This is a list that I'm keeping of all the posts related to Hawaii that I have written or intend to write. When I write a new one, I'll update the time-stamp on this entry to make it the most recent, and then I'll add the hyper-link to the post in this list. Entries that have no hyper-link are those which I have yet to write (of which, when I'm done, there shouldn't be any). The order is time-listed with the oldest post listed first.
-- Getting Ready for Vacation
-- Pre-Vacation Checklist
-- Back From Vacation
-- Hawaii Trip - Day 1
-- Kayaking, The Sunken Island, and The King of Kapapa Island
-- The Halona Blowhole
-- The Laie Temple
-- Sea Turtles
-- The Polynesian Cultural Center
-- Diamond Head
-- Snorkeling in Hanauma Bay
-- The Spitting Rock
-- The Arizona Memorial
-- The Dole Pineapple Plantation
-- Sunrise Atop Haleakala
-- Little Friends: Lizards, Birds, and Bugs
-- Funky Flowers and Other Green Growths
-- Olivine Pools, Dragon's Teeth, and A Mighty Banyan Tree
-- Snorkeling in Halona Bay
-- The Road to Hana
-- Swimming in O'heo Gulch
-- Red and Black Sand
-- Striking Images
-- Just Me and My Wife
Showing posts with label hawaii. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hawaii. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Sunrise Atop Haleakala
Okay, so it's been about a year and a half since we went to Hawaii, and I never did finish up the blog posts recording the experience. However, some friends of ours are headed to Maui tomorrow, and we were reminiscing about all the awesome things that we saw when we were there, and it occurred to me that I need to work on finishing up these posts. So, I'm going to try to get back to it.
One of the things we told our friends about was about Haleakala Crater. It is a volcano with a rim that rises above 10,000 feet, and we had been told that we should get up about 3 a.m. and drive to the top of the mountain up the very windy road in order to see the sunrise. We did so, even though we were totally exhausted, with hopes of seeing some beautiful sights. We were definitely not disappointed.
First off, though, we went prepared. It is a very strange thing to pack winter clothes when you are preparing for a trip to tropical Hawaii. Nevertheless, we had read how cold it gets up there, so with some of our excess space in our luggage (ha!), we packed in our heavy winter coats with hats, gloves, and scarves.
[Image 2150]
We were very happy to have them! Some of the people who also went to see the sunrise arrived wearing shorts and T-shirts, and clearly hadn't done their homework. When the sun came up, they snapped their pictures and fled back to the warmth of the lower altitudes. We were amused by that.
The road to the top of the crater is a windy road with more switch-backs than we were willing to count. At that time of the morning, I was tired, but excited enough to keep awake for the drive. Truth be told, I absolutely loved it -- I'm one of those kinds of guys that really enjoys driving, and driving windy roads greatly amuses me. (Hawaii as a whole kept me grinning goofily through much of our driving time ...)
When we got to the top, we were impressed by how many people were there. There was a large parking lot a little lower than the peak where tourists could park, and one higher where those who worked at the observatory could park. Choosing our parking space, we got out and set up our tripod for the pictures. My wife instantly went into recording mode and started snapping pictures about every 30 seconds.
The view, though, was certainly worth it. We were amazed as we watched the sun rise above the clouds. Yes, we were high enough that we were actually above the clouds and the sun rose above them! From where we were, you couldn't really take in the magnitude of the crater below us because of its massive size. Nevertheless, the winds blew from the east and pushed clouds over the tops of the opposing crater rim.
[Image 2115]
We loved how the sun lit up the edges of the clouds, like golden lace on a down pillowcase. It was spectacular.
[Image 2127]
As the sun continued to rise, my wife snapped picture after picture. I can't really include them all, but you can see that the colors were splendid. The crater was dark below us, contrasting sharply with the light shining across the "floor" of the cloud-deck.
[Image 2141]
As the sun continued to rise, we were able to discern more details in the crater beneath us, and the clouds began to thin somewhat as it slowly "burned off".
[Image 2149]
Behind us, the crater was so large that it cast a magnificent triangular crater across the ocean to the west. I took this picture a little too late, but you can get an idea of its size.
[Image 2161]
Later, we went on a little hike down into the crater. We were suffering preliminary effects from altitude sickness by this time, though, and dehydration, so didn't spend a lot of time there. We did get some great pictures, though, such as:
[Image 2173]
Here's the east peak, surrounded by clouds:
[Image 2179]
Here's a series of cinder cones inside the crater itself:
[Image 2181]
You could even see the snow-topped peaks of the Big Island off in the distance:
[Image 2186]
We truly felt like we were on top of the world.
[Image 2187]
Of all our experiences in Hawaii, we think that the trip we took to Haleakala Crater was probably the most memorable. Just thinking about that experience makes my wife and I want to go back to Hawaii and enjoy the islands again. We want to do more hiking and more exploring. The trails into the crater were tantalizing to us, and if we had been better prepared we certainly would have taken advantage of that.
It was truly an extraordinary time. As pompous as it may sound, we felt like we were closer to our Savior up there, in a place that was special and holy. We have a better understanding of why it was in ancient times that the Lord came to the tops of the mountains when he spoke to His prophets. There was a peaceful feeling, an isolation from the burdens of the world, and a focus that didn't have anywhere else on our trip. It truly was a wondrous experience, and we are grateful for it.
One of the things we told our friends about was about Haleakala Crater. It is a volcano with a rim that rises above 10,000 feet, and we had been told that we should get up about 3 a.m. and drive to the top of the mountain up the very windy road in order to see the sunrise. We did so, even though we were totally exhausted, with hopes of seeing some beautiful sights. We were definitely not disappointed.
First off, though, we went prepared. It is a very strange thing to pack winter clothes when you are preparing for a trip to tropical Hawaii. Nevertheless, we had read how cold it gets up there, so with some of our excess space in our luggage (ha!), we packed in our heavy winter coats with hats, gloves, and scarves.
We were very happy to have them! Some of the people who also went to see the sunrise arrived wearing shorts and T-shirts, and clearly hadn't done their homework. When the sun came up, they snapped their pictures and fled back to the warmth of the lower altitudes. We were amused by that.
The road to the top of the crater is a windy road with more switch-backs than we were willing to count. At that time of the morning, I was tired, but excited enough to keep awake for the drive. Truth be told, I absolutely loved it -- I'm one of those kinds of guys that really enjoys driving, and driving windy roads greatly amuses me. (Hawaii as a whole kept me grinning goofily through much of our driving time ...)
When we got to the top, we were impressed by how many people were there. There was a large parking lot a little lower than the peak where tourists could park, and one higher where those who worked at the observatory could park. Choosing our parking space, we got out and set up our tripod for the pictures. My wife instantly went into recording mode and started snapping pictures about every 30 seconds.
The view, though, was certainly worth it. We were amazed as we watched the sun rise above the clouds. Yes, we were high enough that we were actually above the clouds and the sun rose above them! From where we were, you couldn't really take in the magnitude of the crater below us because of its massive size. Nevertheless, the winds blew from the east and pushed clouds over the tops of the opposing crater rim.
We loved how the sun lit up the edges of the clouds, like golden lace on a down pillowcase. It was spectacular.
As the sun continued to rise, my wife snapped picture after picture. I can't really include them all, but you can see that the colors were splendid. The crater was dark below us, contrasting sharply with the light shining across the "floor" of the cloud-deck.
As the sun continued to rise, we were able to discern more details in the crater beneath us, and the clouds began to thin somewhat as it slowly "burned off".
Behind us, the crater was so large that it cast a magnificent triangular crater across the ocean to the west. I took this picture a little too late, but you can get an idea of its size.
Later, we went on a little hike down into the crater. We were suffering preliminary effects from altitude sickness by this time, though, and dehydration, so didn't spend a lot of time there. We did get some great pictures, though, such as:
Here's the east peak, surrounded by clouds:
Here's a series of cinder cones inside the crater itself:
You could even see the snow-topped peaks of the Big Island off in the distance:
We truly felt like we were on top of the world.
Of all our experiences in Hawaii, we think that the trip we took to Haleakala Crater was probably the most memorable. Just thinking about that experience makes my wife and I want to go back to Hawaii and enjoy the islands again. We want to do more hiking and more exploring. The trails into the crater were tantalizing to us, and if we had been better prepared we certainly would have taken advantage of that.
It was truly an extraordinary time. As pompous as it may sound, we felt like we were closer to our Savior up there, in a place that was special and holy. We have a better understanding of why it was in ancient times that the Lord came to the tops of the mountains when he spoke to His prophets. There was a peaceful feeling, an isolation from the burdens of the world, and a focus that didn't have anywhere else on our trip. It truly was a wondrous experience, and we are grateful for it.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Diamond Head
Diamond Head in south Oahu was awesome. We took the Pali Highway in the morning over the mountain from Kailua, stopping along the way hoping to get some pictures. It was too foggy, but we did discover that Hawaii has an awful lot of free-roaming chickens, which we would continue to encounter at random times throughout our stay on both Oahu and Maui.
Anyway, Diamond Head: it's a crater -- a really big crater on the southeast corner of the island just east of Waikiki (which we elected to avoid -- the drinking, hard-partying scene isn't our thing) and just west of where we later went snorkeling in Hanauma Bay. We arrived early enough that we were able to drive through the tunnel that takes you into the crater and park inside, instead of having to park outside the crater and hike in (which is over a mile walk).
[Image 1882]
Once inside, we were surprised to find that most of the area is covered with fields and scrub trees. It wasn't exactly the lush green that you expect of Hawaii, and reminded us more of home where we live in a chaparral region. In any case, we parked and soon started our hike up the mountain. Looking from the bottom, it doesn't really look like it's that far up, but after climbing it, it really isn't for the fainthearted.
[Image 1881 cropped]
All told, it was a lengthy hike, much of it with stairs to climb. I took a picture of the sign that describes the hike.
[Image 1880]
With steep inclines, switch-backs, tunnels, and great staircases to climb, it was quite an interesting hike up. If one had a fear of heights or suffers from claustrophia, it definitely wouldn't be a trip to take because the top of the steps is not only really high up a steep incline, but also ends up being well-enclosed by shrubbery and the mountain all around you.
[Image 1868] Switch-backs
[Image 1808] Tunnels
[Image 1866] Staircases
Once we got to the "top" we were surprised to find ourselves inside an old, giant, concrete military base that had been built into the mountain. The history of the facility was quite fascinating to learn, and it was quite clear to us why its location would be of value as a military facility. Climbing around inside, we could envision giant guns placed within the concrete structure, and could only imagine the deafening roar when they would go off.
[Image 1810]
Much of the facility was closed, all of it was gutted of anything interesting, and it was largely falling into disrepair. I was saddened by this, and thought it would make a riveting museum if it were done up properly. I was reminded of the underground Cabinet War Rooms that Winston Churchill lived in during World War II (which my wife and I visited several years ago), and while no famous person led a war in Diamond Head, a little museum to talk about the lives of those who lived and worked inside the crater's edge would have been fascinating.
Once at the top, however, my wife and I both had fun playing with our new camera. She had a delightful time zooming in on palm trees that were far enough away that we could barely tell which one she was looking at with the naked eye. We also were able to take a picture of our car from the top of Diamond Head! A 10-times zoom in a little hand-held camera is a pretty amazing thing. Nevertheless, we also enjoyed looking around at the lighthouse to the south of the crater, and I took a full panorama for the fun of it. Click on the image and scroll to the right to see what I mean.
[Image 1816] Stitched
The climb up was exhausting (we ended up stopping at the top of each flight of stairs), and the climb down was painful (we really had to go to the bathroom!), but it was very well worth our trip. At the top, we spent a long time just looking. The ocean was absolutely beautiful. We could see Honolulu in the distance, ships passing by, helicopters buzzing around (below us!), and we think we even saw some whales. At the top there was this metallic cover thing to the stairs that didn't have a good way up -- I climbed up anyway and really enjoyed being as high up as I could be. My wife stayed safely below. There were a lot of people milling around the very tight viewing areas, but we just took our time, enjoyed the scenery, and appreciated the beauty all around us. We even took some time to take some really silly pictures during the walk.
[Image 1879]
Um, yeah.
We had a great time!
Anyway, Diamond Head: it's a crater -- a really big crater on the southeast corner of the island just east of Waikiki (which we elected to avoid -- the drinking, hard-partying scene isn't our thing) and just west of where we later went snorkeling in Hanauma Bay. We arrived early enough that we were able to drive through the tunnel that takes you into the crater and park inside, instead of having to park outside the crater and hike in (which is over a mile walk).
Once inside, we were surprised to find that most of the area is covered with fields and scrub trees. It wasn't exactly the lush green that you expect of Hawaii, and reminded us more of home where we live in a chaparral region. In any case, we parked and soon started our hike up the mountain. Looking from the bottom, it doesn't really look like it's that far up, but after climbing it, it really isn't for the fainthearted.
All told, it was a lengthy hike, much of it with stairs to climb. I took a picture of the sign that describes the hike.
With steep inclines, switch-backs, tunnels, and great staircases to climb, it was quite an interesting hike up. If one had a fear of heights or suffers from claustrophia, it definitely wouldn't be a trip to take because the top of the steps is not only really high up a steep incline, but also ends up being well-enclosed by shrubbery and the mountain all around you.
Once we got to the "top" we were surprised to find ourselves inside an old, giant, concrete military base that had been built into the mountain. The history of the facility was quite fascinating to learn, and it was quite clear to us why its location would be of value as a military facility. Climbing around inside, we could envision giant guns placed within the concrete structure, and could only imagine the deafening roar when they would go off.
Much of the facility was closed, all of it was gutted of anything interesting, and it was largely falling into disrepair. I was saddened by this, and thought it would make a riveting museum if it were done up properly. I was reminded of the underground Cabinet War Rooms that Winston Churchill lived in during World War II (which my wife and I visited several years ago), and while no famous person led a war in Diamond Head, a little museum to talk about the lives of those who lived and worked inside the crater's edge would have been fascinating.
Once at the top, however, my wife and I both had fun playing with our new camera. She had a delightful time zooming in on palm trees that were far enough away that we could barely tell which one she was looking at with the naked eye. We also were able to take a picture of our car from the top of Diamond Head! A 10-times zoom in a little hand-held camera is a pretty amazing thing. Nevertheless, we also enjoyed looking around at the lighthouse to the south of the crater, and I took a full panorama for the fun of it. Click on the image and scroll to the right to see what I mean.
The climb up was exhausting (we ended up stopping at the top of each flight of stairs), and the climb down was painful (we really had to go to the bathroom!), but it was very well worth our trip. At the top, we spent a long time just looking. The ocean was absolutely beautiful. We could see Honolulu in the distance, ships passing by, helicopters buzzing around (below us!), and we think we even saw some whales. At the top there was this metallic cover thing to the stairs that didn't have a good way up -- I climbed up anyway and really enjoyed being as high up as I could be. My wife stayed safely below. There were a lot of people milling around the very tight viewing areas, but we just took our time, enjoyed the scenery, and appreciated the beauty all around us. We even took some time to take some really silly pictures during the walk.
Um, yeah.
We had a great time!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
The Polynesian Cultural Center
A few months back when my wife and I went to Hawaii, we knew that we wanted to go visit The Polynesian Cultural Center on Oahu. Since we're "museum people", and having read plenty of reviews, we knew we needed to spend pretty much the whole day there. Nevertheless, with a limited time in Hawaii, we visited the LDS temple then took a drive for lunch, then finally made it there in early afternoon.
We walked in and eventually found the "river show", which we were late for. Basically, there's this man-made river that flows through the middle of the center, where they had large, rectangular, flat-topped platforms floating around. Each platform had about 6 dancers and one other man who pushed the platform around the "river." Each platform's dancers were dancing in a style typical of the island that they represented. For example, on one raft the dancers were performing a Hawaiian dance, dressed in blue to honor the "Sky Father." The Fiji raft was much more muted with the women peacefully kneeling and waving their arms around. The Tahitian raft had the men doing some funky knee knocking thing while the women did some amazing hip-shaking action, as seen here:
[Movie 1685]
We only saw maybe half of it, as we came late, then got chased away by torrential rains. We brought an umbrella with us to Hawaii, but had forgotten it back in our room. Really wanting to see the show, though, we eventually coughed up $6 for some cheap plastic rain covers so we could try to stay dry. By that time, we were far too wet and the show was nearly over. Next time, we'll be ready!!
[Image 1696]
After the show, people scattered in all directions. We made our way towards the Samoan area where a guy showed us his palm tree climbing skills.
[Image 1694]
We also had the chance to watch a Samoan fellow, who we later learned was the fire dancer in the evening show (later on that in a minute), start a fire without modern implements. Apparently the secret is to use dry wood, and rub two sticks of the same kind of wood together with a lot of pressure and speed. The heat eventually builds up and can catch other material on fire, such as hair from a coconut husk. After watching him, I think I'm an expert. It was amazing. He also showed us how to open a coconut using just a sharp stick, and that was quite impressive, too. The man's name is Te'o Tafiti and he is quite entertaining. Later that night, I got the following picture of my wife with him.
[Image 1785]
She's terribly embarrassed, but I just had to post it!
After that, we wandered around the center. They had different "villages" where they had replicas of the type of dwelling-places in which Polynesians from the various represented islands would live. Clearly each one was just a snapshot in time, but it was still very interesting to us. We spent a lot of time reading about the different islands and a little about how people used to live on them. We had a great time listening to the Tongans beat the tar out of their drums, playing games like spear tossing and a neat ball-tossing game; and my wife even danced with the Tahitians. I promised her I wouldn't post the video, but I feel safe posting a fuzzy picture.
[Image 1704]
Later that night we went to a "luau" and it was great. It was this very large amphitheater-like place with tables everywhere that served thousands of people. A large buffet, the food was good, but not over-whelmingly so. Nevertheless, they did have roast pig (cooked in the ground):
[Image 1716]
No good luau would be complete without that. We were also graced by the presence of the "Royal Court", and it seems that no one can eat until they appear (check out the guy with the hat ...).
[Image 1721]
After the meal, they invited people who were there for their honeymoon or anniversary (hey, that's us!) to go up and dance on the stage. We did so (me doing so badly), and that was silly and fun. Somebody from our table took this picture:
[Image 1730]
Once the meal was over, we went over to their big show for the evening, called the "Horizons" show. There we saw a lot more dancing on this incredible stage that rose several stories from the ground floor.
[Image 1744]
People wandered around with torches and we were again able to watch the different dancing styles from the different islands. We also were pleased to see the Tongans beating the tar out of their drums again, and that was very impressive.
[Image 1755]
We didn't get a very good picture of it, but the woman in this next picture was jaw-droppingly astonishing at shaking her hips with that red thing she was wearing. Let me say it clearly: WOW.
[Image 1760]
There were some silly numbers they did, too. At one time, they had some fellows wearing grass skirts who were flopping down on their back sides on top of fiery strips. Apparently, it was to demonstrate an old game of "bravery", which was probably done historically when the men were drunk and stupid. In the demonstration, it was actually quite funny and played to be so.
[Image 1763]
The highlight of the evening, however, was Te'o Tafiti, who showed us how Samoans used to dance with fire sticks. The video speaks for itself.
[Image 1768]
[Movie 1773]
It was a very memorable day. We shared the sorrow of most who realize what a shame it is that these cultures are, for the most part, gone, and reduced to what little can be retained in that place. There was a lot of culture and art that has been lost (though we can do without their brutal or warlike ways). In hindsight, we wish we would have had more time to really learn more about all the islands. Next time we go, we will definitely spend the entire day there. Oh, and we will bring our umbrellas with us. It was definitely worth it.
We walked in and eventually found the "river show", which we were late for. Basically, there's this man-made river that flows through the middle of the center, where they had large, rectangular, flat-topped platforms floating around. Each platform had about 6 dancers and one other man who pushed the platform around the "river." Each platform's dancers were dancing in a style typical of the island that they represented. For example, on one raft the dancers were performing a Hawaiian dance, dressed in blue to honor the "Sky Father." The Fiji raft was much more muted with the women peacefully kneeling and waving their arms around. The Tahitian raft had the men doing some funky knee knocking thing while the women did some amazing hip-shaking action, as seen here:
[Movie 1685]
We only saw maybe half of it, as we came late, then got chased away by torrential rains. We brought an umbrella with us to Hawaii, but had forgotten it back in our room. Really wanting to see the show, though, we eventually coughed up $6 for some cheap plastic rain covers so we could try to stay dry. By that time, we were far too wet and the show was nearly over. Next time, we'll be ready!!
After the show, people scattered in all directions. We made our way towards the Samoan area where a guy showed us his palm tree climbing skills.
We also had the chance to watch a Samoan fellow, who we later learned was the fire dancer in the evening show (later on that in a minute), start a fire without modern implements. Apparently the secret is to use dry wood, and rub two sticks of the same kind of wood together with a lot of pressure and speed. The heat eventually builds up and can catch other material on fire, such as hair from a coconut husk. After watching him, I think I'm an expert. It was amazing. He also showed us how to open a coconut using just a sharp stick, and that was quite impressive, too. The man's name is Te'o Tafiti and he is quite entertaining. Later that night, I got the following picture of my wife with him.
She's terribly embarrassed, but I just had to post it!
After that, we wandered around the center. They had different "villages" where they had replicas of the type of dwelling-places in which Polynesians from the various represented islands would live. Clearly each one was just a snapshot in time, but it was still very interesting to us. We spent a lot of time reading about the different islands and a little about how people used to live on them. We had a great time listening to the Tongans beat the tar out of their drums, playing games like spear tossing and a neat ball-tossing game; and my wife even danced with the Tahitians. I promised her I wouldn't post the video, but I feel safe posting a fuzzy picture.
Later that night we went to a "luau" and it was great. It was this very large amphitheater-like place with tables everywhere that served thousands of people. A large buffet, the food was good, but not over-whelmingly so. Nevertheless, they did have roast pig (cooked in the ground):
No good luau would be complete without that. We were also graced by the presence of the "Royal Court", and it seems that no one can eat until they appear (check out the guy with the hat ...).
After the meal, they invited people who were there for their honeymoon or anniversary (hey, that's us!) to go up and dance on the stage. We did so (me doing so badly), and that was silly and fun. Somebody from our table took this picture:
Once the meal was over, we went over to their big show for the evening, called the "Horizons" show. There we saw a lot more dancing on this incredible stage that rose several stories from the ground floor.
People wandered around with torches and we were again able to watch the different dancing styles from the different islands. We also were pleased to see the Tongans beating the tar out of their drums again, and that was very impressive.
We didn't get a very good picture of it, but the woman in this next picture was jaw-droppingly astonishing at shaking her hips with that red thing she was wearing. Let me say it clearly: WOW.
There were some silly numbers they did, too. At one time, they had some fellows wearing grass skirts who were flopping down on their back sides on top of fiery strips. Apparently, it was to demonstrate an old game of "bravery", which was probably done historically when the men were drunk and stupid. In the demonstration, it was actually quite funny and played to be so.
The highlight of the evening, however, was Te'o Tafiti, who showed us how Samoans used to dance with fire sticks. The video speaks for itself.
[Movie 1773]
It was a very memorable day. We shared the sorrow of most who realize what a shame it is that these cultures are, for the most part, gone, and reduced to what little can be retained in that place. There was a lot of culture and art that has been lost (though we can do without their brutal or warlike ways). In hindsight, we wish we would have had more time to really learn more about all the islands. Next time we go, we will definitely spend the entire day there. Oh, and we will bring our umbrellas with us. It was definitely worth it.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Sea Turtles
My wife and I love sea turtles; we're completely infatuated with them. We're not crazy-dopey over them, though, because we don't have posters around the house, stuffed animals in every corner, and statues littering our bathrooms, but we really think they're neat. We enjoy watching them in all forms of media (the sea turtles in Finding Nemo, for example, absolutely crack us up). Ten years ago when I went to Hawaii I had the good luck to see a sea turtle in Hanauma Bay while I was snorkeling. I got a decent picture, and it was great to be so close to one in the wild. My wife was jealous.
So it was that when we went to Hawaii last month, we were really hoping to see some sea turtles. We weren't disappointed. Even though we didn't see any when we went snorkeling, we did go to a place locally called "Turtle Beach" on the north shore of Oahu. We didn't think we'd see any turtles at all, as none were around on the shore, but upon walking down the beach we saw people gawking at the waves off shore. Upon closer inspection, the turtles were actually out there among the shallow rocks, just frolicking in the waves.
We watched them closely and saw them pop their heads up out of the water intermittently. We think we saw two sea turtles. They were out among the rocks off shore and as the waves rose and fell, we'd see the rocks rise above the water. Because of that, it was difficult sometimes to tell if the dark things we were seeing were the turtles or the rocks. After teasing us for a long time, one of them actually came close to shore. My wife ran over and started snapping pictures like the paparazzi.
(Image 1612)
(Image 1641)
Before too long, she walked out to the water, stood in the surf, and recorded the following video.
(Movie 1621)
She was only a few feet away from the sea turtle, and was giddy over the whole thing. She had never been that close to a sea turtle before, certainly not one that lives in the wild, so it was quite the experience. I really enjoyed just watching her and her childlike awe, let alone the turtle. My wife is an amazing woman, who truly appreciates and wonders at God's creations. For that, I am grateful.
So it was that when we went to Hawaii last month, we were really hoping to see some sea turtles. We weren't disappointed. Even though we didn't see any when we went snorkeling, we did go to a place locally called "Turtle Beach" on the north shore of Oahu. We didn't think we'd see any turtles at all, as none were around on the shore, but upon walking down the beach we saw people gawking at the waves off shore. Upon closer inspection, the turtles were actually out there among the shallow rocks, just frolicking in the waves.
We watched them closely and saw them pop their heads up out of the water intermittently. We think we saw two sea turtles. They were out among the rocks off shore and as the waves rose and fell, we'd see the rocks rise above the water. Because of that, it was difficult sometimes to tell if the dark things we were seeing were the turtles or the rocks. After teasing us for a long time, one of them actually came close to shore. My wife ran over and started snapping pictures like the paparazzi.
Before too long, she walked out to the water, stood in the surf, and recorded the following video.
(Movie 1621)
She was only a few feet away from the sea turtle, and was giddy over the whole thing. She had never been that close to a sea turtle before, certainly not one that lives in the wild, so it was quite the experience. I really enjoyed just watching her and her childlike awe, let alone the turtle. My wife is an amazing woman, who truly appreciates and wonders at God's creations. For that, I am grateful.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
The Laie Temple
My wife and I are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We're temple-goers to boot, so a trip to Hawaii wouldn't really be considered successful for us if we didn't make the pilgrimage to the Laie Hawaii Temple.
Staying in Kailua, it was a gorgeous, one-hour drive up the coast to the little town. We passed sites that we had seen previously while kayaking and appreciated the fine scenery beyond that. We were struck by the narrow, winding road that had mountains climbing nearly vertically to our left, with the ocean lapping the rocky shore just feet from the road on the right. The weather wasn't very cooperative, so we weren't able to get a very good picture.
Finding the temple was pretty easy. We had a map, but didn't even need it as there's a sign right off the main road that points to where it is. When you pull into the road which leads that way, it's impossible to miss the temple, because the road goes for hundreds of yards straight towards the temple itself, with expansive stretches of lawn with amazing flowers and trees along the way.
(Image 1599)
(Image 1601)
Looking away from the temple to the west, the view is unobstructed all the way to the ocean. The temple grounds have terraced pools with fountains and water flowing from pool to pool. It was quite pleasant just being on the grounds. The temple itself has some intricate carvings. We found out later that the carvings on all four faces of the upper part of the temple represent the four primary books of scripture that we use: The Bible, The Book of Mormon, The Doctrine and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price. Pretty cool stuff.
(Image 1609)
After going into the temple, we were struck by how small it was. From the outside, it seems like it would be a pretty big building. For us, coming from Los Angeles (which has the biggest of all the temples in the world), it felt claustrophobic.
(Image 1608)
The people were very friendly and it is always a good thing to do a little service in the temple. It took us far longer than we anticipated to finish up in the temple, but it was a wonderful experience. We're glad that we took the time in our vacation to go experience that sacred place.
(As an interesting aside, after we came home from our vacation, I heard an interesting story about how the Hawaii Temple was protected during the attack on Oahu by the Japanese during World War II. It's a fascinating story about how mechanical failures prevented one bomber, in particular, from destroying the building. The pilot of the bomber many years later met a set of missionaries in Japan, related the story to them, and then joined the church. It's a completely unsubstantiated bit of Mormon folklore, but it's still a nice story.)
Staying in Kailua, it was a gorgeous, one-hour drive up the coast to the little town. We passed sites that we had seen previously while kayaking and appreciated the fine scenery beyond that. We were struck by the narrow, winding road that had mountains climbing nearly vertically to our left, with the ocean lapping the rocky shore just feet from the road on the right. The weather wasn't very cooperative, so we weren't able to get a very good picture.
Finding the temple was pretty easy. We had a map, but didn't even need it as there's a sign right off the main road that points to where it is. When you pull into the road which leads that way, it's impossible to miss the temple, because the road goes for hundreds of yards straight towards the temple itself, with expansive stretches of lawn with amazing flowers and trees along the way.
Looking away from the temple to the west, the view is unobstructed all the way to the ocean. The temple grounds have terraced pools with fountains and water flowing from pool to pool. It was quite pleasant just being on the grounds. The temple itself has some intricate carvings. We found out later that the carvings on all four faces of the upper part of the temple represent the four primary books of scripture that we use: The Bible, The Book of Mormon, The Doctrine and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price. Pretty cool stuff.
After going into the temple, we were struck by how small it was. From the outside, it seems like it would be a pretty big building. For us, coming from Los Angeles (which has the biggest of all the temples in the world), it felt claustrophobic.
The people were very friendly and it is always a good thing to do a little service in the temple. It took us far longer than we anticipated to finish up in the temple, but it was a wonderful experience. We're glad that we took the time in our vacation to go experience that sacred place.
(As an interesting aside, after we came home from our vacation, I heard an interesting story about how the Hawaii Temple was protected during the attack on Oahu by the Japanese during World War II. It's a fascinating story about how mechanical failures prevented one bomber, in particular, from destroying the building. The pilot of the bomber many years later met a set of missionaries in Japan, related the story to them, and then joined the church. It's a completely unsubstantiated bit of Mormon folklore, but it's still a nice story.)
Monday, May 5, 2008
The Halona Blowhole
My wife and I love geology. We don't know much about it, but we love looking at geological formations and marveling at the wacky things that nature can put together (or take apart). One of the things we really enjoyed in Hawaii was finding various blowholes around the islands that we visited. One of them is called the Halona Blowhole, and is located on the eastern coast of Oahu.
(image 1991)
Last year when we went on our cruise to Mexico, we went to Ensenada where the locals proudly proclaimed that they had one of only two blowholes known in the world -- what they proudly call La Bufadora (the, um, "blowhole"). We were skeptical, and quickly found out that that the locals were, um, blowing smoke. There's at least a dozen good-sized blowholes around the world, and we discovered a small one we didn't previously know about on Maui (not the Nakalele blowhole, but one to the west of what are sometimes called the Olivine Pools).
Anyway, we think these little geological gems are simply amazing. My wife gets very nervous around them, and while we were kept well away from La Bufadora in Mexico, in Hawaii we were able to walk right up to them. My wife literally was pulling on my arm to keep me from going over next to them. I laughed and reminded her that it's only dangerous if you fall in, and despite what she sometimes thinks I really do have a healthy sense of self-preservation, some evidence to the contrary.
In any case, the Halona Blowhole didn't disappoint us. It was spouting well and frequently. I managed to get my wife to go near it to get this photograph.
(image 1951)
Much later, when her paranoia levels decreased, she dared me to go over and sit down next to it. I don't think she believed I'd do it, but I took my chance and quickly ran over just in time to get a face-full of water. It was beautiful.
(image 2002)
Since blowholes really do need to be seen to be believed, I've included a little video here. It's awesome.
(movie 1537)
Seeing this blowhole -- feeling the rocks beneath us shake under the awesome force of the waves as they crashed into the hole, hearing the odd "whoosh" sound that comes as the air is forced out right before the "boosh" of the water -- was one of our favorite parts of our trip to Hawaii. (Actually, I think I'm going to end up saying that an awful lot ...) We liked it so much that even though we saw it one day while we were driving by (when we took the video), we decided to go back a few days later to go hiking down by the blowhole. Awesome.
Last year when we went on our cruise to Mexico, we went to Ensenada where the locals proudly proclaimed that they had one of only two blowholes known in the world -- what they proudly call La Bufadora (the, um, "blowhole"). We were skeptical, and quickly found out that that the locals were, um, blowing smoke. There's at least a dozen good-sized blowholes around the world, and we discovered a small one we didn't previously know about on Maui (not the Nakalele blowhole, but one to the west of what are sometimes called the Olivine Pools).
Anyway, we think these little geological gems are simply amazing. My wife gets very nervous around them, and while we were kept well away from La Bufadora in Mexico, in Hawaii we were able to walk right up to them. My wife literally was pulling on my arm to keep me from going over next to them. I laughed and reminded her that it's only dangerous if you fall in, and despite what she sometimes thinks I really do have a healthy sense of self-preservation, some evidence to the contrary.
In any case, the Halona Blowhole didn't disappoint us. It was spouting well and frequently. I managed to get my wife to go near it to get this photograph.
Much later, when her paranoia levels decreased, she dared me to go over and sit down next to it. I don't think she believed I'd do it, but I took my chance and quickly ran over just in time to get a face-full of water. It was beautiful.
Since blowholes really do need to be seen to be believed, I've included a little video here. It's awesome.
(movie 1537)
Seeing this blowhole -- feeling the rocks beneath us shake under the awesome force of the waves as they crashed into the hole, hearing the odd "whoosh" sound that comes as the air is forced out right before the "boosh" of the water -- was one of our favorite parts of our trip to Hawaii. (Actually, I think I'm going to end up saying that an awful lot ...) We liked it so much that even though we saw it one day while we were driving by (when we took the video), we decided to go back a few days later to go hiking down by the blowhole. Awesome.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Kayaking, The Sunken Island, and The King of Kapapa Island
All the pictures in this post will be replaced when we get better copies. The pictures came from an underwater camera and the film (which is fine) wasn't processed correctly into the digital files.
Last year, my wife and I took a five day cruise from L.A. down towards Mexico. One of the days, the ship stopped at Catalina Island and my wife and I went kayaking on the ocean. She was really nervous about kayaking on the ocean at that time, but having a guide with us made her feel more confident. It was the first time for both of us, and we discovered that we really enjoyed it.
So it was that one of the things we really wanted to do was go kayaking on the ocean when we were in Hawaii. To save money, we didn't want to do a "tour" kind of thing, like we did on Catalina Island, and just rented a kayak on our own. As it turned out, the place we wanted to rent from was actually only a few blocks away from where we were staying.
We showed up early on our first day there and rented the two-person kayak and what they called a "soft shell" to mount it on top of the rental car. The "soft shell" wasn't anything of the sort. It was basically two strips of thick foam about 6" thick that we put on top of the car. They then provided to us a few straps that we would throw over the kayak (once on top of the car) and put into the car (with the doors open, so we could open the doors later!) and then cinch up.
It was an extraordinarily unsophisticated way of dealing with the problem, but it worked beautifully. We did have some water dripping in through the doors where the straps were preventing the doors from sealing around the roof, which was vexing when it rained, but otherwise it went rather well.
Once the kayak was firmly mounted to the roof of the rental car, we headed north. We drove to Kane'ohe and found a pier near He'eia Beach Park. We had read about a "sunken island" just to the north of there, so we put in -- being sure to bring our waterproof camera -- and started paddling. On our way out there, we were stunned by how blue the water was. Where we were there wasn't much waves, which was really good because my wife was really nervous about being out there on the ocean without a guide to help us if we got into trouble (we never did).
On the way north, we passed a big boat where a bunch of Japanese people were fishing. Actually, I don't know how much fishing they were actually doing. They did have fishing lines in the water, but they weren't paying much attention to them. We did see one guy wrestling with a line that appeared to have a lively fish on the end, but we never saw him actually pull it in (we got bored of waiting).
Anyway, as we headed north, we soon came upon some reef beneath us. It wasn't very far beneath the waves, and we were delighted to actually see it. We get excited over simple things. Well, the reef soon gave way to a sand bar, which we continued to paddle over. On one occasion, I dipped my paddle into the water, and hit the sand bar! It was right below us! We didn't have any idea how shallow the water was, as you can't really tell from above the surface.
Upon paddling a bit further, we found ourselves in the middle of this gigantic sand bar. Big boats full of tourists had beached themselves and people were getting out and walking around waist deep in the water (mostly Japanese tourists, it seemed, decked out in ridiculously over-large life vests). We paddled over to one group and asked them to take a picture of us.
(image 29)
We moved on and continued paddling. Soon we got to a place where it was actually so shallow that the water only came up to our knees. I got out of the boat and took a picture of my wife with one of the tourist boats in the background.
(image 26)
It was quite the odd feeling to be standing a mile from shore, standing up in the water.
(image 25)
My wife wouldn't get out for a while, as she was nervous about things, but I finally talked her into it, so long as I had a really good grip on the boat (she didn't want it drifting away on us!).
(image 23)
Apparently, this sand bar actually rises above the water level during low-tide. People go out there regularly, park their boats, and have picnics on the "beach". The sand bar is actually a sunken island. All of the Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanic activity, and as the source of the islands drifts away (a hot spot on the continental plate), the "old" islands are eroded away by waves, washed away by rains, and also collapse under their own weight.
This little sunken island upon which we were standing was actually the top of an ancient volcano that had once stood large and majestic above the waves. At the end of the last ice age, the ocean level rose and it was eventually reduced to the mile-wide sand bar that we so effortlessly kayaked over.
Anyway, the sunken island was actually the half-way point of our journey that day. Off in the distance we could see an island ahead. It was Kapapa Island, the top-most part of the sunken island that remains above water even at high tide. As we approached, we found ourselves buffeted by waves coming from both sides of us. It got pretty choppy and my wife got a little nervous. We were so close, though, that we pressed on, paddling with all our might towards this island as waves crashed around us.
As it turns out, the waves flow around Kapapa Island from both the east and the west, crashing towards each other on the leeward side. It was from this direction that we were traveling, so we took the hits as gracefully as we could, but soon found ourselves wobbling precariously in the waves.
Our goal was to avoid having the waves crest over us, and we managed that all right, but it was a very scary experience for my wife. (And for me? I don't get scared.) We proceeded quite far in that fashion before it occurred to us that I could literally just get off the kayak and pull the kayak to shore.
(image 17)
We made it to shore and were quite relieved. We shed our life-jackets and climbed up the coral-strewn "beach". We walked the entire circumference of the island, enjoying the waves and just being in each other's company.
(image 9)
It was spectacular. The waves were incredible from out there, and would crash ashore and explode into the air.
(image 7)
The island was completely deserted. We found no structures there, just a wrecked boat and a few old fire pits. For that brief moment in time, I was the King of Kapapa Island! We stayed away from the interior of the island, however, 'cause there were big, gnarly spiders everywhere in the shrubbery. (Nah, I wasn't scared.)
(image 6)
Along the eastern edge of the island, we could see the volcanic rocks eroded away from the bottom up. It's amazing that the ocean tides are such an irrepressible force.
(image 5, cropped to show the overhang)
Soon thereafter we decided we wanted to actually eat something -- Kapapa Island is no tropical paradise to be marooned upon, that much was clear. We got back into the kayak and paddled back the 2 2/5 miles to the dock. Going back was easier with the wind and the waves at our backs, but we didn't stop to rest much on the way -- it was exhausting work.
All in all, I think we spent about 5 hours out there on the ocean. Without a tour guide, my wife was nervous, but she did amazingly well, and by the end, she was as comfortable on the kayak as I was. I was so proud of her. We had a great time.
Last year, my wife and I took a five day cruise from L.A. down towards Mexico. One of the days, the ship stopped at Catalina Island and my wife and I went kayaking on the ocean. She was really nervous about kayaking on the ocean at that time, but having a guide with us made her feel more confident. It was the first time for both of us, and we discovered that we really enjoyed it.
So it was that one of the things we really wanted to do was go kayaking on the ocean when we were in Hawaii. To save money, we didn't want to do a "tour" kind of thing, like we did on Catalina Island, and just rented a kayak on our own. As it turned out, the place we wanted to rent from was actually only a few blocks away from where we were staying.
We showed up early on our first day there and rented the two-person kayak and what they called a "soft shell" to mount it on top of the rental car. The "soft shell" wasn't anything of the sort. It was basically two strips of thick foam about 6" thick that we put on top of the car. They then provided to us a few straps that we would throw over the kayak (once on top of the car) and put into the car (with the doors open, so we could open the doors later!) and then cinch up.
It was an extraordinarily unsophisticated way of dealing with the problem, but it worked beautifully. We did have some water dripping in through the doors where the straps were preventing the doors from sealing around the roof, which was vexing when it rained, but otherwise it went rather well.
Once the kayak was firmly mounted to the roof of the rental car, we headed north. We drove to Kane'ohe and found a pier near He'eia Beach Park. We had read about a "sunken island" just to the north of there, so we put in -- being sure to bring our waterproof camera -- and started paddling. On our way out there, we were stunned by how blue the water was. Where we were there wasn't much waves, which was really good because my wife was really nervous about being out there on the ocean without a guide to help us if we got into trouble (we never did).
On the way north, we passed a big boat where a bunch of Japanese people were fishing. Actually, I don't know how much fishing they were actually doing. They did have fishing lines in the water, but they weren't paying much attention to them. We did see one guy wrestling with a line that appeared to have a lively fish on the end, but we never saw him actually pull it in (we got bored of waiting).
Anyway, as we headed north, we soon came upon some reef beneath us. It wasn't very far beneath the waves, and we were delighted to actually see it. We get excited over simple things. Well, the reef soon gave way to a sand bar, which we continued to paddle over. On one occasion, I dipped my paddle into the water, and hit the sand bar! It was right below us! We didn't have any idea how shallow the water was, as you can't really tell from above the surface.
Upon paddling a bit further, we found ourselves in the middle of this gigantic sand bar. Big boats full of tourists had beached themselves and people were getting out and walking around waist deep in the water (mostly Japanese tourists, it seemed, decked out in ridiculously over-large life vests). We paddled over to one group and asked them to take a picture of us.
We moved on and continued paddling. Soon we got to a place where it was actually so shallow that the water only came up to our knees. I got out of the boat and took a picture of my wife with one of the tourist boats in the background.
It was quite the odd feeling to be standing a mile from shore, standing up in the water.
My wife wouldn't get out for a while, as she was nervous about things, but I finally talked her into it, so long as I had a really good grip on the boat (she didn't want it drifting away on us!).
Apparently, this sand bar actually rises above the water level during low-tide. People go out there regularly, park their boats, and have picnics on the "beach". The sand bar is actually a sunken island. All of the Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanic activity, and as the source of the islands drifts away (a hot spot on the continental plate), the "old" islands are eroded away by waves, washed away by rains, and also collapse under their own weight.
This little sunken island upon which we were standing was actually the top of an ancient volcano that had once stood large and majestic above the waves. At the end of the last ice age, the ocean level rose and it was eventually reduced to the mile-wide sand bar that we so effortlessly kayaked over.
Anyway, the sunken island was actually the half-way point of our journey that day. Off in the distance we could see an island ahead. It was Kapapa Island, the top-most part of the sunken island that remains above water even at high tide. As we approached, we found ourselves buffeted by waves coming from both sides of us. It got pretty choppy and my wife got a little nervous. We were so close, though, that we pressed on, paddling with all our might towards this island as waves crashed around us.
As it turns out, the waves flow around Kapapa Island from both the east and the west, crashing towards each other on the leeward side. It was from this direction that we were traveling, so we took the hits as gracefully as we could, but soon found ourselves wobbling precariously in the waves.
Our goal was to avoid having the waves crest over us, and we managed that all right, but it was a very scary experience for my wife. (And for me? I don't get scared.) We proceeded quite far in that fashion before it occurred to us that I could literally just get off the kayak and pull the kayak to shore.
We made it to shore and were quite relieved. We shed our life-jackets and climbed up the coral-strewn "beach". We walked the entire circumference of the island, enjoying the waves and just being in each other's company.
It was spectacular. The waves were incredible from out there, and would crash ashore and explode into the air.
The island was completely deserted. We found no structures there, just a wrecked boat and a few old fire pits. For that brief moment in time, I was the King of Kapapa Island! We stayed away from the interior of the island, however, 'cause there were big, gnarly spiders everywhere in the shrubbery. (Nah, I wasn't scared.)
Along the eastern edge of the island, we could see the volcanic rocks eroded away from the bottom up. It's amazing that the ocean tides are such an irrepressible force.
Soon thereafter we decided we wanted to actually eat something -- Kapapa Island is no tropical paradise to be marooned upon, that much was clear. We got back into the kayak and paddled back the 2 2/5 miles to the dock. Going back was easier with the wind and the waves at our backs, but we didn't stop to rest much on the way -- it was exhausting work.
All in all, I think we spent about 5 hours out there on the ocean. Without a tour guide, my wife was nervous, but she did amazingly well, and by the end, she was as comfortable on the kayak as I was. I was so proud of her. We had a great time.
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