West Street Story: Maui 2013 || Day 6 : Snorkeling Molokini Crater

The night after the luau, we all decided it would be a good idea to wake up really early and go on a family outing. Although we were tired, it was an amazing adventure.

This was also the last day of the trip for Graham’s family. So, it was a little stressful for them having to get packed up and checked out of their condo before heading to the harbor, but it all worked out!

We got on a boat in the early morning and had {about} an hour long ride out to Molokini crater where we would go snorkeling for the day.

Molokini crater is this horseshoe shaped rock right off the coast of Maui. Now, do not get me wrong, the crater was a ROCK. It was huge!

As the boat approached the crater we learned we had to travel counter clockwise around the backside of the crater before docking in the little cove area.

When we came around the final turn, all of a sudden hundreds of birds took flight. What? You can’t see them in the picture? Try this one:

Or, for an even more chilling recollection {I was really freaked out by all of the birds needless to say}, take a peek at this:

Once we were safely docked inside the crater, we started putting on our gear to go snorkeling. Everyone in our group went. Even me! And Graham’s mom was thrilled with the fact that they had prescription goggles….she could actually SEE what was swimming around on the ocean floor.

Although there were lots of other boats at the crater, it didn’t seem busy at all. There was definitely plenty of room for everyone to snorkel.

{We knew we were at the right place when we looked over the side of our boat and saw the fish swimming around!}

Remember I was telling you about using those underwater cameras? Well, we had them with us at Molokini crater and they did not disappoint!

{The view of the crater as we drove away…goodbye Molokini crater!}

As we headed back to the island, we did get a good look at a small family of dolphins and turtles popping their heads up for air at Turtle Bay.

Here are just a couple of fun looks at the shores of Maui from the boat :

After the big snorkeling adventure, I headed back to the hotel to get ready for something I had really been looking forward to….I was going on a photo expedition with a local photographer!

Graham’s family hung out at our condo while they waited to head to the airport. But, after they left, Graham started to worry about me.

He realized he had no idea who I was with or where I was…..and it was starting to get dark.

Let’s just say he was sitting outside the front of the hotel when I got back…and I learned that had I gotten back 15 minutes later, the cops would have already been called!

However, even with scaring my husband to death, I am so fortunate to have had the experience. I learned SO MUCH about my camera, exposure, and composition. I was also taught what long exposure times and different filters can achieve. Here are just some of the shots I took:

{notice the smoothness of the water…that was achieved using long exposure times}

{I think this was my favorite pic from this expedition….no, that isn’t fog, that is the water rolling over the rocks. Awesome, huh? I might also take pride in this picture because it required quite a hike to the spot and then we were constantly being bit by flies as we were working. Totally worth it, though}