Category Archives: Places

Ohia growing in the lava

An ohia tree grows in a lava flow

The ohia flower is the official flower of the Big Island. It’s an appropriate choice for the volcanically active island since the ohia is one of the first plants to get a foothold in lava flows. When the bright red flowers are in bloom they give a splash of color to the otherwise black lava flows.

An ohia flower

Sriracha the Bengal tiger

Sriracha, a female Bengal tiger, paces at Pana‘ewa Rainforest Zoo in Hilo.

This week’s WordPress photo challenge is to choose your favorite photo taken in 2017. I’m going with a photo that I haven’t posted before (though below I offer a few of my favorites that have run).

This is Sriracha, a female Bengal tiger and cousin of Tzatziki, a white male tiger. Both can be found at Pana‘ewa Rainforest Zoo in Hilo. What I like about this photo is those huge paws, the quiet movement, and the sense of great power that could be uncoiled at any moment.

For more information about Pana‘ewa Rainforest Zoo & Gardens, go to hilozoo.org.

As far as favorite photos already posted are concerned, I offer a few here:

Top. A gold dust day gecko drinking from a bird of paradise flower is a blaze of color (posted here).

Second. This photo captures the awesome spectacle of the lava firehose from Kilauea Volcano pouring into the ocean (posted here). Currently, while the flow is still active, lava is no longer entering the ocean.

Third. I was happy to snap the moment a passion vine butterfly laid an egg (posted here). This was taken on the same day as the gecko photo above, so a banner day for me.

Fourth. I like all the photos in this post for their color and how they capture something of this most Hawaiian of dance (posted here).

Finally, I love this gargantuan blenny for its name, and was very pleased to get this photo, since the fish is apt to dart away and the shallow water was rocking (posted here).

Aloha at Upolu airport

An Aloha greeting is mown into the grass at Upolu Airport

This Aloha greeting, mown into the grass at the end of Upolu Airport’s runway, greets arriving aircraft. At this time of year, it’s also traditional for the grounds crew to mow the words “Mele Kalikimaka & Haouoli Makahiki Hou” into the grass bordering the runway. It means “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”

I don’t have a photo of this because it’s only visible from the air, but here’s a link to the scene in 2016.

A Pueo flying

A Hawaiian short-eared owl flies over the ground.A Hawaiian short-eared owl flies over the ground.

I was driving the Kohala Mountain Road when I saw this Pueo (Hawaiian short-eared owl) hovering. The mountain road is narrow and winding so it was another 100 yards or so before I could pull over to a semi-safe place. Luckily, the pueo was in an amenable mood and hung around the area, swooping back and forth before settling on the hillside.

I love watching them, dropping onto potential prey or ascending into the skies, completely at home in their environment.

Alakaha ramp on the 1871 Trail

Lookng down Alakaha Ramp with Keanae'e Cliffs on the rightA view of Alakaha Ramp and Alakaha Bay.

In 1871, an old trail from Nāpō’opo’o to Ho’okena was improved to make it passable for horses. Because of this, it became known as “Two Horse Trail.” The northern section of this trail was paved in 1918, but the southern section was left untouched and this became the 1871 Trail, which heads south from Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park.

One feature of this trail is the Alakaha ramp at the southern end of Alakaha Bay. The ramp was built to allow trail users to safely ascend Keanae’e Cliffs.

According to bigislandhikes.com, “Prior to the construction of the ramp, access to Ki’ilae (an ancient village) was by ladder or rope only. The earliest mention of the ramp is from 1868, but the ramp likely existed prior to that time. The ramp requires periodic maintenance. It had deteriorated so much in the early 1900s that cowboys called the ramp the “one foot out trail” because they always kept one foot out of the stirrups in case they needed to bail off their horse.”

The top photo looks down the ramp with Keanae’e Cliffs on the right. In the middle photo, the ramp and trail with Alakaha Bay on the left. Below, hiking up toward the ramp with Keanae’e Cliffs on the left.

For more information about the 1871 Trail, and other hikes on the Big Island, go to bigislandhikes.com.

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

Lookng up Alakaha Ramp with Keanae'e Cliffs on the left.