Ensenada Mexico

Arrived around 0700 hrs greeted by seals and birds,California and Heerman gulls,Brown Pelican and Pelagic cormorant.

This is the port at Ensenada where we docked this morning back to the birds the Brown pelicans are always splendid.

We had breakfast in our room as Royal Terns flew by in good numbers.
While waiting to get off clocked Great Blue Heron plus a number of Clarks Grebes now split from Western Grebe check out the area around their eyes to confirm.

0940HRS we disembark with liz rich,ann and peter walking past the numerous tourist shops noting day of the dead T shirts etc.

We stopped for a beer and was entertained by a guitarist singing Guantanamera.We eventually saw a Mariacchi band before making our way to the Riviera del Pacifico a renovated casino and museum .

Inside the former casino chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the museum was excellent.

The natural history museum held some interesting relics from the past ,native americans,pottery etc.

A final loop of the town  before a Mexican meal of enchiladas etc devoured by the gang.

Walking back to the boat I clocked up Osprey,Curlew and a number of Clarks grebes. Finally two imposing Guadalope fur seals as we boarded
Ensenada is located in Baja California on Mexicos western shore.
Portugese explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo discovered this small bay in 1542 and named it San Mateo. It was renamed by Spanish explorer Sebastian Vizcaino as Ensenada de Todos los Santos.
Margarita a tequila based drink was invented at Hussongs cantina in 1892.

So ends another cruise its LA in the morning and coming home on the red eye the next morning Aloha Adios and Goodbye

Two more days before Mexico

Monday the 17th of October overcast rain in the air spent some time on Lido deck had a Pina Colada thought I was Del boy,only two flying fish before 1500hrs ,time for a siesta before another Captains night.
Awaiting Rich and Liz got the champers on ice and Lionel on the I pad.
Great night six of us eating having a dance and the crack with the Geordies and Ronnie and Reggie.

Final day Caz at the launderette,I'm looking for the elusive birds of the Pacific ocean.The boats rocking its Beaufort 8 from the west,its 1500 hrs and its still rocking I'm reading Arsene Wengers  biography another day of heavy seas ,Carols almost sick not our best day.

At Sea for 5 Days

First day sunny a cup of tea seawatching 0715 winds from the south the Pacific yields little a few shearwaters before breakfast.
Chatting to fellow passengers at lunch time now Ronnie and Reggie  (aliases) boxed with the former owner?of the George in Holloway Rd .
Not a lot of people know that.A siesta followed by two flying fish brought the day to a close.Next day  all quiet sea watching produced a Red footed Booby.

Nothing much else doing

 

Getting over a late night doing a Karaoke song only one my rendition of Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding ,adulation from the Geordies and Ronnie and Reggie finishing in Crooners bar not Gooners. Heard they beat Swansea 3-2 GOALS from Ozil and Theo.

Well back to today its flat calm as I gaze across the Pacific not a bird in sight.A message from Sarah Naga has blue hair and dressed as a mermaid.

There's no mermaids in this ocean and Strictly no birds.Distant Bulwers petrels  so small against a mass of blue.Evening meal with Rich and Liz ended the day.

 

Big Island or Hawaii its aloha Hilo

Awoke 0630hrs cruising past the island of Hawaii,of note probably a couple of Christmas Petrels,Tropic birds and Cattle Egrets.

On docking I'm grilling the shoreline hoping for more.

and I get a small flock of Ne Ne or Hawaiian geese in flight,just the tonic as last chance for this island endemic and national bird.

083Ohrs breakfast,never hot Caz gets the hump,off the ship around 0900hrs
at Hilo where we take a taxi to Rainbow Falls.
Aptly named this 442ft produced a rainbow.

The Waluku river runs below it legend here of monster and man only tourist today.

Next stop was the Lilluokalani Gardens ,these were Japanese style gardens.

The Bashi style was quite pleasing to the eye as I looked around for some birds much to Carols annoyance.First a Wandering Tattler another Alaskan migrant at close quarters.

Also of note another introduced species seen in Africa prior was the Yellow Fronted Canary.

Reluctantly leaving the park with its architecture and birds,our next stop was the market.

A few beers and lunch at a splendid restaurant called the Pineapple halted our progress,then it was on the hop on hop off bus back to port.

Hilo at a glance founded by the Polynesian boatmen around1100 and famed English explorer James Cook moored in Hilo Bay in 1778.Climate 127 inches of rain a year today the sun shone all day . The Ne Ne goose is Hawaii's state bird the world's 6th most endangered wildfowl.More birds have become extinct in Hawaii than in any other part of the world.
Due to changes in their natural habitats,forest destruction,rats,mongooses and man.

Maui Lahaina

Arrived Lahaina around 0630 hrs a few wedge tail shearwaters and spinner dolphins.Tenders dropping to prepare for landing at 0745 hrs tea on the balcony and our first Frigate bird of the trip.

Todays weather 68- 81degrees

 

 

Founded by the Polynesians around

1100AD population 160,202.Captain Cook arrived here in 1778 a whaling port.Just off the harbour a giant Banyan tree afforded some shelter from the sun.

This port is very touristy with restaurants and shopping outlets,we managed

to find the local prison which was small but of interest as we evaded the heat.

Outside the prison was an old model TFord car along with other relics.

During the whaling boom of the mid 1800s up to 1,500 sailors from as many as 400 ships took leave in Lahaina including Herman Melville who immortalized the era in his classic Moby Dick.

The historic Baldwin home is now a museum dates back to 1834.

Iwa the Frigate bird as we leave Maui around 1815 hrs a little late due to a medical problem.

Oahu Honululu

Docked around 0645 hrs of note 2 Brown Boobys and a single Wedge tailed Shearwater. Our tour is booked to Oahu's North Shore,

 

 

We pass through emerald green forest and the Ko'oalu mountains.

Our first stop was the Byodo temple which was on the Windward south coast.

Here Koi carp and Black Swan resided around this wonderfull piece of Japanese architecture.

On to the China mans hat in Kualoa regional Park.

just prior to the beach a few species of bird obliged,the long distant migrant the Pacific golden plover.

Along side this bird the introduced Red crested Cardinal is quite the poser.

Moving North to Malaekahana an empty beach it looked peacefull here before moving on to Kahuku point and the shrimp shack for lunch.

Here the shrimp ponds held the endemic Coot which was nice to get.

As was the sub species of Hawaiian Stilt (knudsensis).

Hawaiian duck also but tinged by Mallard and a single Black crowned Night Heron.

Passing sun set beach we missed  a Hawaiian Monk Seal moving down to Laniakea proved good for surfers

KAUAI

Woke up around 0730hrs we could see Kauiai  in the distance and two Blue footed Boobys as we began to dock.

We left the boat and joined a tour  our first stop was Hanapepe valley.

It was here we saw our first White tailed tropic birds.

This was the only species on view as I gave this valley a scour in  the short time allowed.

Next up Waimea canyon highlighted by Mark Twain as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific,known as the garden isle the canyon is3,567 ft deep and twelve mile long,this panoramic area was used for filming Jurassic park.

Then on to Waimea where Captains Cooks landing site and statue could be seen.

Our last stop was at Poipu where at Spouting Horn Park on the South Shore is a natural lava tube that releases a huge geyser.

It was here the Bristle thighed Curlew flew over calling and on the nearby golf course a moorhen  of the sub species sandvicensis showed.

Left Kauiai around 1730hrs sunset with shearwaters and a pod of dolphins as our first day in the Hawaiian archipelago draws to a close.

All at Sea

Saturday the 8th of October with the clocks going forward again tonight tiredness and boredom has crept in as I adjust to lack of wildlife and sleep.
0740 HRS a pod of Dolphins with up to 20 Laysan Albatrosses and a Hawaiian petrel.

Rainbows and Shearwaters, at 930hrs a South Polar Skua flying south showing white wing patches.A Pacific Golden Plover flew over the boat calling,the following day sea watching improved a Newells Shearwater and up to 14 Wedgetails.
The Pacific ocean between LA and Hawaii appears to hold no visible islands,hence a void of missing void of birds,we arrive in Kaui tomorrow morning.