Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Big Wave Wednesday III


This last trip to Maui was a weird one where the waves were concerned. We normally have surf that is one, maybe two feet tall in front of our condo but for about half of this trip we had waves that were reaching 6-8 feet. It was great for the surfers but made it hard to find clear water to snorkel in.

This first shot was taken in front of our condo with the Nikon P7700.


This was taken at Kalahu Point near Hana.


And this of course is what lurks below the waves.

As a side note, if you ever find yourself on Maui during a "big wave" day you might want to stay in your condo. The surf report (an app I have on my phone) was forecasting 30-50 foot waves on the windward side of the island one Wednesday. I was told by one of the local photographers that if the waves were breaking right the pro surfers would be out in force and it would be a great opportunity to get some good photos. I took that as a sign and loaded up the 600mm lens and headed to the other side of the island.

Little did I know that most of the people on the island had the very same idea. We got about half way to the windward side of the island when we hit the traffic. After that we were literally traveling two miles an hour and we had about six more miles to go. My Aloha spirit was really tested that day!

I did find a shortcut on our way back so next time I will know how to bypass the majority of the traffic. By the time we got back to our condo the news stations were calling it "Big Wave Wednesday". 

Of course after we got where we wanted to be it was apparent the waves weren't cooperating. They were definitely big but they were breaking too close to each other for it to be safe so the surfers just sat on the shore waiting to see if it would change.

Just another day in paradise!

5 comments:

  1. Nice captures of the wave action. Handy advice for new visitors to the beach scene.

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  2. I agree with Tex, that second picture has paradise written all over it! Maybe next time all the surfers will all be out for big wave Wednesday :)

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  3. We all have to respect the power of the ocean! Were you in the bottom of those waves on that 3rd. picture?

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    1. Q, the fish picture was taken in a lot calmer waters. I went out on two different days when the waves were about half the size they were in these photos but there was so much sand being kicked up by the waves that I couldn't see more than about two feet.

      I didn't like not being able to see what was in the water with me (sharks, coral, big rocks) so I didn't stay in the water but just a few minutes each of those times. I much prefer to have about 50-100 feet of visibility!

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