Day with the dolphins. Night with the Mantas.

Tour Company: Sunlight on Water If you are ever in Kona and want to snorkel with dolphins or Manta rays we highly recommend this company. We were lucky enough to have an exceptional day swimming out in open waters with about 100 dolohins!! An unforgetable experience which filled our hearts & spirits.



We were swimming with dolphins all around us. We could here their clicks and whistles very clearly. It was amazing. We were definitely close enough to touch them but were asked not to reach out towards them or we would lose the opportunity. All the dolphins would simply swim away & disappear. We were able to spend about 2 hours with them.
It was surreal swimming right next to them as they looked you right in the eyes and sometimes even greeted you with a nod of their head. Truly incredible!

Kraig caught this fantastic leap/spin while we were out there swimming with them.


That same evening we went back out for the night dive with the manta rays. Acutally we were snorkeling above the rays, shining lights down and there were divers on the bottom shining their lights up. These light beams created enoght light for thousands of plankton to appear which is what the manta rays feed on.

Some of these manta rays had a mouth 4-6 ft. wide and wingtip to wingtip of about 12-16 ft. They were the most graceful creatures you could ever imagine. Watching them was like watching an underwater ballet and being right on the stage as they danced around you. It is hard to believe how close they get to you without ever touching you. Sometimes within just a couple of inches.
This one is a small 8-9 ft. wingtip to wingtip.
(We have video footage which I haven't figured out how to post. Sorry.)

Aloha Hawaii!!

Okay so we had some camera & cable problems and couldn't resolve until getting back home. They are now resolved so for all you virtual vactioners out there: Enjoy the trip!
(I'll try to add a few days worth every day or two so keep checking back.)

Hotel & Coconut Island, Hilo Farmers Market, Snorkeling & Tropical Rain Forest

Hilo Hawaiian Hotel

The hotel sits on Banyan Street Drive which is worth driving even if you are not in one of the hotels here. The Banyan trees are Huge and each was planted by someone famous. Most are from the 30s era.


Our balcony view of Coconut Island

Dylan had a quick view then flew off to Honolulu to take the ACT.(Oops - no calculator.)


At the Hilo Farmers Market. Ahhh. The sights, sounds, smells & tastes fill your senses! A MUST!


Next stop beautiful Leleiwi Beach for some snorkeling. Plenty of fish and a couple of turtles too!


Late afternoon we picked up Dylan from the airport and headed into the tropical rain forest. Volcano Inn near Volcano Village will be our next stop for the night. It sits right in the middle of a tropical rain forest. Very awesome and we can highly recommend it!!


While in a tropical rain forest ya gotta do the tarzan thing right?



Volcano Natl. Park - Kilauea
Main crater from original eruption. Areas around the crater are still hot and steaming.


There were steamy spots and the rocks around them were all very hot. It's a volcano guys - duh!



We saw steam from lava flowing into the ocean in the distance but it would have been a five mile hike across rough lava fields to actually see some flowing.Walking a few hundred yards on it to the ocean edge was good enough for us.
Seemed strange to be observing and walking on land still in the making.

After the volcano area we explored a black sand beach.

Then a green sand beach. This one is at the Southern most point of the U.S.
The end of another great day.

He's made it!

The graduation/awards from his Technology Class was last Thursday.
Dylan was the recipient of 12 different awards & certificates. His top honors were: Century Club for completing over 100 business goals; Voted "Above and Beyond" most helpful classmate by his peers, #5 of the Class Top 10 List and a Gold Certificate Award for his score on an ACT Business Exam with National recognition (only 3 of these were awarded).
He'll be graduating with his high school class on Tuesday. Way to go Dylan! Modest & accomplished. We are so proud.