were able to hear the whales again under water! It is one of the coolest things I have ever experienced and I wish I was wearing a wet suit so I could stay in all day and listen to the sounds they make- and they sound so close!

We grabbed a couple of box lunches from a deli and headed to the top of Haleakala. This is a 38 mile trip from where we are staying and the steepest incline in that amount of distance anywhere in the world. The temp. at the top was 20 degrees cooler and windy! The pictures we took reflect that because my hair is doing all kinds of crazy things. At the summit, we were over 10,000 feet above sea level and my lungs could tell after being right at sea level for so long.

We drove back to the hotel in time to have a Lava Flow at the bar and watch the sunset- we arrived just in time because one of the humpbacks was in a mood. We could see the tail fluke several times and lots of big splashes- it was so neat to watch until that one moved on and all we could catch were glimpses of water spouts floating across the water from a few others.

Another wonderful day in the islands and we wish you all could be here!