*** I DON’T OWN ANY OF THE MUSIC IN THIS VIDEO ***

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Duration : 0:3:57

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Hall has been part of the whale watching industry since 1995 and says it is dangerous to swim with any killer whale especially in a confined space.

She believes there are far better ways to educate people about killer whales than keeping them in captivity.

But she also acknowledges the value of SeaWorld and similar operations which she says have helped change the social perspective of killer whales.

Last week a trainer at SeaWorld Orlando was killed by Tilikum, a 5400 kilogram orca.

The whale was also involved in the deaths of two other people including a trainer at the former Sealand of the Pacific in Oak Bay.

A memorial service was held Monday in Chicago for Dawn Brancheau, the trainer who was killed in Florida.

Duration : 0:3:31

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Duration : 0:9:27

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Winter and early spring in Hawaii are especially magical times—well, more magical even than usual in Hawaii. Starting about mid-November and lasting through April, Humpback whales visit our islands. From as far as way as Alaska and as near as California, the Humpies, as we call them, arrive to breed and, cows that bred last year, give birth this year.

An adult humpback weighs approximately one ton per foot, up to 90,000 pounds and can grow over 50 feet in length. Females are slightly larger than the males. Calves range from 10-16 feet in length at birth and weigh an average of 3000 pounds. Marine biologists believe that humpbacks live between 40-60 years.

And every year they come to visit me in my home.

On the West Hawaii coastline there is a place, and no, I’m not going to tell you where, where humpies are known to go to give birth—it’s a deep, protected cove quite near the highway. My hiking buddy and I were returning from a trip into the Kohala Mountains when we noticed several cars pulled off the road at a spot overlooking this cove. And there they were…mother and baby, still attached by umbilical cord. The video, shot hastily and without a tripod is not great, but you can see the baby playing on it’s back, nuzzling it’s mothers teats and just generally reveling at being free and in the marvelous ocean.

I love being in the ocean…it is my place of peace, calm and meditation. But just try to imagine the joy that this baby whale felt, being born into that vast, magical and beautiful realm. Aloha baby humpy…travel safely and come back to us next year.

For more information go to www.tourguidehawaii.com or http://tourguidehawaii.blogspot.com

Duration : 0:2:49

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Duration : 0:1:45

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Duration : 0:10:19

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