Category Archives: Places

Storm’s a comin’

This photo is from a while back but it could be right now as Tropical Storm Calvin approaches the Big Island. The storm was a hurricane while in the Eastern Pacific, but it weakened as it neared Hawaii. Yesterday afternoon, the storm strengthened again with winds up to 60 mph. Who knows what will happen to it overnight, but I’m scheduling this ahead of time in case the power goes out.

Hurricanes here have been a mixed bag. Hurricane Lane, which hit the island in 2018, stalled off the west coast of the island, bringing gray skies but little wind or rain to the west coast. The eastern part of the island had a different experience. They had 54 inches of rain in three days!

View of Hualalai

When the weather’s decent, Kohala Mountain Road offers some great views of the west side of the island. This one is of the South Kohala coast towards Hualalai. Kawaihae Harbor is on the right of the photo.

Bubbling up

Small waves wash ashore at Pelekane Beach Hawaii

Recently, I was taking photos at Pelekane Beach in Kawaihae. It was a quiet morning with small wavelets running up on the beach. But, while the waves were little, the turbulence produced some great bubbles. Check out the one in the center of the photo!

Painted Lady Butterfly and Ma’o flower

A Painted Lady Butterfly on a milo flower in Hawaii

These photos were taken at Lapakahi State Historical Park. This year, North Kohala was awash with Painted Lady Butterflies and the park was no exception. The butterflies were all over the Ma’o flowers and pretty much anything else that came into bloom.

Painted Lady Butterflies on a milo flower in Hawaii

What the heck are these?

Two pay phone at Spencer Beach Park in Hawaii

I saw these at Spencer Beach Park and realized there are generations of people who will have no idea what these are, or indeed why such things ever existed. But it’s an historical fact that telephones (they were once called that) used to be connected by wires. Go ahead, Duck it (I won’t use Google) on your phone, that’s in your pocket, not connected to anything, except to everything.

I was going to return to the park to see if the phones worked, but it’s clear the one on the left doesn’t, and chances are the one on the right doesn’t either. Which is pretty much the way they were when that was the way everyone placed phone calls when they were out and about!

I got the blues real good

A broken window in Hawaii — One of the broken windows in the next door house mentioned in yesterday’s post.

A blue blur — I was photographing monarch butterflies and this photo was one of them. Use your imagination.

The Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge theme is ‘Blue.’ See more responses here. After sorting through some photos, I found a cluster of abstract blues that I like so here they are.

Chainlink fencing over a blue tarp in Hawaii — Some chainlink fencing wrapped around a blue tarp covering something or other.

A blue light at an airport in Hawaii — A blue light at Upolu Airport, up close and personal

Blue panels and rivets on a helicopter in Hawaii — A blue light at Upolu Airport, up close and personal

Goatfishes congregate over a sandy bottom in Hawaii — Goatfishes swimming in blue-green water in the company of a bluer parrotfish

Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay

Two people fishing from a jetty in Kawaihae Harbor in Hawaii

There are always people fishing from this little jetty in Kawaihae Harbor, when I go by there in the early morning. I don’t know how the fishing is, but they must catch something, or perhaps they just enjoy the peaceful scene as much as I do.

Wandering Tattler

This Wandering Tattler struck an obliging pose on a rock on one of my early morning walks near Kawaihae.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii