You know how you drive by something all the time and say, “I should really take the time to go see that,” but never do?

That was us with the Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge, a mere 5-minute drive from our house in Kihei.

I tagged along with Kathy and her group from the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary (how’s that for a mouthful!) as we were led on a tour today.

It’s one of the few remaining natural wetlands in the Hawaiian Islands, and is home to the endangered Hawaiian stilt (ae’o), Hawaiian coot (‘alae ke’oke’o) and Hawaiian duck (koloa).

It’s fascinating. I don’t know what took me so long. I get so involved with the various projects I’m working on, I don’t take as much time as I should to do things like this.

I just had my 70-200mm f/2.8 VR with me today, so I was limited in what I could capture, but rest assured I’ll be back with better gear.

Aloha…