Our October trip to Maui provided me my first opportunities to snorkel, and I became an instant fan. I’m a decent if not elegant swimmer, but I was a little trepidatious about managing the snorkeling apparatus and wondered how well I’d be able to see, considering I wear glasses and am quite nearsighted. The first wise thing we did was go to The Snorkel Store in Kihei (they also have locations in Ka’anapali and Lahaina) and have Kevin (“K-2”) fit us up with gear that we rented for 10 days (giving us a good rate). Kevin fitted us for our flippers and face masks (They have prescription masks, which solved my vision concerns; I could see as clearly as if I had my own glasses on.) and provided us with snorkel mouthpieces/tubes with cleverly engineered valves which don’t allow seawater to wash down the tube. Another concern addressed and solved! He gave the neophytes in the group some clear, simple instructions; provided us with a small bottle of anti-fogging solution to place on the lenses of the masks; provided each of us with a mesh gear bag; and sent us cheerfully on our way. We started slow and easy, exploring the waters on Kamaole Beach just across the street from our condo complex. We quickly figured out it’s easier to wait until you’ve waded in past the surf break to put on the flippers and that there’s more marine life to see around the rocks than over the sandy expanses. Wind and swells from some strong weather fronts made for some challenging currents and less-than-optimum visibility in some of the spots we visited, but we observed that calmer conditions prevail in the morning hours before the afternoon winds pick up. I think our group’s favorite snorkel spot was Honolua Bay, just north of Ka’anapali on Maui’s west shore. The large bay is well-sheltered from wind and strong currents, and though some snorkeling tours come and anchor here, it doesn’t seem to get too crowded. (The “beach” is made up of rounded boulders; no sand to sunbathe on.) We saw beautiful coral here, a large variety of tropical fish (yellow tangs, butterflyfish,  Moorish idols, trumpet- and needlefish, blue cravalle and more), slate pencil sea urchins and sea turtles. I do wish I’d had a waterproof fish guide with me to identify all those colorful fish, but at least we did have daughter Jenny’s GoPro camera to record some of them. We also enjoyed snorkeling by Black Rock in Ka’anapali. It lies at the north end of the beach, and we parked at the Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa‘s parking garage and accessed the public beach through the Sheraton property. The beach here was quite crowded, but the rocks and headland host plenty of sea life. Here we encountered four sea turtles grazing seaweed off the rocks

  We signed up for a snorkel cruise with Friendly Charters Lani Kai out of Maalaea Harbor in Wailuku one afternoon. We had hoped to visit Molokini Crater, a partially submerged crater with a wonderful lagoon a few miles off the Maui coastline. Conditions weren’t right for that destination, however, and we cruised on the large catamaran to Coral Gardens on the west shore instead. We again enjoyed seeing colorful fish and corals, though we missed spotting the turtles which others in our party saw. The crew was friendly and professional and provided a deli lunch, soft drinks, beer and mai tais along with gear for those who didn’t have their own. We agreed, however, that we had enjoyed our own excursions just as much as this chartered one. I loved gently floating over undersea gardens in warm waters and observing the lovely, exotic creatures below. An almost meditative experience, it is one I hope to repeat again and again . . . in the Caribbean, the Great Barrier Reef or anywhere my flippers can take me. — Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor