Tag Archives: Hiking

Big Island landscapes

Puus on Mauna Kea summit in Hawaii — Pu’us are volcanic cinders cones from past eruptions. These are near the top of Mauna Kea.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Landscapes.’ See more responses here.

There’s a bit of everything on the Big Island, so these are just few of the landscapes to be seen here. Captions on the photos.

Colorful Lava in Hawaii — Lava is a major landscape feature here, but it can be colorful.

A tree on the Hilina Pali Trail in Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii — Lava is a major landscape feature here, but it can be colorful.

A view of a valley in the Kohala Mountains in Hawaii — A view into one of the valleys of Kohala Mountain.

Part of the Pu'u O'o Trail in Hawaii — A view into one of the valleys of Kohala Mountain.

The trail to Pepeiao Cabin

View from Hilina Pali Shelter on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — View from the shelter at the trailhead.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Great Outdoors Month.’ See more responses here.

I did this hike, at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, quite a while ago, but for one reason or another the post never came together and then went missing in my files! This hike started from the lookout at the end of Hilina Pali Road. A few years back, I did a different hike from this starting point that almost did me in (here). This time, having learned from that experience, I stayed on top of the pali (Hawaiian for cliff). My destination was Pepeiao Cabin (pronounced ‘pay-pay-ow’), about five miles away, though the trail is the Ka’u Desert Trail, part of which I’ve hiked from the other end (here).

Ohia trees on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — Ohia trees on the trail.

A spider wrapped in a leaf on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — Ohia trees on the trail.

The day was sunny, but not too hot, and with a nice breeze for the most part. The elevation drop (and gain on the return) is only around 500 feet so it wasn’t too strenuous, and the trail was fairly easy to follow. It passes through grassy areas and across lava flows, and is well-marked with cairns. Ohia trees dot the landscape, along with a variety of shrubs and other flowers. I didn’t see too many birds, but there was a decent show of butterflies and bugs. The views were splendid, down to the coast or upslope towards Mauna Loa.

Balloon plants on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — A Balloon plant on the Ka’u Desert Trail.

Balloon plant flowers on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — A Balloon plant on the Ka’u Desert Trail.

All the backcountry trails I’ve hiked in the park have featured something particularly unusual and interesting. On this hike, I was amazed by the substantial areas of sand on the trail or alongside it. This certainly didn’t get there from the beach, since the elevation is around 2,000 feet. My assumption is that it’s just volcanic rock broken down by rainfall, but just not washed down to the coast. Some of the sand was grassed over and it was like walking through dunes on the coast!

Sand and a pool of water on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — Sand on the Ka’u Desert Trail.

Footprints in the sand on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — Sand on the Ka’u Desert Trail.

Eventually, I reached Pepeiao Cabin. There are several of these backcountry cabins in the park, and they require a permit to stay at them. This one was typically rustic, with a catchment water tank that may or may not contain water, depending on the weather and use. There’s also an outhouse with a splendid view. Inside, the cabin was basic, but the kind of place I’d be happy to stay in if it was raining outside.

The Pepeiao Cabin on the Kau Desert Trail in Hawaii — Pepeiao Cabin on the Ka’u Desert Trail.

After I got back, I saw that the park website says “Pepeiao is in the southwestern reaches of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park backcountry. The cabin is no longer safe for use and visitors should plan on tent camping.” I was a bit surprised because I’ve certainly stayed in plenty of less salubrious accommodations in my day!

Also posted for Jo’s Monday Walk. See more responses here.

A face only a mother could love

I came across this near the end of my walk yesterday. Definitely a contender for the weirdest photo I’ve ever posted.

Posted for Bushboy’s Last on the Card photo challenge. See more here.

Suspicion

Two sheep looking watchful at Puu Waawaa in Hawaii

These two sheep on Pu’u Wa’awa’a kept a close eye on me as I walked by.

The Numbers Game #12

A green turtle is temporarily stranded on a rock. — A turtle on the rocks. See more photos 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 133. Captions are on the photos.

You can see more responses here.

A Red-billed Leiothrix sings on a branch — A Red-billed-Leiothrix calls out.

A wild pig that has been eating fallen mangoes — A Red-billed-Leiothrix calls out.

The Tahitian voyaging canoe Fa‘afaite off the coast of the Big Island of Hawaii. — The Tahitian voyaging canoe Fa’afaite off Mahukona.

A surface lava flow on Napau trail. — The Tahitian voyaging canoe Fa’afaite off Mahukona.

Bougainvillea flowers in bloom — A Bougainvillea in a neighbor’s garden.

The Numbers Game #11

A distant view of Pu'u O'o vent from the Napau Trail at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park — A view of Pu’u O’o vent, when it was erupting, from the Napau Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

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 132.

You can see more responses here.

A parachuting clown hangs from a tree. — A flying clown. That’s all the world needs!

A grasshopper on a curved stem — A flying clown. That’s all the world needs!

Post office boxes in Hawaii — Couldn’t resist taking this one at my local post office. I can run this several times!

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.

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).

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii