04.03.07
My Hawaiian adventure started the morning when my husband and I decided to go snorkeling. We checked out the “bible” (if you’ve been to Hawaii, you probably know what I’m talking about — they’re the blue books called “Maui Revealed” or “Big Island Revealed” and you see people carrying them all over) and discovered the best snorkeling in Maui was at this place called “The Fish Bowl.” It was a bit of a walk, but the author assured us it was worth it.
So, off we went to find “The Fish Bowl.” However, it quickly became apparent this was going to be a bit of a challenge. Where we were supposed to park and find the path was blocked off with “no parking signs” and there wasn’t a path to be found.
But, according to the little map, there were actually two paths to the fish bowl, the direct one, which didn’t appear to be accessible anymore, and an indirect one, which started at a public beach.
Off to the indirect path we went. There was parking and the beginning of a path through lava rocks, so we headed down it.
However, before too long, the path pretty much disappeared and we found ourselves scrambling over things that resembled lava craters rather then simple rocks. (Yes, the book DID say we were in for a bit of a hike, but there was nothing in there about the quality of the path.)
We did finally make it out to “The Fish Bowl,” only to discover we couldn’t snorkel. The waves were crashing against a very rocky shoreline. That was all we needed. Getting dashed against the rocks, only to try and drag our bleeding bodies back to civilization (and medical attention) over those lava craters.
So, we went back. Dragging all our snorkel gear. And that was where my foot slipped and I scraped my right leg but good against a lava rock. I looked like I was in a motorcycle accident. I’ve been told I’ll have scars.
It didn’t stop me from snorkeling later though. I decided I was in Hawaii for only a short time and I wasn’t letting a little thing like a scraped up leg stop me from snorkeling.
But something good did come out of all that. As we were leaving, we started talking to a family. Their daughter asked me about my leg, and I explained what I had done. As we walked away, I could hear the mother say, “That’s why we tell you not to run in the rocks.” It’s not every day you get to be an Afterschool Special.
