Author Archives: Graham

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About Graham

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

Two views of Hualalai

Hualalai seen from offshore North Kohala in Hawaii

The top photo shows a view of Hualalai under cloudy skies, taken from the water yesterday morning.

Hualalai obscured by vog from offshore North Kohala in Hawaii

The second photo shows pretty much the same view, taken on Christmas Day morning. What do you mean, where did it go? It was actually a less cloudy day. The big difference was that the wind was blowing from the southeast, driving vog from the latest eruption of Kilauea in this direction. Vog is volcanic smog and when it’s this thick, it can be quite acrid and you can taste it! It makes life miserable, especially for those with any kind of respiratory ailments.

The vog was bad for two days before the trade winds returned and blew the vog away from this part of the island, allowing the view in the top photo.

Looking back at 2024 – Part 1

A Feather-legged fly on a Tree Heliotrope in Hawaii
January: A Feather-legged Fly (Trichopoda pennipes) on a Tree Heliotrope (link).

Sunday Stills challenge theme this week and next week is ‘Your 2024 Year-in-Review.’ See more responses here. As usual, I’m going with a favorite photo from each month of 2024, with a caption and link to the post the photo first appeared in. This week’s post is for January through June. See the rest of the year next week.

A Ring-billed gull in Hawaii
February: A Ring-billed Gull struts at ʻAnaehoʻomalu Bay (link).
A woman walks on the beach at Kohanaiki Park in Hawaii
March: A woman walks the beach at Kohanaiki Beach Park (link).
Tiki torches burn against a backdrop of palm trees in Hawaii
April: Tiki torches at Mauna Kea Resort (link).
A Dwarf Moray Eel in the waters off Hawaii
May: A Dwarf Moray Eel (link).
Long-spined Urchins in Hawaii
June: A pair of Long-spined Urchins in Kawaihae Harbor (link).

They’re back

A Humpback Whale dives in the waters off Hawaii

The Humpback Whale season here has been underway for a few weeks, but I hadn’t seen many until a few days ago. Then, on one of my coast walks, I saw half a dozen or more.

This whale was in the company of another one, which had dived just before this. I like the curve of the tail and how the water drains off it, just before it’s full submerged.

The Numbers Game #53

A Black-crowned night heron struggles o get out of an algae covered pond
A Black-crowned Night Heron in a spot of bother in a pond at Kawaihae.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 174. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Lesser Brown Scorpion in Hawaii
A lively Lesser Brown Scorpion.
A passion vine butterfly on a tasselflower
A Passion-vine Butterfly getting to grips with a tasselflower.
A white-tailed tropicbird flying over North Kohala, Hawaii
A White-tailed Tropicbird.
Two Kona Brewing Company beer taps
Beer taps.
Footsteps mark the way at Kaulana Manu Nature Trail in Hawaii
Just so you don’t get lost at Kaulana Manu Nature Trail.
The breakwater at Kawaihae, Hawaii
The breakwater at Kawaihae appears to lead the way to Maui.

Railway remains

Remains of the old sugar port at Mahukona, Hawaii

Mahukona was the terminus for the railway which served the sugar plantations of North Kohala from the 1880s until its closure in 1945. There was no proper dock at Mahukona, so ships anchored offshore and the sugar was boated out to them.

There are quite a few relics from that time at Mahukona, including a terminus building. The area in this photo was likely a place where railway engine and equipment maintenance took place.

For more information about the Kohala sugar railroad, go to https://coffeetimes.com/blogs/history-culture/sugar-and-steam-in-kohala