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| A fluke of a lifetime, eh? |
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| Granville friends, please note our caps! |
STUPENDOUS!
The morning we spent with the Pacific Whale Foundation out of Ma’alaea Harbor (between east and west Maui) was the absolute peak experience of our time on Maui.
Young marine biologists had eager and complete answers to everyone's questions...AND they were cute.
Once we got out into the middle of the bay and the captain cut the engine, we lost count of how many whales we saw. Though by law no one is allowed to approach the whales closer than 100 yards, if the vessels turn off their engines and drift quietly, the whales frequently come closer than 100 yards on their own. This is called getting mugged by a whale, and trust me, it's a thrilling experience.
Humpback whales migrate here every winter from Alaska, some to give birth, and others to mate. Declared endangered in the 1970s, by which time their numbers were down to about 800, the species has recovered to above 20,000 today. For more information on these fascinating creatures see:
http://www.pacificwhale.org/sites/pacificwhale.org/files/Humpback-Whale-Guide.pdf
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| Slapping their tails |
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| Spouting |
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| Kids holding a microphone under water so we could hear the whales singing |
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| A group of competitive males jostling each other to attract female attention (what ELSE?) |
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