Who writes this site
Gerrit van der Plas writes and maintains this site. He lives on Hawaiʻi Island next to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park and has been a Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority (HTA) certified Hawaiʻi Destination Specialist since 2023. He trained as an astronomer. His author page on Love Big Island lists his background and the guides he has written.
The site is published by Love Hawaiʻi Guides, Inc., the company behind Love Big Island and Love Oʻahu. It carries no advertising and no affiliate links.
Independence from the Ocean Count program
This site is not affiliated with NOAA or with the sanctuary’s Ocean Count program. Registration and official results come only from the program’s own site, oceancount.org. We compile the published results across years and add notes on shore spots for watching whales.
About the Sanctuary Ocean Count
NOAA’s Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary has run the Ocean Count since 1996. On the last Saturday of January, February and March, volunteers at shore sites count humpback whales from 8 am to 12:15 pm and record the whales’ surface behavior. On Maui and Lānaʻi, the Pacific Whale Foundation runs its own Great Whale Count on the same days.
Corrections and contact
To report an error in our numbers, email info@lovebigisland.com. For registration or site questions, contact the Ocean Count team through oceancount.org/contact-us.