4th of July in Makawao - Parade

Aloha! The 4th of July weekend is "RODEO" to the max! Up-Country, Makawao, Maui is the place to be. Friday night starts with the "BULL BASH". Two hours of bull riding under the stars. Saturday morning, down Mainstreet Makawao is one of the biggest parades in the state.

Friday, Sat and Sunday afternoons is Rodeo in the Oskie Rice Arena. Paniolos (cowboys) from around the state compete in one of the bigeest Rodeo's in the State.

Trail Ride

A Great day for a Trail ride! Mild wind, blue sky's and good company. Bailey and Kalae take Linda and Trish for a ride.

Summer solstis photo contest - Maui

Assignment: Illustrate a day in the life of your horse.

Whats happening on Maui?

No Posts since May?? LOL life is just zipping by. It has been gale winds the last week. This is a relief because the week prior it was really hot. Between noon and 3 it was "Stay in the shade or go to the beach".

Flat Stanley from Washington DC visits Maui

Flat Stanley has traveled over 4,800 miles to Maui. He has spent the day at work with the Paramedics at Medic-5 in Napili. He even has a surfboard and was down at S-Turns in Kahana for the sunset. He hopes to go to a Luau, go snorkeling and see a volcano.

Arizona in April is a great time to travel

Back to Arizona for the USDF L program judges final testing. Last year at around this same time it was brutally hot in Phoenix. This year I was not very warm in my down jacket. It was great weather to be riding in though. It is always fun seeing all the horses. Did the sister unit pass her test??? She has to wait it out...suspense!

My great friends Dianne and Jim took me on a road trip to South-eastern Arizona! Tombstone, Benson, Bisby and to the amazing Katchner Caverns.

I needed a pair of jangling roweled spurs, a 6 shooter on my hip and a horse at my side as I strolled the streets of Tombstone. Big Nose Kates Saloon had the perfect old west atmosphere and the best quisedilla's I have ever had. Did you know in the late 1800's Tombstone was one of the biggest citys beside's San Fran and St. Louis. The Courthouse is a museum and well worth the tour.

Bisby is nearly on the boarder with Mexico. A old mining town nestled in the hills it is quite interesting. The boarder patrol - guns and all; asked us to state our country of origin. United States, America, Hawaii?

Katchners Caverns near Benson was amazing. In the 1970 2 college guys found a narrow hole, enlarged it and squeezed in. They found stalagtites and mites, huge columns and other amazing formations. They asked the land owners to consider preserving it. The Katchenrs did and for 14 years everything was kept in secret until it became a AZ state park. Then the developed it to best preserve the caverns. Multiple sealed locking doors, temperature control and closing the main cave for the bats breeding season starting just about now, through the summer.

We had a 9 hour return trip up eastern AZ passing the Salt river. Wow it was like the Grand Canyon.

A action packed vacation, but on arriving home it was cool and rainy. I almost needed to put my down jacket back on!

Photo's Willow lake in Prescott, Big Nose Kate's saloon in Tombstone, Salt River

Whales, Whales, Whales

March has been a fantastic month for whale watching. Any time you look at the ocean you see a big splash or a spout. Last Friday off Polo Beach in Wailea, while snorkeling we could hear high pitched whale noise. On coming ashore were a mom and baby heading south along the coast. The baby was breaching. Mom would stick her fin out of the water. Much further off shore was a tail slapping Humpback with the sound of the impact reaching ous just after we would see the splah. On Tuesday in La Peruse Bay there was a pod of 3 adult Humpback's and a baby heading toward the Big Island at a good clip. Suddenly the lead whale decelerates quickly, floats for a few seconds and turns around. Soon the pod is circling. The Baby spy hops in the middle of the circle. They do this for approximately 30-40 minutes. Staying in the same spot. Circling and diving. We saw this same thing on Wed out off Kanaio in the Alinuinuihaha channel between Maui and the Big Island. This time the pod was the largest I have ever seen. The channel was unusually calm, no white caps and you could see the current lines. A large pod was heading north toward Hana when suddenly they stopped and started circling. You could see light blue bubbles forming in a circle against the dark cobalt blue background. The whales circled and then disappeared for a few minutes and would all break back on the surface at the same time. There were 12 adults counted all together. Further south approximately 1 mile away was a smaller pod of 2-3. Then 2 miles off shore you could see a large splash.