Category Archives: Photo Challenges

The Numbers Game #30

Kite flying over Upolu.

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 151. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Praying Mantis giving me the look.
A tiny fish wonders what the big lump is in its tide pool.
A gecko chilling at the Pepsi machine.
A Pacific Beetle Cockroach.
Clouds gather around a tree on the slopes of Mauna Kea.
An endangered Palila contemplates a snack.

Park yourself here

The coast at Punalu’u Black Sand Beach Park in Hawaii
Punaluu Black Sand Beach Park, on the southern coast of the island, not only has a black sand beach, but also turtles like the one in the photo. OK, it looks like a rock, but it’s there!

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘State and local parks.’ See more responses here.

Sifting through a ton of park photos, it was the island’s beach parks that came out on top. It’s possible to get in the water at all of these, though some require more caution than others.

The beach at Hapuna Beach State Park in Hawaii
Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area offers a long and wide sandy beach.
The coast at Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park in Hawaii
Kaloko-Honokohau Historical Park has long stretches of sand, often used by resting turtles.
The beach at Spencer Beach Park in Hawaii
Spencer Beach Park at Kawaihae, is a tranquil place popular with families because the water is generally calm.
A view of View of Whittington Beach Park in Hawaii
Not all beach parks have beaches. Whittington Beach Park on the south end of the island is one of those though it’s still possible to get in the water.
The coast at Lapakahi State Historical Park in Hawaii
Lapakahi HIstorical Park has a rocky shoreline, though ocean entry is possible with care.
The coast at Keokea Beach Park in Hawaii
This photo shows the reason Keokea Beach Park has a breakwater. Inside it is a little beach and calm water that kids enjoy year round.

The Numbers Game #29

Not a chocolate bar, but a mud-covered car. How did it get that way? Original post here.

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 150. Apart from the top photo, it’s all about plants this week. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Coqui Frog nestled in a ginger flower.
An orange and white orchid in Hawaii
Some kind of orchid I think.
A Bee approaches a mock-orange in Hawaii
A bee approaches Mock Orange flowers, already laden with pollen.
A gecko on a pink banana.
A Bubblegum Heliconia.
A Toothbrush Orchid.

I’m red, white and blue for you

A sign on a business in Kailua Kona Hawaii
The sign above the ABC Supply Company building in Kailua Kona. These letters always make me think of Elvis Costello’s song, Brilliant Mistake, which includes the lyrics: ‘She said that she was working for the ABC News. It was as much of the alphabet as she knew how to use.’

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Red, White, & Blue.’ See more responses here.

Here’s my selection this week with captions on the photos.

A Ring-necked pheasant in Hawaii
A Ring-necked Pheasant.
A Yellow-billed cardinal in Hawaii
A Yellow-billed Cardinal ready to take a dip.
A Hawaii Life Flight helicopter at Upolu Airport, Hawaii
Hawaii Life Flight helicopter training at Upolu Airport.
An inflatable snowman outside a store in Hawaii
It’s not too early, is it?
St Augustines Episcopal Church in Kapaau, Hawaii
St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church in Kapaau
Canoe paddlers practice in the waters off Hawaii
Canoe paddlers out on the blue Pacific.

The Numbers Game #28

A view into Waipio Valley.

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 149. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Scrawled Filefish swimming in the waters off Hawaii
Scrawled Filefish.
A Flowery Flounder swimming in the waters off Hawaii
Flowery Flounder.
A green turtle swimming in the waters off Hawaii
Green Turtle.
The Pride of America anchored off Kailua Kona.
Two Nenes confront a mongoose.
An old bomber which crashed in the Kohala Mountains. Original post here.

Big Island landscapes

Puus on Mauna Kea summit in Hawaii
Pu’us are volcanic cinders cones from past eruptions. These are near the top of Mauna Kea.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Landscapes.’ See more responses here.

There’s a bit of everything on the Big Island, so these are just few of the landscapes to be seen here. Captions on the photos.

Colorful Lava in Hawaii
Lava is a major landscape feature here, but it can be colorful.
A tree on the Hilina Pali Trail in Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii
The Hilina Pali Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
A views of Pohoiki Beach in Hawaii
The landscape here changes regularly. A view of Pohoiki Beach. Lava from the 2018 eruption on the right, new black sand beach on the left, and a smothered boat ramp with little swimming pool near the center.
A view of a valley in the Kohala Mountains in Hawaii
A view into one of the valleys of Kohala Mountain.
Part of the Pu'u O'o Trail in Hawaii
The Pu’u O’o Trail passes through old growth forests isolated by past eruptions.
A path winds through palm trees in Hawaii
On the coast, a path wanders through palm trees.
Pasture land on Kohala Mountain in Hawaii
Pastureland on Kohala Mountain.
A view of ranch land on Kohala Mountain in Hawaii
Cattle ranches border Kohala Mountain Road.
A View of Mauna Kea from The Fairmont Orchid in Hawaii
A view of Mauna Kea from the coast at the Fairmont Orchid Resort.

The Numbers Game #27

An F-22 Raptor flies by at Kahului Airport, Maui.

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 148. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A spinner dolphin doing what it’s named for.
A grasshopper wondering if it could do that!
A Great Frigatebird knows it doesn’t have to do any spinning because it glides supremely well.
A manta ray swims in the waters off Mauna Kea Resort, Hawaii
A manta ray swims in the waters off Mauna Kea Resort, Hawaii
A manta ray swims in the waters off Mauna Kea Resort, Hawaii
This Manta Ray is quietly confident it can spin and glide with the best of them!