0423-20

Brenda says that I never reported that I made it home so I have to make one more post.  I made it home on Wednesday @ 0100.  Since then I packed, had a tire repaired and a brake job, drove to the OBX and sailed for a couple of days so far.  It's been 80f and good wind so far.  Yesterday the wind was blowing 25 at best, 20 today.  Everybody has been getting in plenty of sailing.

0418-20

Flight from Maui to LA got canceled last night.  Sat on the plane for  a couple of hours then waited around airport for some more hours before getting vouchers and transport to a hotel.  Got to bed at about 2am.  They sent us to a resort about 30 minutes drive from the airport.  It's a nice place but pretty isolated.  It felt like one of those executive prisons.  Nice beach and all that but surrounded by woods.  After paying $26 for the breakfast buffet, I figured that it would be cheaper to rent a car for the rest of the day than hang out there. 

I went to Naish beach and unpacked all of my very tightly packed kite gear and got about an hour of kiting in on the 9m kite before the wind dropped off a bit.  I laid my harness and pfd on a log to dry out and when I went to pick them up, somebody else already had.  The upside is that it made my golf bag a little easier to pack and now I get to buy more new crap.  I'm at the airport now and will make another attempt at flying in about an hour.  See yous guyz on the water soon.

0416-10

I was off on Wed and Thu.  Paraglided for the last time on Thu.  Wind was dead on Wed and deader on Thu and Fri.  I've been jogging on the beach for lack of anything else to do.  Turned in my cable modem this morning so no internet at home any more.  Tomorrow will be my last day here.  I fly out at 9pm.  Wind reports have been going back and forth between 10 and 15mph easterly.  10 means calm and 15 usually means either a 9 or 7m kite.  I'm looking forward to getting home and then to the OBX.  Will be nice to hang out with some friends for a change.

412-30

I haven't had much to past lately because I've just been paragliding in the morning and working in the afternoon.  Same thing every day.  I went kiting on Saturday on a 9m and it was good for about 20 minutes until the wind died and I just made it back.  Tried again today before work.  It's hard to read the wind on the beach.  I struggled out to the wind line with a 9m kite and found the wind to be too strong.  I was sailing along fine with the kite depowered and flapping.  Only went out and back.  No time to change kites and get to work.  That's why I haven't been kiting before work.  You can't get on the water until after 11 and I have be fed and cleaned up and at work by 1:30.  I'm off work for the next couple of days and should be able to get out.  My last day here is Sunday.  Looks like it might be sailable in Marquette by the time I get back.  Does anybody need anything from Maui?

401-30

Paraglided in the morning and kited this afternoon.  First time on the water in quite a while.  The wind was ENE and just a little gusty on the beach.  Flew a 7m kite and it was always powered enough to stay up wind and often very powered up.  It's funny here.  When they say the wind is 15, they mean that is the base and every gust is above that.  Today they said the wind was 15 but my legs were getting sand blasted on the beach.  Most people were on 6m kites and some of them were jumping 20-30 feet in the air.  If the wind was 15 at home, I'd be using a 13m kite or I'd be slogging on a windsurfer.  There were about 100 windsurfers out today and they were flying.  I think the wind was actually about 20 to upper 30's.

Most of the beach parking lots are still closed after the tsunami.  The lots look fine.  I don't know why they aren't open and they don't seem to be in any hurry to do what ever it is that they are going to do before reopening them.  Not only are the lots closed but they've put up no parking signs on the street so that people can't even park there and walk in.  Everybody does anyway, but I heard that they've ticketed some cars.  I'd be really bummed if I came here for a week to windsurf and found these conditions.  Actually the parking lot for the windsurfers down at Kanaha is open.  I guess it's just the scummy sewer sucking kite surfers who really don't matter.

For the last couple of weeks they've been burning sugarcane at night.  This is what it looks like in the morning before they get the fire put out.

                                                               Burning Sugarcane

331-25

Been either paragliding or hiking every morning since last entry.  I haven't been able to make myself jog so I've been walking up and down the Waihee ridge trail for excercise.  Checked my log book this morning and I've done 64 flights here.  I'm just starting to get comfortable with a little rougher air.  I'm off tomorrow and will paraglide in the AM and hopefully the wind will be good for kiting in the PM.  Haven't been on the water for quite a while.  The wind has been blowing >20 every day for the whole month.  It's supposed to turn SE and get lighter this weekend.  That means the Vog will probably return.

Below is a description of thw Waihee ridge trail.  No pictures because I'm at work.

Route: Beginning at 1,000` elevation, trail climbs the windward slope of west Maui through a brushy guava thicket, a young stand of planted trees, and wet native scrub forest. Views of Waihee Gorge and Makamakaole Gulch can be seen along the way. On the peak, at 2,563` are panoramic views of Wailuku and central Maui, the Kahakuloa slopes, and Mount Eke. Weather at the summit varies from clear to overcast with showers. No drinking water is available along the trail. Camping is not permitted. Wear bright colored clothing. Be aware thay you may encounter hunters who may be hunting off trail. Stay on trail.

325-25

Paraglided in the AM.  Tried to kite in the PM.  The wind was East and real off and on on the beach.  I launched my new 7 and it alternated between picking me up and luffing.  Tried to get out 3 times with no success.  Might have made it if there hadn't been so many other people around.  On the other hand some of those people helped relaunch and catch my kite.  The wind is supposed to be east for the next few days.  Hopefully it'll back a little north and be a little steadier on the beach. 

I guess there'll be no more windsurfing adventures.  I haven't heard anything about my lost gear.  Time here is getting short.  I'll have to overcome my tendency towards laziness and get more water time.

322-30

Finished up my paragliding lessons yesterday morning.  I'm now a P-2 rated (beginner) pilot. Now I can fly on easy hills without an instructor.  Stopped by kite beach on the way home and people were out on 6-7m kites.  I was going to buy a used 8m Switchblade, but a few people told me that although it has more wind range, it would be as powerful as my 9m Waroo.  So instead of buying that, I'm buying a 7m Waroo from my boss at work.  Price was also a factor.  The Waroo is $200 and the Switchblade is $700.

I took this morning off.  Went for a walk down the beach.  There was a woman there with a butter knife prying limpets off the rocks.  I asked here if she cooks them up.  She said no, she doesn't eat them but those that do eat them raw.  Does anybody really enjoy eating raw mollusks or is it just some sort of a macho thing?

It's windy again, has been for almost 3 weeks straight.  I'm just going to laze around for a while and go to work.  So far I haven't adjusted well to afternoons.  I always wake up early and by about 8pm I'm getting pretty sleepy. The last couple of hours of work are tough.

No sign of my windsurf gear yet.  I guess I'll just sell the rest of the gear and forget it.

319-30

Demoed a Cabrinha Switchblade 8 and a Crossbow 7 today.  Both kites were real nice but I couldn't say which one I'd like better.  The wind let up a bit while I was on the 7 and I was a little under powered.  Guess I'll look for something used.  A new one costs as much as a good new refrigerator.

It's nice that there's so much wind here but the access areas are so limited that it can be really crowded on the water.  Windsurfing in a crowd isn't half as bad as kiting in a crowd.  That's one nice thing about home; it's never crowded.  The water tastes better too.  Guess that's about it.  Everything else is nicer here.

0318-30

The wind seems to be here for good now.  It's been blowing over 20, usually 25-35 or 40, for the past week and shows no signs of letting up soon.  It's too windy for my 9m kite so I'm shopping for something like a 7. The kites in use today ranged from 5-8, mostly 6's and 7's.  Guys 1.5 x my size were out on 7's. I could have saved some luggage weight by not even bringing the 13.  I've only used it twice here and one of those times, I wished I had the 9.

Tomorrow Cabrinha is hosting a demo day on the beach.  I'll probably get sucked into buying one of their expensive kites.  People here seem to think that they are worth it.  They are by far the most popular kite on the beach (or in the air).

 

0314-20

Kanaha finally opened today.  It was a real busy day at work today but not so busy that I couldn't check out the Kanaha web-cam which showed plenty of ws and ks activity.  Some duffis called in sick though and I had to work until 6.  I also found out today that my boss is color blind.  He color codes the schedule.  6am shift is red and 1330 shift is orange.  He intended to put me on all orange this month but printed my schedule out in red.  From now on I'm afternoon shift.  I think it'll work out alright though.  Now if I wake up early, I can go for a bike ride before it gets too warm.  Then after 1100 I can head out to the beach for some wind sports, after which I can get some lunch and go to work and rest.  Now all of the time that I'm awake and it's dark, I'll be at work.  Who could ask for more?

0312-15

Paraglided this morning.  Got lift on one flight and circled up to cloud base (not real high, but fun).  Headed to kite beach to check out the wind but found a bunch of kiters cleaning up the beach.  The wind was marginal and nobody was out.  All the beach between the sewage plant and Kanaha were closed.  It looks like 4-5 feet of water came over those beaches and across the road in some places.  Nothing else of note today.

0311

I heard about the earthquake in Japan while at work last night.  The tsunami was to arrive here by around 3AM.  Our house sits about 5' above sea level.  Scientists have no ability to predict how big a tsunami might be in any particular area so we thought it might be prudent to leave the area.  Luckily a coworker invited us to spend the night at his house which is a couple miles away and a few hundred feet higher.  It was a lot nicer than spending the night in our car.  Pia's pretty much packed to leave tonight so we just threw her suitcases in the car.  I changed into shorts and a t-shirt so that if everything washed away, I wouldn't be stuck with only work clothes, grabbed my computer and we were out the door.

Came home this morning.  Water had come over the road and washed a bunch of palm junk onto the road but otherwise no damage here.  The property manager called to see how things were here this morning.  He said that Maalaea harbor emptied out and refilled to overflowing about 10 times and all but a couple of boats washed out to sea.

After writing this we went for a walk on the beach between Maalaea and Kihei at noon.  The water level was still varying by about 8' within 20 minutes.  We found the boats that we were told washed out to sea.  They were all anchored out in open water.

The pictures below were taken in Kahului harbor at bout 3pm (12 hours after the first wave hit Hawaii).  The second picture below was taken 5 minutes after the first.  90% of the increase occurred within 2 minutes.  In the third picture the water at the bottom of the picture is near it's current high.  You can see last night's high by the level of the grass in the upper fence which is at the top of the boat ramp at parking lot level.  The 4th picture is of  a small barracuda who couldn't quite make it through the fence.

0308-25

Beach day with Pia today.  Spent the morning down at Big beach in Wailea.  Nice clear pretty calm water.  Just a little swell, but the little waves stand up and break hard right on the beach.  They are the kind that if you were to try to body surf, they'll pick your feet up over your head and drill your face into the sand.  As we were leaving they were hauling some guy about my age out on a back board with a cervical collar on.  His arms were flopping around.  I think a wave caught him in a bad position.

After lunch we headed up to Kanaha and I tried out the windsurfing gear that I bought about a month ago.  It works pretty well and surprisingly enough I haven't forgotten how to sail.  The wind was about 25 or so and I used a 4.7 sail.  It was pretty powered up at first but the wind backed off a bit and I could have used a little more sail most of the time.  The board is a wave board with a pretty small fin.  It works well powered up but it's a bit of a struggle to keep it up wind when the wind isn't crankin'.  I saw some boards with 4 short fins.  The guys who use them say that they go almost as fast a single fin boards and turn really nice on the waves.  Apparently they practically self recover from a spin-out.  They look like they'd work pretty well in the shallow water in Esky.

0306-30

Hana trip was worth the drive and that's saying a lot.  It's only 50 miles there but takes 2 hours if you drive straight there and we didn't.  We left at 7am and got to our Hana house at 6pm.  Did a lot of sight seeing along the way.  The place that we stayed Papalani was exceptional.  Not cheap but very nice.  Hiked up the Oheo Gulch to a really tall waterfall.  Lots of pools to swim in along the way.  Trail went through a bamboo forest that was dark and loud with the wind banging the bamboo together.  The drive home was longer even then the drive there.  The road is narrow, rough and has no straight sections.

 

Big Banyon Tree

Last night the Finish ladies took off for home.  Right now at  5pm they are still somewhere over the Atlantic.  Today I had to work 0600-1430 and it was windy after work so we headed to Naish beach.  It was gusty on the beach and really windy out on the water.  Wind was gusting well over 30 and my 9m kite was a little squirrelly.  I went out and back once.  I talked with a guy on the beach who weighed about 50lb more than me who said that he was sheeted out most of the time on a 7m kite.  Looks like the wind is back for at least a few days now.

 

Taller than it looks here

                                          Sand at red sand beach.  Looks like a roofing shingle.

0302-15

I'm working days this week.  Haven't been doing much after work, walking, shopping,eating, etc.  Today the wind came up from the NE and brought out a lot of kiters, me included.  I've been starting off by standing on my board on the beach and riding into the water instead of putting the board on in the water.  It's easier to get my feet in the straps that way.  I always crash when I hit the water though and today I also lost control of the kite and put it on the beach when I fell.  Guess I'll have to give up on that maneuver until I'm at a less crowded beach.  Everybody was using 8-10m kites and I used a 9.  Was a little underpowered though.  Most people were on surfboards which don't need as much power to get going.  Only stayed out for a half hour or so because the wind was getting holey and I didn't want to get stuck out there.

We went to a luau on Monday night.  They roasted a pig in the ground and had the usual assortment of dancers, fire dancer, singer, etc.  The pork was excellent and the rest of the food was pretty good also.  Nice that it was over by about 8 so I didn't have to stay up too late on a school night.

Tomorrow morning we leave early for Hana.  We'll stay one night there and then continue around the south shore and back home on Friday.

                                                             The Surfer Babes

0226

Pia's sister Birgitta and their friend Maila arrived Thursday night.  Friday AM I went paragliding and the Finish ladies each took a tandem flight.  In the afternoon, we went on a whale watch ride on a big zodiac.  The whale watching is more fun than I expected.  I thought we'd be cruising around looking for whales and maybe see one.  It's not like that at all.  There are whales all over the place.  You just drive up in the boat and follow them around.  Typically it's a mom and calf with a male escort. 

Today, back over to Lahaina where they all took surfing lessons.  I tried surfing again and drank a lot of sea water.  I did get up once.  I think I don't have the best board to learn on.  I need a pretty good sized wave to get going on and once I'm going, I'm wishing I was on a smaller wave.  After surfing, we had lunch and drove home around the north end of the island and today was shot.  There was no wind in Lahaina but on the north shore it was blowing about 15 or so.  I could see some kites flying over at kite beach when we got home but it was too late for me to run over and launch a kite.

Back to work in the morning.  Hasn't been any real wind since I can't even remember when.  I think we're about due.  It's been "voggy" here for a couple of weeks also.  That should clear out at least temporarily Wednesday when the wind comes around to the NE.

0219

I moved last Thursday.  Pia arrived last Friday.  I lost my internet connection when I moved.  Just got it back yesterday.  The only things that we've done worth mentioning is we took a hike up the Waihee ridge trail.  It's just a  little over 2 miles up, then back down.  We arrived at the top just as the clouds covered it.  We also paddled kayaks out to look at whales.  Got a real close look at one huge whale as it slowly drifted towards us then went under expertly avoiding touching any kayaks.  There are always whales jumping and splashing in the distance.  We went snorkeling on that same excursion.  As soon as you get under water, you can hear the whales.  Did a waterfall hike yesterday.  The trail went though a bamboo forest, up boulders in the stream bed and then a swim to the final waterfall.  I thought everything was going to get wet so only took my waterproof cell phone for pictures.  Haven't yet figured out how to get the pics from the phone to the computer.  I think they are pretty crappy anyway.  Finally got to try surfing today.  The waves were pretty good size (about 4-5'), but I only got moving once and that was backwards.  No wind since I can't remember when.

0207-15

Today was kind of a normal wind sports day.  When I got to the beach after work the wind was blowing about 15 and people were out on 12's.  There was a nice breeze right on the beach.  By the time I got my kite ready to go, there was barely enough wind to launch and it fell out of the sky and wouldn't relaunch.  Then it rained real hard for about 15 minutes.  All the kites on the water were in the water during and after the rain.  I rolled up the kite and about 10lbs of sand in the kite bag and left.

From home I can see a large area of fog downwind of Hookipa.  There are 20 footers today and even though it's not very windy, it looks like the spray's blowing downwind for miles.  I think that in fact, the humidity is about 100% and the spray lowers the local air temp enough to cause a light fog.  It looks cool anyway.

Got the keys to the new place today.  It's going to be a perfect location.  Close to work and real close to the beach.  Nice place too.

0206-10

Yesterday I had to go to Kihei to look at some furniture.  Wasn't supposed to be any wind so I took the surfboard.  There were no waves down there but the wind was decent.  Would have had fun with the 13 if I had had it.  Today the wind was predicted to be south again but stronger so I got my kites back in the car as I headed out to get a couch on the other side of the island.  No wind today.  Might have been able to use the surfboard if I'd had it along.  Oh well, got a couch anyway and it was free.

With the southeasterly breezes that we've had the air has been very hazy.  They call it vog here.  It looks just like smog but it's from the volcano on the big island.

Paraglided yesterday.  Today it was canceled because the wind at the site was squirrelly.

0203-20

Wind was pretty good until I got off work when it died.  Bought a surfboard today.  I think I've got all the toys I need for a while now.  All I need now is furniture.

0202-15

Didn't even go to the beach today.  Had to go check out a rental unit.  It looks pretty good and I should be moving in a couple of weeks.  The new place has 2 bedrooms and is across the street from the ocean and just down the street from a beach park where I'm told the surfing can be pretty good. The beach is definitely windsurfable.  Kiting might be possible but it's a narrow b each and you,d probably have to stand in the water to launch.  The picture is yesterday at Naish beach.

0201-20

Went out after work on a 9m kite.  Wind was averaging about 20 but with some holes.  Surf was pretty big.  I sneaked out between the waves and practiced turns on the outside.  Got surprised a couple of times sailing in too far and turning into a wave without looking behind me before a turn.  Lots of kites and windsurfers out today.  Trying to find a place to stay is getting pretty frustrating.  Today's picture was going to be just another day at the beach with a bunch of kites, but the camera's in the car and that pic's been done already.

0131-12

Worked today.  No whitecaps on the water but went and checked out the beach after work.  There were a few people flying bigger kites and surfboards.  Would have been too light for my board.  Did nothing of note today.

0130-10

Paragliding lessons again this morning.  Got my P-1 rating.  I don't know what that means except that now I can do tandem flights with a new instructor who has never done tandems before.  I'm still not allowed to fly without supervision.  Another light wind day, so spent the afternoon driving around looking at nearby areas that I've never been to.

I've been looking around for windsurfing gear and boards and sails are cheap but masts and booms aren't.   Masts go for about $200 and booms $100.  Then I saw the ad below on craigslist.  It was a couple of days old and I couldn't believe that the stuff wasn't sold.  I went and looked at it and it is old stuff but in pretty good shape.  The sails are all Pryde sails and look like new.  Now my car looks like a real windsurf bum's vehicle.

Windsurf Package - $350 (N. Kihei)

---

Date: 2011-01-27, 2:30PM HST

8'6" Timpone Wave board with case; 3 Neilpryde sails & cases (3.5, 4.7, 5.3); 3 carbon fiber masts matched to the sails + cases ( 1ea 400/26/19-2; 2ea 430/25/21-2); 2 Hawaiian Proline booms with extensions; 2 mast bases & mast pads; harness lines and spare parts. All in excellent condition. First $350 takes it all.

• Location: N. Kihei
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

129-10

Paragliding lessons again this am.  4 flights x 1000' vertical.  Just enough wind this afternoon to keep things comfortable.  No wind sports so went to the laundromat.

0128-25

Went to the old kite beach after work today.  Looked like a "kite cloud" in front of Naish beach.  There were only a few people at kite beach.  I guess that should have been a clue.  The wind only came onshore occasionally and it was really hard to get out of there.  Also, couldn't tell what size kite to set up.  I went by the "rig big" rule and it proved to be a mistake.  Once I got out of the wind shadow, I was way overpowered.  Didn't stay out long.  Sure has been a lot of good wind though.  On the way to lunch at the hospital, I always have a view out a big window looking out on the ocean and it is almost always covered with white caps.

0127-25

Great wind again today but took a day off and just jogged.  Thought I had a line on a nice place to live but it fell through.  Things are not looking good on that front.

0126-20

Yesterday the wind was 10.  Didn't do anything after work.  Today well powered on 13.  I think I had the biggest kite out there.  9 wouldn't have been enough some of the time.

0124-25

Went right form work to Naish beach for kitesurfing again today.  Nice steady wind all the way to the beach.  Not quite as crowded. The national weather service called for 16kt today but I was well powered on a 9m kite.  Regular gas is 3.98.  Looking for a short term rental is getting pretty frustrating.

0123-25

Continued my paragliding lessons this morning.  Flew the 1000' hill 3 times and did a tandem from the 3000' hill.  After flying, stopped at Burger King then out to Naish Beach to kite.  Wind was gusty on the beach again but pretty nice just a couple hundred yards out.  Got in a couple of hours on the 9m kite and the wind was good on the beach when I came in so was able to sail right to shore.  Seemed like thousands of kite and wind surfers out today again.  Almost ran into the third of a group of turtles while looking at the other 2.  There's all kinds of stuff to watch out for out there.

122-25.

Got in 3 hours of paragliding lessons this morning, flying down about 500 feet of Mt. Haleakala.  My instructor tells me that tomorrow I'll try 1000', which is all that is available for now.  There is another launch area 2000' higher but it is inaccessible right now because the road washed out and needs to be repaired..

This afternoon the wind was blowing about 25 or so and it was a real zoo out there.  On shore the wind came in gusts but it was real nice a couple of hundred yards out.  Waves are still pretty big.  Saw a whale breach from pretty close this time.  Also passed a pretty good sized turtle a few times.

I stopped by the windsurf shop and talked to the manager there about renting and he told me that this time of year the wind tends to blow for a few days or a week and then go away for a couple of weeks.  Summer is the best wind here.  In case anybody is thinking of joining me here, next time I'll see what he has to say about March and April.

0121-20

Windy again but Teal lake-gusty.  Wind was too much east.  Had to wait for a gust to launch and struggle out.  Even when out there the wind was very gusty.  Lots of kites out and on the beach when I got there.  Most were flying 7-9's.  Weather's pretty nice.  Kiting is comfortable in just a swimsuit.  Most people here use directional boards.  They are more into wave riding than jumping.  Many don't even use straps.  There was still plenty of surf today.  Saw some windsurfers getting big air off the waves.

0120-20

Lots of white caps  and some kites visible from the hospital at lunch.  Rigged a 9 after work which was the popular size.  Wind let up, should have had the 13.  Was underpowered and the break was pretty big.  Didn't try to go over it.  I've been underpowered in the impact zone plenty enough to know better.

118-10

Got to beach at 1600 after work.  Wind about 10.  1 guy on a 15 kite with a twin fin mini formula board was going good.  Snowed on the mountain last night.  They say that was the first time in years.

0117-8

Another light wind day.  Went to the hill where they teach paragliding this morning.  The instructor didn't show up but got to watch a few guys fly.  Checked out some beaches.  Right now the water at a lot of the beaches is brown and murky.  There was a big storm here about a week ago that washed a lot of mud out to sea.  Some of it didn't make it out to sea.  In Kihei they are still  scooping up mud from parking lots and lawns with bobcats. 

0116-8

I went to the beach at sunup to look for my board.  No sign of it.  On the way out to the car I started talking with a local fisherman.  He said that he knew the wind and currents very well and as we were talking he started looking around with his binoculars.  In a couple of minutes, he had found the board floating upside down about 300 yards off shore.  A surfer was kind enough to paddle out and get it.

It seems that if you are a kiter here, you are on your own as far as the rest of the gang is concerned.  I body dragged around for probably 15 minutes and nobody ever came over to see if I could use any help.

Hiked the Iao valley, watched surfers at Hookipa and paragliders nearby. Light winds today.

0115-20

I found a car to buy; a 95 Nissan Pathfinder for $1800.  If it holds up for 3 months, should be easy to sell when I leave.

Drove around the west end today.  Stopped to swim at a beach on the west side.  There were a couple of surfers out.  Guys on the beach yelled and waved them in because they saw sharks in the water.  I didn't see the sharks but did see a couple of whales further out.  Drove around the north end of the west side; curvy, narrow sometimes 1 lane road.  I saw white caps on the water as I was going and it took for ever to get back to kite beach.

Got out on the 13m kite very well powered up.  Beautiful afternoon, warm air, warm water and I saw a humpback whale breech 3 times.  Session ended when I fell and had a little trouble relaunching the kite.  By the time I got the kite relaunched, the board was nowhere in site.  Trolled back and forth for a while with no luck.  Will go out first thing in the AM and look for it on the beach.