Two days ago, I posted some surf photos and here are more today. These are from yesterday morning, when I stopped at Kawaihae to see how the surfers were doing. The surf was down from the day before, but there were still some good sets rolling in.
There were several surfers in the water, but this was the only person I saw who caught a wave.
Yesterday, I posted photos from the latest of a series of swells rolling in from the northwest. After the last one, and before the next, I got in the water for a swim. It wasn’t great. Visibility was poor and the swells were still a good size.
The highlight of the swim was drying off afterwards and seeing several Humpback Whales active not far offshore. There were a few good breaches, which naturally escaped my camera, but I did get photos of some vigorous tail slapping, which was fun to see.
Achilles Tangs are one of those fish that I see frequently, but rarely get the chance to photograph. They hang around in the shallows, but scoot for cover when approached. This fish was doing just that, but I managed to get this photo before it disappeared around the corner.
Just a leaf floating in the blue Pacific.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Through a Window.’ See more responses here.
A variety of photos this week, with captions on the photos.
Sunday Stills challenge theme this week and last week is ‘Your 2023 Year-in-Review.’ See more responses here. As before, I’m going with a favorite photo from each month of 2023, with a caption and link to the post the photo first appeared in. Last week, I posted favorites from January through June. This week, it’s July through December.
In this view of the coast at Lapakahi State Historical Park, the large rock in the foreground was believed to be the home of Ku’ula, the fishing god. Local fishermen would leave a portion of their catch for him and, in return, would catch many fish next time they went out.
Pacific Trumpetfish can be seen in many guises. They’re usually gray or brown according to my fish book, but can be yellow or black with a variety of stripes and bars added to their look, depending on circumstances. The purpose of all these looks is to blend in with their surroundings so that they can more easily ambush fish that are their prey.
The trumpetfish in these photos were accompanying Convict Tangs. The yellow look in the top photo is more often seen when they’re around Yellow Tangs, but the natty look in the bottom photo works better with the tangs and the area they’re swimming.
Pacific Trumpetfish are easily spotted while snorkeling, because they’re a decent size and have a much different look to the fish they accompany. This seems like a failure on their part, but when these fish are seen from the front, which is the view their prey have, they’re virtually invisible!
Graham's Island 