Monday, December 16
Well, Maui has never been high on our list of islands to visit by boat and this time was no exception. We pulled into La Perouse Bay just before sunrise and John found a patch of sand for the anchor. We didn't plan to go ashore but it looked like an interesting place with several people driving in to take a look at it. Unfortunately, after breakfast and a morning nap, conditions had deteriorated and we weren't comfortable rolling in the swell.
We left La Perouse at Noon and motored around the back side of Molokini for a look at that. The snorkeling side was already choppy so we gave it a pass and continued on to Point McGregor. We ended up too close to some rocks to the left on our first anchor set, but after a second try we were satisfied with our position directly below a ridge of wind turbines. This anchorage has absolutely nothing to recommend it. There is no place to go ashore and it's right under a busy highway. But John put up our Christmas lights and we probably made a lovely sight for people not used to seeing a sailboat anchored in the middle of nowhere. If you don't plan to visit Lahaina before continuing to Molokai, then this is probably a more protected spot to spend the night - but that's all I can say in its favor.
We saw several humpback whales throughout the day - spouts, a baby breaching clear out of the water, and lots of fin waving and tail fluking. Maui is great for whale watching this time of year, but I recommend taking one of the early morning tours. After the wind came up by late morning we overheard VHF radio chatter about passengers getting sick when one boat went looking for whales out in the rougher waters between the islands!
{GMST}20|35.425|N|156|24.998|W|Maui|La Perouse Bay{GEND}
{GMST}20|46.595|N|156|31.477|W|Maui|Point McGregor{GEND}
|
|