Tag Archives: Kohala

Well rounded

The rounded hills of Kohala Mountain and a weather radar known as the golfball — The rounded NEXRAD Weather Radar sits on the rounded hills of Kohala Mountain.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Rounded.’ See more responses here. Another mixed bag this week with captions on or below the photos

The sun sets off the Kohala Coast in Hawaii — The sun sets….

Three illuminated balls in a window display in Hawaii — Three rounded balls in a shop window.

Coffee berries on a plant in Hawaii — Three rounded balls in a shop window.

A look down Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway

Queen Kaahumanu Highway on the Big Island, Hawaii, as seen from the air

The Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway was built in the 1970s to connect Kailua Kona to Kawaihae and Waimea along a coastal route. This also opened up the south Kohala coast for resort development that had been led by the Mauna Kea Resort, which opened in the late 1960s. Mauna Kea Resort is in the foreground of this image.

Brown in Hawaii

A horse on the coast of Hawaii — A brown horse on the North Kohala coast.

This month’s Sunday Stills Color Challenge is ‘Brown.’ See more responses here.

I’ve gone for a selection of animals, mostly. Captions on the photos as usual.

Wild pigs in Hawaii — Brown and black wild pigs.

Cattle and a pig at Puuwaawaa in Hawaii — Brown and black wild pigs.

A brown anole in Hawaii — A brown anole, looking miffed.

Participants in the Kamehameha Day parade at Kapaau, Hawaii — At the Kamehameha Day parade earlier this year. The photographer has to be a mom or other relative with that matching dress!

Appearances are deceptive

A plywood floor with Kohala Mountain in the background

The top photo looks rather like a smooth Hawaiian beach, but it’s the plywood floor of a building under construction.

The bottom photo looks like someone lost control of their saw!

A maritime mystery

A Saildrone research vehicle collecting data off the coast of Hawaii

Back in May, I saw this orange boat a fair distance from shore, off the South Kohala coast. I knew it wouldn’t be a good photo, but I thought I’d be able to identify what it was from it. I was mistaken. I did some searching but turned up nothing. I put it to the side and kind of forgot about it.

Then, late last month, I was on the BBC website and there was a photo of a craft so similar, it had to be connected. The article (here) was about how seafaring drones are being used to collect data to help scientists figure out why some hurricanes become so dangerous, so fast. These drones operate without crew and are equipped to gather data from both the ocean and the atmosphere.

The company making the drones is called Saildrone, and I emailed them to ask about what the vessel I’d seen was up to. I received an unbelievably prompt response saying that the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa was using three drones around the state to collect information about climate change and ocean acidification and its effect on the health of the waters around Hawaii (here). It was also pointed out that since the drones carry no cargo or crew they are more properly called vehicles rather than vessels!

A wobbly line

A line of traffic waits on a road in Hawaii

I took this photo while waiting in a line of traffic on the mountain road. As usual, the cars aren’t in line, but they do match the temporary striping in the middle of the road. I use the word ‘temporary’ with hesitation. Often, these temporary road markings are still in place months, or even years later.

Kohala by the Sea

Kohala by the Sea is an upscale gated community on the northern edge of Kawaihae. What appeals to me in this image is the curvy roads terminating in little asphalt blobs. It gives it an organic feel, which I suppose it is in a way.

Kohala Ditch

The Kohala Ditch was built in the early 1900s to carry water from the wet slopes of Kohala Mountain, to the sometimes drought-prone sugar cane fields of Kohala. A series of tunnels, flumes and ditches channeled water through ridges and over gullies for a distance of 14 miles.

After the sugar cane industry folded, ditch water continued to be used by other agricultural activities. But this valuable resource was always beset by difficulties. The challenging landscape was prone to landslides and flooding. Flumes were washed away, tunnels blocked. Increasingly expensive and time-consuming repairs did not provide the same economic benefit they once did.

After one such event, a few years ago, the operator of the ditch said it would no longer be repaired and maintained.

The Kohala Ditch in North Kohala, Hawaii, overgrown with vegetation

The top photo shows a section of the ditch in 2016. The others show how it looks today, in places, overgrown with weeds and even trees. In some areas it’s more manicured by those living next to it. In the meantime, access to water is a considerable problem, especially as dry weather is increasingly common in the area.

The Kohala Ditch in North Kohala, Hawaii, is currently without water — An arrangement to control the flow and level of water in the ditch.

The current Governor of Hawaii knows this region well and money has been earmarked for finding a solution to the area’s water shortage, but when and how that happens is still very much in the pipeline!

For more information about the history of the Kohala Ditch, go to fluminkohala.com/the-kohala-ditch.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii