Splashing through the final days in Maui!
July 23, 2025
On Day 9 of the trip we got up early to catch the morning swells for our second day of Surfing! Our group was treated to another great time on the blue waters of Makena Cove catching waves. The weather was great for everyone to sharpen their skills out in the ocean and build on what they have been instructed by our surfing guides. In particular, Willy, Halsey and Carr went past the normal surfing break with all the surfing instructors and took on the waves impressively, by themselves – so impressive! After a fun morning to close out surfing on the trip, we took the group back to Maui Montessori, to rest and shower off from the early wake up and prepare for the afternoon. The girls were able to tan on the basketball court while the guys got some games of spike ball in. Shortly after, we headed to Pono Grown Farms just down the road for our farm activity. Evan has run Pono Grown for about 22 years and shared to us his wealth of knowledge in sustainable agriculture and gave our group hands-on practice. We got to help out Evan and the farm by mulching avocados, where Genie and Ella were a real dynamic duo! After our hard work, Evan rewarded us with his slip in slide in his yard. Everyone had a great time flying down the hill, and Olivia was by far the fastest one! Before heading in for the night, we stopped in Makawao for an ice cream and shave ice stop for the whole group. We rounded out the day cooking chicken and pasta with marinara sauce before some late basketball before dark and Moonup!
Day 10 was a very early morning because we had to get out for kayaking before the wind got too strong! We got to watch the sun rise as we all got ready for the day and ate breakfast. After a short ride we made it to the water and began to get ready for our morning on the water! We got randomly paired up by our guide Griff and we got out to paddle and see the beautiful views. We paddled to a coral reef and got to get out and swim! We saw turtles, coral, fish, and we even got to see an octopus! We hopped back in our kayaks and Genie and Rosie made all of us laugh as we paddled back to shore. Once we got in the van we drove to the beach to relax and play for a few hours! After we were all tired from the sun and water we went to Walmart!! Our next day was the Olympics so to prepare we got matching t-shirts and anything blue we could find to represent our team color. Once we returned to camp we all cleaned up, took showers, and went to town for our local food stop! We got so much flatbread we couldn’t possibly have had more but luckily we all had room for ice cream. After stuffing ourselves to the brim we went home for Moonup and bedtime!
On day 11 it was Ella’s Birthday!! We made a big stack of sprinkle chocolate chip pancakes with candles on top to start off the day! Then we headed to the beach to hang out and wait for our hula lesson to start! Our lesson started with learning about different Hawaiian instruments and then learning a short routine. Everyone killed it and everyone followed Jack’s lead as he was front and center. After our lesson we surprised the group with Raising Canes as per request of the birthday girl! Then we headed back to our campsite to prepare for Maui Olympics!! We decorated shirts, practiced games, and got ready for the other 2 groups to come. We had so much fun with the other groups and everyone gave it their all! One of our group highlights was Anna Webb and Olivia making it to the final round of birdie in the Perch! While we didn’t win, we were all rewarded with a grill out of hotdogs and some good old quality time together. We ended the night with an ice cream run and a car ride full of Ella’s favorite songs! When we got back to camp we had moonup and then went to bed early in order to rest up for their very last full day in Maui!!
On Day 12 of the trip we woke up early for Windsurfing! We ate a breakfast of oatmeal before heading off to the shore break and coastline of Kanaha beach park in Northern Maui which is world renowned for windsurfing. After instruction from Olympic trial qualifier windsurfing guides the group gave great effort getting down the technical aspects of windsurfing with basics of sailing! Halsey specifically mastered the basics of it in just one morning, with our guide telling me he had completed everything they could even teach him in one day! Rosie also impressively displayed her sail 360 trick she learned on the water! Instead of eating sandwiches we treated the group to açaí and smoothies at local food trucks in Kahului! Carr and Cooper got burgers, while George got a club sandwich. To prepare for the final night Banquet we headed to Goodwill, where each student was assigned a different person to pick out a crazy outfit for! Sophie and Genie had the best outfits and equally picked out great ones for their assigned friends. After picking out snacks and drinks at the convenience store, our group drove back to Montessori to tidy up camp before we hosted the Banquet Luau for all three groups! I can’t think of a better way to close out the trip, the ukeleu and hula dancers performed while every Maui Moondance student dined on deliciously catered luau barbecue food. To close out the luau two fire dancers put on a breathtaking show to put an exclamation point on the banquet! In our final night as group, we reflected on the trip, played fishbowl, gave out paper plate awards and had a spelling bee. The final night in Maui was spent cowboy camping under the stars taking in an unforgettable final full day in Hawaii
Magical Moments in Maui!
July 18, 2025
Its the middle of our trip and we are having so much fun! Time has flown bye and its hard to believe we are almost done with our trip. Day 5 of our trip started off with some hard work at a conservation activity! We had an early morning to beat the heat and we got to Kipuka Olowalu where they are trying to get rid of evasive plants and bring back more indigenous plants. Our job for the day was to help mulch and use layers of cardboard as a way to keep weeds out. We spent the first part of our morning helping shovel mulch and layer cardboard and Rosie was an unstoppable force! She kept working even when it was hot and we were all tired and she never once complained! Her positivity and grateful attitude helped everyone continue and remember the reason why we were working. After our hard work we were rewarded with some Lilikoi! Aka passionfruit. We got to try several other fruits that they grow on their land and even learn a little bit about the history of the place. Once we left we hopped in the car and went to the beach to cool down and wash all the dirt off! It was a quick trip because of the wind so after we cleaned up we decided to take a break at the park before our next activity, a cooking class!! The cooking class was at La Kahea Farms! We got to tour the farm and harvest the food that we would be eating and then we were split into groups for a competition on who could make the best part of the meal. We had tacos with guava slaw and pineapple pico de gallo. Olivia and Cooper were the life of the party making everyone laugh with their competitive spirit and their amazing cooking skills! We all had a great meal and we even got banana ice cream as dessert!! After a great night with a beautiful sunset we headed on home for Moonup and sleep! On day 6 we woke up early to go surfing! The waves weren’t the biggest but we still had so much fun! We cracked jokes and laughed with our instructors and got pushed into waves one by one. Halsey and Carr perfected their tandem ride and we all cheered them on! After surfing, we went to our favorite beach nearby and the water was crystal clear! Then we headed to Costco to shop for our “Iron Chef” competition we decided to hold for dinner. Each team was allotted a budget and chose a meal they wanted to make for the judges (us leaders). The competition was intense. Ella flipped her very first burgers to perfection and Genie helped make an amazing Spaghetti Alfredo. The losing team cleaned up dinner while the rest of us played spike ball and hung out before moonup. After moonup we headed to bed to end our long, exciting day! Day 7 was another day at Kipuka Olowalu for conservation work! This time we got to help de-weed wet taro patches. It was hot and hard but we made it fun and got the work done! Sophie worked hard the whole time and her determination was extremely admirable. After working for so long we sat by the stream and dipped our hands in the water to cool down. As a prize for all of our hard work we stopped by the local deli and pie shop called Leoda’s! We got salads, sandwiches, and miniature pies and it was beyond delicious! After stuffing ourselves full we came back to camp, showered, changed, and went to the town Paia for a little shopping! Everyone got gifts for the family, fun shirts for themselves, and ice cream! We ended the night with homemade stir fry for dinner and Moonup!
Day 8 – The girls got the day off to a strong start with a Pilates workout around the Montessori campsite! Vibes were high as the group was pumped to head to West Maui for a day of Ziplining at Kapalua Ziplines! Even while making it through some light rain and wind the group persevered through and knocked out all 6 ziplines. Anna Webb loved the fastest (and final) zipline and was the quickest to finish it in Group B. The clouds lifted in the second half our afternoon and we were treated to u forgettable views of the Maui coastline and nearby islands from our zipline towers and even a suspension bridge! Our time at Kapalua would finish with a trip to the pro shop where both Jack and George would make purchases to help out both of their golf games at home! After changing back at camp we surprised with a plan to get chick fil a for dinner and head to the beach for sunset! A taste of home in the form of chick fil a sandwiches and nuggets had the whole group in great spirits! We closed the day watching the pink in orange sunset from Northern Mauis Kanaha Beach, where Willy and the other guys on the group tossed the football enjoying the view!
Thank you’s:
- Willy – Hey mom and dad, I’m having so much fun. Today we zip-lined and I can’t wait to see you.
- Halsey – Hey mom and dad, we went zip-lining today. Can’t wait to see you, and I’m having so much fun.
- Rosie- hi mom and dad, I am having a lot of fun. We have done so many cool activities and today we went zip-lining. Thank you so much for sending me here this has been the best experience. Can’t wait to see you!! MULU❤️
- Anna Webb- hi mom and dad, I’m having so much fun. Zip-lining today was so cool and the views were so pretty. We also went surfing on Monday and i loved it. Thank you for sending me on this trip, i love my group and I am having the best time. Can’t wait to tell you about it!!
- Olivia- hey mom and dad! Having so much fun, just finished zip-lining and saw some awesome views! See ya soon!!
- Carr- hey Mom and Dad. I am having so much fun. We just finished zip-lining it was really fun. Can’t wait to see ya soon!
- Cooper- hey mom and dad. I am having so much fun, we just finished zip-pinng and it was really fun. Can’t wait to see ya soon!
- Ella- Hi mom and dad! I’ve been having so much fun and I’ve made like literally the greatest friends and I have the best counselors on earth. Also once I get my license I’m doing a big trip to pick up all my friends. Tell Bridget I miss her and love her. I got you guys some gifts but I’m not sure they are the best.. Miss you bunch but just wish i could stay here..anyways love you guys so much.
- Sophie- Hey family! I am so excited to see all of you guys. Thank you so much for sending me here, I am having the best time! We have also done surfing zip lining and community service since the last time I talked to you guys. love you guys!!♥️
- Genie-hi guys! I’m having so much fun and I’m so sad to leave. My group is so good and we’re all close. Maui is so pretty and today we did zip lining and it was so fun. I’ve made the best friends and i feel like all we do is laugh. See y’all soon!
- George- Hey mom and dad! I’m having such a fun time at camp and we did zip lining. Afterward we stopped at a pro shop and I got a hat and new head cover. By the way, thank you for getting my card working for me. I appreciate that. My cuts are also healing nicely. I can’t wait to see you soon. Love y’all ♥️
Aloha from Maui!
July 15, 2025
Our first days together as a group have been so amazing and we are having so much fun! We started off day 1 with airport day and Halseys birthday!! We waited in the airport for everyone to arrive then we grabbed a treat from Starbucks for the birthday boy and left for camp! Everyone was pretty jeg lagged so we had Costco pizza for dinner, some birthday cake, and then we had our first Moonup and bed!
Day 2 was our first full day together and we had stand up paddle boarding! It took a little bit of practice but we were all able to actually stand up and we even got a picture all together! Though it took a lot of work fighting the wind so no telling if we were all looking! After our paddle boarding we learned a little history about Maui and got to try some fun Hawaiian fruit drinks! With our juice in hand we left to go get changed and start our hike! Waihee ridge trail is known for its steep climb but beautiful views and everyone did amazing! Morale was high and the group was flying!! Olivia was leading the pack and leaving half of us wondering how she was hiking so fast. We had lots of water breaks and stops to look at the view but we finally made it to the top and it was so worth it! The blue ocean and green mountains surrounding were gorgeous. Our way down was just as fun and maybe even a little more challenging trying not to slip on all the dust. Ella and Genie were belly laughing with dirt all over their left side and back by the end of the hike. After our amazing day we were all ready to wash off a little so we went to the beach!! Our first beach visit of the trip and it didn’t disappoint. The water was so clear and we all played in the water for 2 hours. By the end we were all so tired but so happy. We went back to camp, showered, and then all got to working on dinner! Taco bowls were on the menu for the night and Carr and Jack took it upon themselves to cook the ground beef for us! We all assembled our meals and ate together at one big table. After dinner and cleaning up we all met on the basketball courts to watch the stars and end our night with Moonup!
Day 3 was a late morning and we were so thankful for it because we got to make a big breakfast!! We made the biggest stack of chocolate chip and sprinkle pancakes and put a bunch of candles on it for Sophie’s birthday! We all sang to her and had a hearty breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and sausage! After breakfast we hopped in the car to drive to rappelling!! We got to drive on the Road to Hāna and see some gorgeous views. It was drizzling a little but that didn’t stop us! We got to rappel down waterfalls and land in a beautiful body of water. Everyone went down almost flawlessly… We had a few slips but they all recovered beautifully! We all got to write our nicknames on our helmets and Cooper now goes by J.B., short for Jersey Boy! When we were all finished we got some snacks and lunch and got back on the road to go to the beach!! We tried a new beach today and it was so fun! Pretty windy but the perfect temperature and the waves were so fun to play in! We laid on the sand and chatted and played in the waves without goggles. Once we left we were all hungry and ready for dinner! We got back and started on making our pizza bagels! We got English muffins, marinara sauce, cheese, and pepperoni and heated them up on the stove! George said it was his favorite meal! We finished it up with some birthday cake for the birthday girl, Moonup, and an early bedtime for our very early morning the next day.
On day 4 we woke up super early for our boat day and snorkel all around the island and Molokini Crater!! The conditions were amazing and the sky was so clear that we could see the Big Island! We jumped in at four different snorkel spots and saw so many amazing fish, huge turtles, and four baby reef sharks! Rosie went around taking pictures of everyone on her underwater camera and spotting new colorful fish. Anna Webb relaxed on the boat at our last stop, taking in the views and the warm Maui sun. We hung out on the boat for a while, before heading to the beach for the rest of the day. The sun was hot but the water was crystal clear so we spent most of our time playing in the ocean! When we got back to camp, an intense spike ball tournament began as we started cooking dinner. Willy and Halsey crushed every team they played! This quickly turned into someone proposing a girls versus boys basketball match, which ended in Rosie making the winning basket for the girls!! We ended our night with pasta and chicken and lots of dinner conversation about the awesome day we had. We had moonup under the stars, which were the brightest they’ve been all week, and stargazed in the hopes of seeing some shooting stars. Jack saw three!
This group is so incredibly energetic and they have all gotten so close already! We are so excited to see what the rest of this trip holds!
Shoutouts!!
Rosie- hi mom and dad!!! Maui is so pretty and the water is so clear. Yesterday we went snorkeling and we got to swim with turtles and baby sharks. I am having so much fun! I promise I am wearing so much sunscreen. Say hi to June for me!!! MULU ♥️
Ella- Hi mom and dad! I’ve been having so much fun and my group is great. This is definitely one of the best experiences of my life. Thank you so much! Yesterday we had a boat day and went snorkeling and I spotted sharks, turtles, and a bunch of other pretty fish. Tell everyone I miss them! See you soon❤️
Anna Webb- Hey!! I am having so much fun and I love my group. Yesterday was my favorite so far, it was boat day. We went snorkeling and we saw so many turtles. Thank you guys for sending me on this trip, I love it. Can’t wait to tell you guys all about it!! Love you♥️
Olivia- Hi mom and dad!! Having so much fun here and I have an awesome group. We had a boat day yesterday and got to go snorkeling and got to see so many turtles and sharks. Thank you for sending me on this amazing trip. It’s awesome. Hope you’re having fun in Portugal, tell Graham and Riley I say hi! Love you!♥️
George- Hey mom and dad I’m having a fun time in Maui and we have a great group. Today we’re doing community service and after that we’re doing a cooking class. This trip is so good the water is so nice here. The only thing I really miss about Baton Rouge is I can play golf there. If me and dad ever come here the courses are so nice. We really need to come back and play some of these because I’m so sad when I look out the window and see them and I can’t play them. Tell lene I said hi and love yall see yall in a few days.
Cooper- Hi mom and dad I’m having a great time here thanks for letting me come love you guys
Sophie- Hi fam,I am having the best time ever thank you so much for letting me come here. The views are some of the best. We have already gone paddle boarding and we went on a boat for the day. The snorkeling of the boat was so good. I saw a million turtles and you swim right next to them and I saw baby sharks, eels and so many fish. We go to the beach after every day and we are doing community service today which should be fun. I miss and love all you guys so much. I can’t wait to tell you guys everything.♥️
Genie- Hi family, It feels so weird to type but Maui is so fun, and I’m having the best time. I love my group and today we are doing conservation, beach, and cooking class at the end of the day. Yesterday we had a boat day and went snorkeling. Anyways, we saw so many turtles and the water was so blue and clear. I am having the best time and thank you for letting me come here. Say hi to Winnifred for me and Fran. I love you all, Genie
Jack – Hey family,
I am having a great time in Maui and I am having a lot of fun, I wish all of you the best.
Love, Jack
Halsey – Hey family, I am having a great time at camp and I’m having a lot of fun, can’t wait to see you all soon.
Love, Halsey
Willy- Hey family, Maui has been very fun and I can’t wait to see y’all soon.
Love, Willy
Carr- Hey family, I am having a great time in Maui. I am so excited to see y’all soon.
love Carr
Safe Arrival in Maui!
July 11, 2025
Hello Maui Families!
We heard from our leaders this morning that the group has landed safely in Maui! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure! Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
