On my last visit to Kohanaiki Beach Park I noticed this dive boat a little way off shore. Not being a diver, I’m not familiar with the best spots for diving around the Big Island, but there are usually one or two boats to be seen here.
I’ve lived in Hawaii for more than nine years now and had previously never seen any of those most tropical of birds, the parrots. One reason for this is that parrots aren’t native to Hawaii, but a variety of different parrots have become established here.
Red-masked parakeets were first seen here in 1988 and are probably the most common parrot on the Big Island. They’re natives of Ecuador and Peru, but are now fairly well established on the Kona coast, which is where I saw this a pair, in Kohanaiki Beach Park. While they forage along the coast here, they roost high up on the slopes of Hualalai Volcano.
Alexandrian laurel (Calophyllum inophyllum) is known as Kamani in Hawaii. It’s a canoe plant, which means it was brought to Hawaii by the early Polynesian voyagers. They would have carried this evergreen tree because of its importance for building their ocean-going outriggers.
The small white and yellow flowers usually bloom twice a year and are followed by round fruits with a single large seed.
A few days ago, I posted about a heron encounter (here) when I didn’t have enough time to walk along the coast before going to work. I took this photo when I did have that time.
This is a view from Spencer Beach Park towards Kawaihae Harbor. The footprints are mine. There were no others. As a start to the day, it doesn’t get much better.
The faint outline of the uninhabited island of Kaho’olawe can just be seen on the horizon below the setting sun.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Burlywood.’ (See more responses here.) It’s a color I’d never heard of before, apparently a shade of khaki. I’ve gone for some photos of Mauna Ulu, a crater in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
The Mauna Ulu eruption took place between 1969 and 1974 and transformed the landscape of the park. A good guide to the eruption can be found here. These days, it’s a quiet area and plants have gained a foothold in the main crater, though the slopes are still mostly barren. And it’s those slopes, seen from the air, that have a pronounced khaki, or burlywood color.
For more information about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, go to nps.gov/havo/.
This building at Spencer Beach Park is typical of how structures were built here in days gone by. A post and pier foundation raised it off the ground, keeping it relatively free from ground crawling bugs and improving air circulation around and into the building. Single board walls and single pane windows were the norm – not much need for insulation here. And it’s all topped by a corrugated iron roof.
This one has fallen into disrepair however, though it’s possible it’s still used for storage of some kind. Time, or a big storm, are likely to end even that option.
Evidence that the time-honored tradition of carving names into tree trunks is still as popular as ever.
Posted in response to Becky’s July Squares challenge theme of ‘Trees.’ See more responses here.
Graham's Island 