The last of this week’s posts in response to the WordPress photo challenge on the theme of ‘transient.’
High winds resulted in a bump in the amount of debris in the water. This branch could be on its way back to shore or headed for somewhere across the Pacific, depending on how wind and currents move it.
Yesterday saw the return of the Hawaiian voyaging canoe, Hokuleʻa, from its 3-year Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage. There was a ceremony on Oahu to mark the return featuring Hokuleʻa’s sister canoe, Hikianalia, and several other Polynesian voyaging canoes.
Earlier in the week, one of the canoes, Fa‘afaite, from Tahiti, was waiting for its sister canoe, Okeanos, off the Kohala coast, before carrying on to Oahu. These voyaging canoes use traditional instrument-free navigation on their travels.
For more information about Hokuleʻa and the Polynesian Voyaging Society, go to www.hokulea.com.
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.
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.
At first I thought this was something straight out of Doctor Dolittle, a pushmi-pullyu eel. Alas, no. Instead, it’s two whitemouth moray eels wedged into the same space behind a clump of coral. While whitemouth moray eels are a fairly common sight in the water, this is the first and only time I’ve seen two together. I don’t know whether this proximity was related to breeding. Perhaps they were just helping each other stay warm! Looks like they must be pretty good friends.
Most weeks I post something in response to the WordPress photo challenge. This week’s theme is ‘evanescent,’ a word I wasn’t familiar with. The definition provided is “soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing,” or, put simply, ‘a moment in time.’
To me, this is what any photo is, a snapshot of a given moment. Even the look of a fixed object, a landscape, a building, a monument, is always changing. It could be the light, weather, activity around the subject. Everything is in constant flux, sometimes in obvious ways, sometimes only in the detail. With birds, animals, bugs, even plants – blowing in the wind – those changes of passing moments are more obvious.
So I thought I’d take this week’s challenge as my theme for the week (or at least the remaining six days of the challenge). I start off with this photo of a manta ray. One of the great joys of snorkeling is never knowing what I’ll see that day. It could be a common fish engaged in some activity I’ve never seen before. It could be a glimpse of something unexpected. It could be something seen only at a certain time of year. Whatever it is, it almost always gives me a little jolt of ‘wow.’
While out snorkeling, I got a jolt of ‘wow’ when I saw this manta ray gliding along in the opposite direction. I turned and followed its effortless progress for several minutes until it headed into deeper water and disappeared. An evanescent experience? I think so, though it won’t soon disappear from my memory.
I saw this male Kalij pheasant, with two others, alongside the Powerline Trail, off Saddle Road. I hadn’t noticed them while walking through the trees on the dead-straight trail, but I became aware of a slight but steady clucking sound and stopped to locate it. The birds were picking their way through some dense undergrowth and seemed not the least bit bothered by my presence. Perhaps they were aware it wasn’t one of the days when archery hunting is permitted.
For more information about the Powerline Trail, go to bigislandhikes.com/puu-oo-trail/.
One of the things to look out for on the Powerline Trail, off of Saddle Road, is Emesine lava tube. There’s a sign right next to the trail, though it could be missed if you happened to be looking the other way while walking that stretch. Bear in mind that if you want to explore the lave tube, the sign indicates that you should first get a permit from the State Department of Land and Natural Resources (Division of Forestry and Wildlife).
These photos are from the entrance of the eastern part of the tube, which is the most accessible. The ceiling here is about 4 feet so it’s not for the claustrophobic. Not sure whether it opens up further along, but be sure to take plenty of good lights.
For more information about Emesine lava tube, go to darkerview.com/wordpress/?p=3781.
For more information about the Powerline Trail, go to bigislandhikes.com/puu-oo-trail/.
Graham's Island 