Author Archives: Graham

About Graham

I take photos when I'm out and about, recording life on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Hawaiian hogfish

Despite its less-than-flattering name, the Hawaiian hogfish is quite an attractive fish. This one is a female, somewhere between a sub-adult and mature fish, I think. I don’t see a lot of these when I’m snorkeling, and usually they’re too deep to get a decent photo. This one was not only cruising the shallows, but obliging enough to cross not far in front of me.

In my attempts to identify what I see in the water, I use John P. Hoover’s book The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals. His website is hawaiisfishes.com.

Hula dancers

Some more photos from the hula dancing at Sunday’s Kamehameha Day ceremony in Kapaau, North Kohala. The performers are members of Halau Hula O Napunaheleonapua.

For more information about the Kamehameha Day and the statue, go to kamehamehadaycelebration.org.
For more information about the Kamehameha’s history, go to nps.gov/puhe/learn/historyculture/kamehameha.htm.

Kamehameha Day ceremony in Kapaau

Yesterday was Kamehameha Day, celebrating Kamehameha 1, the king who first united the Hawaiian Islands under one leader. There’s a statue of the king at Kapaau in North Kohala, and this was the scene of a ceremony honoring him.

The ceremony began in steady rain, but the weather brightened so that proceedings ended in bright sunshine. After opening blessings, various groups approached the statue and paid their respects to the king. This was followed by the draping of leis on the statue. Finally, a hula performance in front of the statue concluded events – at least as far as this ceremony was concerned. An hour or so later, there was a parade featuring representatives of all the Hawaiian islands, and for the rest of the day, there were events and music in a local park.

The top photo shows a lei being draped over the king’s spear. The lei is made up of plumeria blossoms. The leis draped over his extended arm are mostly made up of ti leaves. In the second photo, members of one of the groups honoring the king performed a hula in front of the statue. Third, I think this is the order of Kamehameha presenting an offering which was carried up and placed at the base of the statue. Below, a red plumeria lei is hoisted over the king’s spear. Bottom, after all the lei were placed on the statue, another hula performance concluded events.

Kohala Girls School shadows

The old Kohala Girls School sits on land at ‘Iole in North Kohala. ‘Iole is one of the few remaining ahupua‘a, a pie-shaped division of land stretching from the mountain to the ocean. It’s now managed by Kohala Institute as a retreat center and the recently renovated school is part of that setup.

I like the geometric order of the building – the squares of the windows, the straight lines of the roof and siding – as well as the light and shadows.

Abstracts: Raindrops on a ti leaf

Raindrops bead up on a curved ti leaf after a heavy shower.

Helicopters circle Pu’u O’o vent

During a recent hike on the Nāpau Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, one accompaniment was the throb of helicopter engines. The active flow from Pu’u O’o vent, and its ultimate outpouring into the ocean, is a great attraction for visitors and locals alike.

One way of seeing these events is on a helicopter tour and, as I sat at the Nāpau overlook, I noticed there was a clear order to those helicopter visits. A pair would arrive from the west, one a bit behind the other. One would circle the vent, the other visit the ocean entry. Then they’d switch. After 10 or 15 minutes, the two helicopters would head off to the northeast and soon after, the next pair would arrive.

For more information about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, go to nps.gov/havo/.  For more information about Kilauea Volcano and it’s eruptions, go to hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/history/main.html.

Threadfin jack juveniles

Adult threadfin jack are large, stocky, deepwater fish and rarely seen. Juvenile threadfins aren’t seen often either, even though they spend their time in shallow waters. One reason for this is that they don’t appear in great numbers. Another is that they’re easy to miss in the often stirred-up shallows. When they are seen, many people see their long, wavering filaments and think they’re jellyfish (I did the first time I saw one).

If the juveniles are to be seen, this is time of year for it. I’ve been looking out for them for a few weeks without success. Then, a few days ago, my wife saw one. A couple of days later, in the same area, we got in the water and saw one, then another, then a third. The water was quite murky and the threadfins quickly shimmied off among the rocks.

I managed to snap a couple of photos, but wasn’t sure the fish were even in the frame because they were hard to see on the camera screen. So I was thrilled that one of the photos had captured these two as they swam by. Hopefully, they’ll be around a few more weeks before they head out to deeper water, so I’ll get to see them again.

Kaloko fishpond

The wall of Kaloko Fishpond, in Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park, is currently under repair. According to the park’s website, work on rebuilding the wall began in 1998. This end looks good, but there’s still work to be done at the far end.

For more information about Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park, go to www.nps.gov/kaho/index.htm

For more information about Kaloko Fishpond, go to www.keolamagazine.com/ocean/kaloko-fishpond-a-valuable-cultural-resource/

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii