Category Archives: Photo Challenges

Churches

The Kalahikiola Congregational Church in Kapaau, Hawaii

The St. Augustines Episcopal Church in Kapaau, Hawaii

The Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Hawi, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Churches, Temples, and Spiritual Centers.’ See more responses here.

Here’s a few of the churches that can be found in this part of the island.

Kalāhikiola Congregational Church (top photo) is located east of Kapaau, where rainfall is plentiful and the foliage lush. It was built in 1855, though previous versions had existed for some years before this. The church was badly damaged by an earthquake in 2006, but rebuilt in the winter of 2009/2010.

St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church (second photo) was founded in 1884 in Kapaau, and expanded in 1913. It sits on a small hill by the main highway.

Sacred Heart Catholic Church (third photo) was founded in Hawi in 1905, but this structure was built in 1925 and continues to be used daily to this day.

Kohala Baptist Church (bottom photo) is located on the road to Pololu at Makapala. It can’t be seen from the road, but there is a sign by the highway pointing out the way. Currently, the church is undergoing some renovations and services are held in the area below the Royal Poinciana tree on the grounds.

The Kohala Baptist Church in Kapaau, Hawaii

Another invasive species

A cell phone tower disguised as a tree in Hawaii

I went for a drive up Old Saddle Road yesterday and noticed this unusual tree. It is, of course, that now ubiquitous invasive species, the cell phone tower. At least this one had the good grace to try and blend into its surroundings, and does a decent job of it.

This ‘tree’ is located on the grounds of Camp Kilohana, the Girls Scouts Camp on the Big Island.

Posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card photo challenge. See more responses here.

Road closed

The spot where the 2022 Mauna Loa eruption crossed the road to the observatory

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Roads, Paths, and Streets.’ See more responses here.

After a recent hike off Saddle Road, I had time to take a drive up one of my favorite roads on the island, which leads to the Mauna Loa Observatory. Well, it used to; it doesn’t get there anymore. That’s because a flow from last fall’s eruption of Mauna Loa crossed the road a few miles short of its destination. I was curious to see what the scene looked like now.

The cloudy skies added some atmosphere to the drive which was, as always, a lot of fun. It’s a winding one lane road, so even though there’s little traffic, one has to pay attention. Any distraction could result in driving off the road into the inhospitable lava fields bordering it.

I confess, my secret hope was that, when I arrived at the flow, there would be a sign saying ‘Road Closed.’ Alas, that was not the case. Clearly, the Department of Transportation figured the seven foot high wall of lava conveyed the message well enough on its own. The only sign there warned against walking on the new flow. I didn’t need that warning. This is a’a lava which is really hard to walk on anyway, and in a new flow it could be quite unstable and even harbor pockets where one could fall through into still hot lava! Still, I’m sure some folks have clambered up there just because it’s there.

I took a few photos, then turned around and headed back down, not least because it was damp, windy and I was freezing, which is not why anyone comes to, or lives in, Hawaii.

The HISEAS dome on the slopes of Mauna Loa

On the drive down, I got a good view of the HI-SEAS (Hawai’i Space Exploration Analog and Simulation) dome. This is where teams of volunteers do research for what it would be like to be living on the Moon or Mars. I’m not sure if it’s in use since the COVID shutdown, but at least it survived the last eruption.

Clouds meet the and on the saddle between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea in Hawaii

Farther down, the land seemed to be steaming, but in the saddle between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, the weather often seems to be part of the landscape.

The Mauna Loa Observatory Road on a cloudy afternoon

And the views, which change with every twist in the road, are strange and stunning and wonderful. It may not be possible currently to reach the end of the road, but it’s still a great drive.

They’re baaaaack

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

What’s more earthy than pigs. Of course, these piglets aren’t really back. The last litter is now much larger and correspondingly less cute. The ones in this photo are the latest batch. There are seven of them and they’re still in the ‘Everything is new and exciting’ phase. They root around in the dirt with such vigor that their back ends sometimes fly into the air. However, they haven’t yet learned that, while they’re doing this, they need to retain awareness of their surroundings. When something or someone, such as myself, can approach within five feet without them noticing, that might not end well. If mom’s around, she’ll warn them. If not, they’re easy to surprise.

In these photos, the piglets found something in the base of the palm and were clambering over each other to get a piece of it. I could have tapped one on the shoulder and it would probably have ignored me!

Then dad came along.

Time to head for the cane grass.

Wait for me!

Rosy-faced Lovebirds

This week’s Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge is ‘White and Pastels.’ See more responses here.

Rosy-faced Lovebirds are also known as Peach-faced Lovebirds and they have a lot of color variations. I have yet to see a rosy face in Hawaii outside of tourists who’ve seen too much sun. Instead, the local birds tend towards pastel shades whether they’re dining or simply hanging out.

Time to get up!

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

There’s no shortage of roosters and hens in Hawaii and the roosters are keen to fulfill their role in making sure everyone knows a new day is dawning. However, it has to be noted that they’re just as likely to awaken you from an afternoon nap as from a good night’s sleep. That’s because they can be heard crowing most any time of day, and sometimes half the night, too. This one was going off at five in the afternoon.

Old horse-drawn carriage

I saw this old carriage on the way home from Hilo yesterday, parked in a grassy area of one of the ranches along Old Saddle Road. These days it’s being used as a planter it seems.

The top photo is posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card challenge. (See more responses here.) The bottom photo is one I took a few moments earlier. I like it better because the carriage is framed better, the photo is crisper, and a few minimal photo edits give it more pop.

To the winner goes the spoils

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

I had a couple of photos lined up for this, but a few days ago I was outside cleaning windows. (I do it annually, whether they need it or not!) I got distracted by a kerfuffle in the cane grass behind me. I thought I saw an anole, so dashed inside and got my camera. When I got back and peeked into the tangle mass of cane grass, I could see two anoles locked in mortal combat.

I was pretty sure this was two males fighting. Usually, when there’s a territorial dispute there’s a lot of puffing and posturing that resolves the issue. This time, the two anoles were similar sized and the challenge was on.

It was hard to get a clear view, but each anole had a grip on the other’s head. Both sported dark bruising from the encounter. They wrestled to gain the upper hand, jerking up and down the cane grass as they did so.

Eventually, they fell apart. It was hard to tell who was the winner, but since one of them left the scene, I figured the other had won or defended his territory. However, since he was staggering around like he’d just gone 15 rounds with Mike Tyson, the other one might want to regroup and see about coming out for round 2!

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii