We had to be at the airport around 2pm, so had a good chunk of the day to enjoy before flying home. We still needed to find the elusive sea turtle for Keira, so we made a point to get up early and head back to Napili/Kapalua to ensure we could find parking and have time to look. We arrived and were desperately searching by 6:30 that morning. I read every online review and tourist site that provided advice on how to find sea turtles. We searched every spot mentioned. After an hour, we were starving and decided to find food, ask around again and circle back if we needed to. Keira was very sad and I felt like we let her down.
To make it up to her, we agreed to take her back to Slappy Cakes before going back to the hotel to pack up the rest of our things and check out. That cheered her up, but we knew she was still very disappointed.
After checking out of the hotel (check out time was 10am - early if you ask me!), we planned our route to take advantage of the day en route to the airport. We headed back to Napili and Kapalua. Everyone we asked said if we didn't see them there, we probably wouldn't have much luck anywhere else. Gah! Off we went...Mark was a super dad and agreed to drop us off while he went in search of parking. I was worried that was going to prove elusive for him too!
While Mark searched for parking, Keira and I walked around, climbed rocks and looked everywhere for a turtle. As Keira was ready to give up, I talked to her about being patient and thinking positively. Right on cue, she and I saw something bobbing nearby in the calmer waters of the rocks. We exclaimed at the same time, "Is that a...? Does it look...? It's a turtle!"
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| Keira was so excited!! And so was I!!! |
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| Here's the turtle! Keira named him Bob. ;-) |
Thank goodness Mark got back to see Bob too! As we left the beach, we saw two additional turtles just riding the waves super close to shore. This was the cherry on top of our fabulous Maui vacation!
So...If you happen to also be searching for sea turtles, here's some guidance that will hopefully help you be successful on your conquest as well.
*I checked my watch...we saw Bob and the other turtles between 10:45am/11:00am. We were told they come to the shore around this time and into the early afternoon to enjoy the warmth.
*We were on the reef (black rocks) closest to the Napili Shores Resort/Napili Beach Resort and saw the other turtles swimming close to the shoreline in the water of the bay closer to the rocks. They were so close that I thought for sure they'd wash up on shore with a few of the big waves. Here are some photos you can try to use as reference for location.
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| The inlet by the figure in the distance is where we saw Bob |
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| Here's the view from below where we stood |
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| The view from the reef when looking out at the ocean and to the right |
*THINGS TO KNOW: They are protected animals. You could be fined/arrested if you touch them. If you snorkel or come near them, it's up to you to move away from them. You can find more info online and at via the Division of Aquatic Resources.
We spent the rest of the time we had back in Lahaina. We grabbed some more Uulani shave ice and a delicious lunch at the LahainaLuna food stand.
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| Salad w/grilled fish |
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| Korean short rib plate |
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