Hooked on Kiteboarding

Yesterday a kiter was riding in at Ka'a Point with fishermen on the point. He had a line cast at him and got the fishing hook stuck in his kite leash.  Usually the fishermen will respect that a kiter is in the area, other times not. Either way the fishermen always have the right of way and we need to avoid them.  The rule is Kiteboarders give way to fishermen. That means if there is a fisherman on the beach, you launch somewhere else. If someone is fishing at the water’s edge, you should also not sail through their lines or close to their lines. The area where they are casting is a no-go zone. Do not fly or ride into their fishing window just as you would not sail into another kiter’s wind window. Often people will be fishing from the rocks at the pro pool. When this happens we have to avoid their fishing area. And the area becomes the “fishing pool” instead for a while. We do not own the beach. Fishermen have been using this area for generations and we need to respect them and share the areas with them. Sharing in this case means avoiding them, and giving them their turn. Keep in mind how much area they might need to fish both physically for their lines and gear, but also so you do not scare away their dinner. Give them a wide safety buffer, and ride somewhere else for a while.

Maui's most dangerous sea creature!

I have lived on Maui for almost 20 years and many times have been warned of the dangerous marine creatures and beach conditions, including tiger sharks, sea urchins, jelly fish, big shore break and even the horny monk seals at Molokini.  I used to go to La Perouse bay a lot and collect shells and beach comb.  A few years ago I found a beautiful shell. This shell was the most unique and perfect shell I had ever seen, especially in South Maui. I took the shell home and have had it in my collection for many years. The other night I was watching a show on Brazil and their deadliest creatures. I couldn't believe it when I realized it was the same type of shell that I had found at La Perouse Bay. The shell is a cone shell and has a very poisonous snail that lives inside and shoots a venom dart to stun their prey.  Unfortunately there is no anti-venom for this poison and if you are stung you are paralyzed within a few seconds and most people die! So the moral to this story is DO NOT remove or touch and sea life or shells no matter how beautiful they are! Lucky for me there was no snail living in this shell when I found it washed up on the rocks!!