Category Archives: Parks

The Numbers Game #10

Green darner dragonflies mating at Kiholo on the Big Island of Hawaii. — Green darner dragonflies mating.

Coconut palms line the beach north of the park at Kiholo on the Big Island. — Palm trees line the beach.

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 131.

You can see more responses here.

two Hawaiian sea turtles look like an impressionist painting as they swim underwater — Green turtles in Kiholo lagoon.

The entrance to Emesine Lava Tube on the Powerline Trail off Saddle Road. — Green turtles in Kiholo lagoon.

Tilapia nests

Tilapia in a fishpond at Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park on the Big Island, Hawaii

When I was down at Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park recently, I noticed, possibly for the first time, these circles in some of the fishponds. They are the nests of male Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus). The males hope to entice a female into laying her eggs in their nest, after which the male will fertilize them.

Tilapia were introduced to the fishponds to control mosquitoes, but like many such ideas, they have proved detrimental to the well-being of native species. Currently, efforts are underway to remove them from the ponds.

For more information about Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, visit https://www.nps.gov/puho/index.htm

Another brush fire

A brush fire at Lapakahi on the North Kohala coast, Hawaii

I was driving home yesterday when I noticed some haze blowing out to sea. I thought it was rain at first, but quickly realized that this was smoke, likely another brush fire, and my heart sank. I was halfway home. Up ahead was Lapakahi and beyond that, Mahukona, two places I spend a lot of time at.

As I got closer I saw that the fire was burning at Lapakahi. Traffic was still passing on the highway though the land beside it was black and smoking. But strong trade winds had blown the fire, which apparently started near the park entrance, down towards the ocean.

My guess is the fire had been going less than an hour when I got there, though a considerable area had already burned. Fires were burning along the north edge of the area, not far from the road, but the most smoke and bigger flames could be seen closer to the ocean. It looked like the small visitor center had escaped, surrounded as it is by the looping access road. But other structures might not have been so lucky, and the native plants, birds and insects probably did not fare well.

Goats on the 1871 Trail

I was hiking the 1871 trail, south of Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, when I saw these goats scrambling down a rocky slope. I thought they matched the terrain well.

It’s a miracle

The flowers of a miracle fruit plant in Hawaii.

Every time I visit Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden, I see something new. On my last visit, one of new things I saw was this Miracle Fruit (Synsepalum dulcificum). The plant hails from tropical Africa. It gets its name from its berry. Without getting into too much chemistry, if this berry is eaten, sour foods eaten after it will taste sweet!

There were no berries on this plant, but perhaps I’ll see them next time I visit. Perhaps I’ll nick one and see how this works!

Hawaiʻi on Fire

Daybreak reveals the onlookers gathered at the Jaggar Museum viewing point. — Daybreak reveals onlookers gathered at the Jaggar Museum viewing point in April 2016 (Original post here).

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Iconic Places and Spaces.’ See more responses here.

I wasn’t sure what to post for this, but Kilauea is about as iconic as anything on the island, so I thought I’d post some photos from volcanic activity that I’ve seen since I moved here. Captions on the photos with a link to the original post.

Kilauea lava pours into ocean as people watch from the cliff — Lava from the Pu’u O’o vent reaches the ocean in July 2016 (Original Post here).

A lava breakout from the Kilauea lava flow. — A hike to the July 2016 flow revealed surreal scenes like this one (Original post here).

Lava from Kilauea Volcano’s Pu’u O’o vent enters the ocean as if from a firehose. — This fire hose of lava was a short-lived feature of the 2016 flow (original post here).

In April 2018, lava in Halema’uma’u Crater spilled onto the crater floor. (Original post here).

One of our barriers is missing

A series of high swells recently, played havoc with the place where I go swimming. Concrete barriers were not only moved around, but one went missing altogether! The decaying parking area was roughed up, with more potholes and cracks appearing. As a result the gate to the parking area was kept closed for several days while ideas were mulled about what to do.

A concrete barrier in the water at Mahukona Hawaii — The missing barrier under the water.

One day, several new concrete barriers appeared, though the missing barrier had been located – near the entry ladder, but underwater. Word leaked out that repairs were to be made. The sunken barrier would be recovered and the holes in the lot filled.

They were true to their word. Next day a crew arrived and the promised work was completed in a day. The barrier was back in place, its smaller replacements removed. The gates were opened and cars flooded in. It looked like a brand new place, relatively speaking.

Yesterday, I went down there to see how the latest big swell looked. The parking lot gate was closed again as expected. The swell was still building, but washed across the lower reaches of the lot. And the recently replaced concrete barrier was on the move again, heading across the parking lot, en route to the channel by the entry ladder!

The swimming entry at Mahukona Hawaii — Calm conditions, but a rather battered looking lot.

The parking area at Mahukona Hawaii — Barriers back in place and potholes filled!

The Numbers Game #8

A cattle egret stands on a sleeping cow in Hawaii — A Cattle Egret stands on a resting cow. No, it’s not dead!

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 129. You can see more responses here.