Category Archives: Parks

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.

A Mourning Gecko on a Bird of Pardise flower.

A gold dust day gecko licks moisture off a bird of paradise flower in Hawaii — A Mourning Gecko on a Bird of Pardise flower.

A black stink bug next to a black strap on a red shirt. — This stink bug landed on my shirt as I was trying to photograph it.

A dive boat anchored off the Kona Coast in Hawaii — A dive boat off the Kona Coast.

A pair of zebra doves resting on a branch — A dive boat off the Kona Coast.

Sunset over Kohala — Sunset from the lanai.

Armas

A lot of people here are involved with outrigger canoe paddling. There’s been a big resurgence in the activity, along with other aspects of traditional Hawaiian life. Several of these canoes are stored at Spencer Beach Park, which is where I saw these armas, floating in the air, like birds on the wing.

Bees on a Tree Heliotrope

Last week I posted photos of a Feather-legged Fly (here). What I was taking photos of, at that time, were these bees foraging on a Tree Heliotrope. I like Tree Heliotropes because they look like molecular models put together by a scientist trying to explain the meaning of life!