The order of the day was whale watching. Yes, WHALE watching. The waters off the southwestern part of the island (just off Wailea and our hotel) from December to April are the favorite breeding ground of the endangered Humpback whale. There are approximately 9,000 whales which are part of a group known as the Northwest Pacific whale community. 4000 to 5000 of these guys winter in the relatively shallow waters of the Hawaiian Islands. The remainder go to other areas of warm water such as Mexico. While the whales are in "breeding mode," they are fasting. The clear blue waters of Hawaii contain very little, if anything, needed to feed these great mammals, the fifth largest on Earth. During the summer months, the whales migrate to the cooler waters off Alaska to enjoy a feeding frenzy before they migrate back to Hawaii for their other frenzy. So the Humpback eats in Alaska and sleeps in Maui. Yuk, yuk, yuk! The male whales "sing" constantly. Not only does this attract females, it attracts other males who want to find out what's going on with their comrades. Are those guys getting lucky and I'm not? The whales also produce sounds that are higher and lower in frequencies than the human ear can hear. The higher frequencies can be heard by other whales up to a couple hundred miles away. The lower frequency noises can be heard thousands of miles away! This is thought to be how the whales communicate with each other when they go to their different breeding grounds.

The Pacific Whale Foundation, a non-profit organization, runs 2-hour boating tours off the coast of Maui to observe these magnificent animals. Twenty dollars a head is the bargain of the day! Because the whales are endangered, federal law prevents anyone (whether they are large boats or surfboards or swimmers or anything in between) from getting closer than 100 yards. Severe fines are levied by the Coast Guard against anyone not heeding this law. A nice "problem" is that the whales don't know they are endangered, can't read, and often come closer than 100 yards on their own. So THEY can approach YOU. Such a double standard! If they come close, the Pacific Whale Foundation likes to say, "You've been mugged in Maui, and you like it."