On the Big Island, Mamalahoa Highway is known as the top road. It’s part of the original road around the island. In the 1970s, the stretch between Kaiwaihae and Kailua Kona was supplemented with a new highway along the coast, known as Queen Ka‘ahumanu Highway or Queen K Highway.
Mamalahoa Highway travels father inland, up on the slopes of Hualalai Volcano. When it get towards Kailua Kona, those slopes are steep. It’s a big residential area with spectacular views out towards Maui and the sunset. The downside of the location is that anyone living there needs to make sure the brakes on their vehicles are always in tiptop condition.
Posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card. See more responses here.
A lava breakout in a flow from Pu’u O’o covers the old coast road, which is now a trail (here).
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Parks.’ See more responses here.
Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park is the best known park on the island. It covers 354,461 acres, which includes, not just the Kilauea area, but up to the summit of Mauna Loa and down the southwest rift zone of that volcano. The park contains 106 miles of roads and 155 miles of marked trails, many of them well off the beaten track.
I’ve hiked a lot in the park, though I doubt I’ll ever cover all the trails, but these photos are from ones I’ve done with links to the original posts for those interested.
On the Pu‘u Loa Petroglyphs Trail (here).Great views on the Hilina Pali Trail, but this one nearly did me in! (here).Puʻu ʻŌʻō from the end of the Nāpau Trail (here and here).Puapo’o lava tube is only accessible on a guided tour (here).Nahuku lava tube is one of the most popular stops in the park (here).Kilauea Iki is another popular trail, across the floor of an old vent (here).Steaming Bluff on the Crater Rim Trail (here).The Jaggar Museum viewing point. The museum has gone but the viewing point just reopened (here).Sulphur Banks Trail (here).Halemauma Trail passes through the woods (here).The Puna Coast Trail features colorful lava (here)……As does the Ka’u Desert Trail (here).A lush valley in the Kahuku section of the park (here).
Also posted for Jo’s Monday Walk. See more responses here.
I saw this helicopter flying back and forth over these power lines. The power company hires the pilot to check out the lines to spot potential issues that can be fixed before they cause problems. These days, that work is being increasingly turned over to drone operators who can do it at less cost, though not as quickly as the helicopter.
I was down in Pololu Valley when I saw several of these dragonflies. I knew they were luring me in with their ‘Come on, we’re just hovering, you’ll get a great photo’ routine. Then they zip around evading every attempt to get them in the camera screen, let alone in focus. But I’m nothing, if not a sucker for that kind of temptation.
Shockingly, this was the second photo I took. Don’t tell the dragonflies. They’ll be very upset.
This statue in Waimea celebrates the role of paniolos in the region. (Original post here.)
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 195. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.
A hair salon in Hawi.A Bright-eyed Damselfish and a Red Pencil Urchin.The front of a 1978 Peterbilt fuel truck, not moving fortunately.A fascinating, but rarely seen, Stick Swimming Crab. Original post here.A Bullethead Blenny monitors his territory.An elephant table outside a house on the North Kona coast.
This church, like many others, has a sign board out front, though this is the only one around here that’s a rather garish neon affair. I have to confess that when I saw this message my first thought was, ‘So, can I borrow his lawnmower?’ I’m going straight down to the hot place, I know.
This house has a view of the ocean and a couple of palm trees nearby. What’s not to like? The view, however, does face northeast, which is where the trade winds blow from. If those winds carry driving rain, the view would likely be gone and the preferred side of the house would be the opposite one, which faces inland and into the trees.
Graham's Island 