Hawaii, Big Island trip, September, 2014

My Little Grass Shack

I want to go back to my little grass shack
In Kealakekua, Hawaii
I want to be with all the kanes and wahines
That I used to know long ago

I can hear old guitars a playing,
On the beach at Honaunau
I can hear the old Hawaiians saying
"Komo mai no kaua I ka hale welakahao"

It won't be long 'til my ship will be sailing
Back to Kona
A grand old place
That's always fair to see, you're telling me

I'm just a little Hawaiian
A homesick Island boy
I want to go back to my fish and poi

I want to go back to my little grass shack
In Kealakekua, Hawaii
Where the Humuhumu, Nukunuku a pua'a goes swimming by
Where the Humuhumu, Nukunuku a pua'a goes swimming by

Wow! We went snorkeling, and this is what we saw!

Fish

We signed up for the morning cruise on the Fair Wind II, destination Kealakekua Bay. When we checked in a crewmember set us up with Rx facemasks if needed, plain masks if not. After boarding, the crew served up light snacks and non-alcoholic drinks. We wound up hanging out with a couple that were staying at the Kona-Tiki: David and Hula. Hula is Swedish and a quilter as well as a snorkeler. In spite of chronic back pain she still keeps on traveling.

Kealakekua Bay is the site of a monument to Captain Cook as well as the snorkeling destination. Captain Cook and crew were the first European visitors to the islands. Due to culture differences, there was ultimately a fatal culture clash: the captain and a number of his crew were killed in a skirmish.

However, the main attractions for us were the coral and fish. The crew gave a short snorkeling class and we were off down the stern stairs and into the water. We paddled about for an hour and a half or so, returned to the boat for a BBQ lunch, and back into the water for another hour. Some of the younger, friskier crowd jumped off of the high-dive or went down the water-slides as an alternative.

After the back-to-the-boat call sounded we paddled back; the captain (who had a physique and a voice a lot like John Goodman's) ran down a checklist to ensure we were all aboard. On the trip home the crew served up snacks, soft drinks, and stronger drinks for a fee now that everybody was out of the water.

Snorkel Fashion	Fair Wind II	Ascent
High Dive	Stern

Captain Cook Monument	Monument	Joanna in Kealakekua Bay
Coral and Fish	Coral	Coral
Coral	Coral	Coral
Coral Grazers	Fish-a-Palooza	Smaller Fish-a-Palooza
Single Fish	Small School of Fish	Solo Fish
Surf's Up!