We headed up to Kapalua Bay to snorkel, but first stopped at the Gazebo Restaurant for their famous macadamia, banana pancakes and big kahuna omelet. Both were delicious. The Gazebo sits on a point overlooking the ocean. The breeze was steady and the surf high. Luckily, Kapalua Bay is sheltered and was not too rough. Before snorkeling, we did the Kapalua Coastal Trail, a gorgeous 1 mile walk along the ocean and dramatic cliffs.
The walk goes out across a rocky point with dramatic waves. Part of the trail passes through wedge tail shearwater nesting ground.
The snorkeling at Kapalua Bay was the best we’ve seen. The entire bay has rocks and coral 3-15 feet beneath the water, so we were very close to the fish. Again, we saw virtually all the tropical fish we saw at the aquarium. We also saw schools of close to a hundred fish. We didn’t see turtles here (I suspect because of the reef that protects the bay.) After about a 30 min snorkel, we got out to warm up and then went back for another 20 min snorkel. It was a perfect way to spend our last morning in Maui. We returned to the Gazebo for lunch. I highly recommend Kapalua Bay, the walk, and the Gazebo (about 3 min south of the bay).
That afternoon, we did more snorkeling at our hotel and relaxed by the pool. Black Rock, beneath which we snorkeled, is traditionally the place where spirits entered the afterlife and where an 18th century king practiced diving from the rock. At dusk the hotel has an employee dressed in Hawaiian garb blow a shell horn, light torches around the resort and then climb Black Rock and light the torches at the peak and then reenact the ceremonial dive as the sun set behind Lanai Island.
We have fallen in love with Maui, land of rainbows, beautiful beaches, and fantastic snorkeling.