Giant stalks of bamboo arch overhead creating a delicate green umbrella under the blue Hawaiian sky.
Abstracts: Arching bamboo
Category Archives: Plants
Wandering Tattler in a tree
I saw this Wandering Tattler at Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park and realized that I’d never seen one in a tree before. Usually I see them wandering over the rocks in search of food. I’m not sure what this one was up to, but it took off not long after I saw it, probably heading for the shoreline.
Gecko on a railing
I thought this Gold Dust Dy Gecko looked quite scenic on this railing, surrounded as it was by tropical foliage. It has a sort of purposeful look, but wasn’t doing much of anything while I watched it.
Palm trees on the coast
A couple of different views of five palm trees on the South Kohala coast, looking out to sea (above) and along the coast (below).
Hibiscus Clayi
Hibiscus Clayi is endemic to Hawaii, but is listed as endangered. In the wild, it’s found only in a part of eastern Kauaʻi, but this one was growing at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden. For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.
Red Tis
Red Ti leaves provide a splash of contrasting color against a background of tropical greenery.
Monarch Butterfly on Bougainvillea flowers
For whatever reason, I don’t usually see much activity on bougainvillea flowers and I don’t see a lot of monarch butterflies. On this occasion though, this monarch was one of several insects feeding on a group of bougainvilleas.
First visit to Hawaii
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Meaningful Memories.’ See more responses here.
This seemed like an opportune time to revisit my first visit to Hawaii, back in 2010. My wife and I stayed in a vacation rental near Captain Cook, overlooking Kealakekua Bay. The sky was hazy with vog from Kilauea Volcano, but the place was awash with colorful flowers. Just down the road was the Painted Church and at the foot of the hill, Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park celebrates Hawaiian culture and history with its wooden ki’i and towering palms.
We traveled the whole island from the black sand beach at Pololu (even if we had to pass the carcass of a dead whale twice) to the black sand beach at Punalu’u, dotted with resting green turtles, and rocky surrounds. There were waterfalls big and small, and roads lined with tropical foliage leading to the active lava flow at that time.
There, signs warned that flowing lava is dangerous (who knew?), but we were still able to get within 10 feet of oozing tongues of red, and saw small fires still burning in nearby brush.
There was even a house for sale: ‘Buy now before it burns!’ We didn’t, though that house still stands while others, much farther from that scene, have since been consumed by subsequent flows.
It was this visit that prompted us to return permanently two years later. Hawaii isn’t paradise – it has its pros and cons like any place – but we haven’t regretted the move and are looking forward to the next 10 years.
Graham's Island 