The Webster's: 02/16/2012 - Vacation Day 7

Today we got up really early to go on a whale watching tour with Captain Dan McSweeney. I was really excited about this, especially after our lucky boat tour in Kauai. We probably saw around 15 whales but none of them were very exciting. We saw maybe 2 tails, and no breaches. Besides humpbacks, we also saw 2-3 dwarf sperm whales. On our way back into the harbor we ran into a small pod of spinner dolphins that showed off for a bit. Our captain gave us a very knowledgeable tour, but we were kind of disappointed. Apparently we got really lucky on our boat tour in Kauai.

After whale watching we decided to try a snorkel spot near our hotel that was recommended by a couple we sat with at the luau. We headed to Keauhou Beach, were there were quite a few people snorkeling already when we got there. This beach turned out to be a pretty good spot. When we were coming in to take a break after snorkeling for awhile, a lady hollered that she saw a turtle, so we put our masks back on and swam around following the turtle for a bit.

We took a break for a little bit and got snow cones while we watched people nearby learning to surf and paddle board. When we went back out to the reef again, we ran into a different turtle, so of course we swam around with it again. While following this turtle (which was huge), we ran into a "baby" turtle! It wasn't itty bitty, but significantly smaller than the adult turtle. We had a good time snorkeling on this beach, and I'm always happy when we see turtles! :)

NOTE: Click on the photos to enlarge them.