Save our Shearwaters by Ellie Hancock

Hi. My name is Ellie and I want to tell you about Shearwaters because I don't want them to become extinct.

Here are some things to know about Shearwaters:

1. they build their nests in burrows and lay one egg.

2. they eat squid and tuna.

3. they sound like a crying baby.

4. they howl at the moon.

5. they fly at night and have to go 1000 miles to get their babys food.

6. they are getting extinct.

Here are some things that are not okay for shearwaters:

1. bright lights which can confuse the birds and make them run into something. (From mom: shearwaters use the moon to navigate at night. Bright lights cause them to become disoriented.)

2. no dogs or cats because they can eat shearwaters. (From mom: shearwaters nest on the ground which make them very vulnerable to non-native animals like cats and dogs.)

These are some things that can help shearwaters:

1. if you take a picture of a shearwater please take your flash off so the light won't bother the bird.

2. if you go near some shearwaters please put your dog or cat on a leash.

3. if you find a shearwater on the ground ask a grown up to help you. You can take it to an aid station or the fire station and they will put it in a safe place.

I want to help shearwaters so they won't be extinct.

Molokai - Day 6: Riding at the ranch

Talk about packing it in... Ellie and I squeezed a quick trail ride in at the ranch before catching our 2pm flight back to Kauai...


Ellie enjoyed her ride and I enjoyed getting the local word on island politics first hand.

Molokai - Day 5: Wild Turkeys, Sea Kayaking and the cliffs of Kalaupapa

We were joined by a flock of wild turkeys for breakfast... guess they were hoping we could spare a few extra corn flakes...

After breakfast, we took the girls sea kayaking... Ellie paddled almost the entire 2 miles! (All that swimming has made her arms and shoulders strong!) I was really impressed!

Down the coast we entered a mangrove "forest" and paddled up a narrow stream (sometimes only the width of the kayak). We negotiated through the tunnel of branches and roots which often hung just above our heads. A few times Ellie and I almost ran face first into large spider webs stradling the creek. I don't know who was more freaked out by that... me or the 2" spider staring us down! The stream dumped us into an old "menehune fish pond" believed to be built as early as 800AD.

After the mangrove paddle, we all went out onto the reef and did some snorkeling. It was pretty windy and rough. Kate drank mouthfuls of sea water, but was a trouper! I couldn't talk her into getting back into the boat until Ellie came back in as well...

After kayaking we needed to rehydrate with an island favorite... old fashioned SHAVE ICE! Yum! Then headed up to the lookout over Kalaupapa (the old Leper Colony). Once we arrived on island we found that you have to be 16 to enter the colony, so we weren't able to take the donkey trail down. (Note: the trail goes down the 4000 ft. cliff on the left! These are the highest sea cliffs in the world, which is what made Kalaupapa the perfect prison to contain the lepers. What a sad story of inhumanity and ignorance.)

Molokai - Day 4: Molokai Ranch, Maunaloa & the wharf

View from Hale O Lono Beach.











Boats are lined up in preparation for the annual Molokai Hoe Outrigger Canoe race to Oahu.










Old Maunaloa Town, Molokai Ranch.


















The post office (built in the early 1900s). Where the "old timers" gather to "talk story"...

Molokai - Day 3: Mo'omomi Beach to the Molokai Ranch wharf

2 girls ready for adventure, we set out for Mo'omomi Beach.
Much of this area is owned by native "homesteaders", and it borders several hundred acres managed by the Nature Conservancy. The waves were a bit rough for swimming, so we decided to hike for awhile and wait out the wind... We could see for miles and miles and in all that, we saw only 1 couple with their dog far off in the distance. I thought about what it would feel like to wash up on these shores and be the only ones here...
The wind was so strong and the surf so high, the girls gave up on swimming and decided to be "mermaids". We found some really cool shells from the local spiny lobster. They almost looked like blue porcelan pottery...

Molokai - Day 2: Halawa Bay to "Mile Marker 20"

There is one main road on Molokai running East/West about 30 miles. We stayed at the Western end of the island and in typical Hancock fashion began our adventures by hopping in the car and driving, destination unknown. We drove pretty much until we came to the end of the road and found ourselves at Halawa Bay. Much of the route was via a 1 lane road perched precariously along the cliff edge. Scary, but gorgeous!

Apparently most inhabitants left this area after a huge tsunami wiped away thier homes about 40 years ago. (That made me a little nervous...) A few folks still live in this valley, but overall, it's pretty quiet.

Later we worked our way back to "Mile Marker 20" where we found a great swimming beach.

Kate has gotten so good in the water, she's snorkeling with her sister!

So cool to see them exploring together!

We ended the day with a killer dinner at the Molokai Hotel...

Molokai - Day 1: On our way

Hi friends,

Just got back from 6 days on Molokai. I've always been curious about that island and it was fun to get over there to check it out! We were planning to camp, but had to change plans at the last minute. The place we were planning to camp was closed. It turned out to be a good thing! There was a big storm the first day and the wind was at least 30mph almost our entire stay. Luckily for us, our friend Tim connected us with his dad who has a place there (THANKS TIM!)

The flight in was amazing. We flew in on a little Cessna and flew low enough to view almost the entire island by air. The surf was a little too rough to swim, so Dave went for an "open air" shower to cool off...