These slippahs, or slippers, were at Spencer Beach Park and had been left on the beach by people out in canoes. But it is customary in Hawaii to remove your footwear when entering someone’s home. This is an import from Asian traditions. Here, most people go barefoot but some, including us, switch to house slippahs, which are only used indoors. I like this because I have no wish to step on a centipede with a bare foot!
A lot of people here are involved with outrigger canoe paddling. There’s been a big resurgence in the activity, along with other aspects of traditional Hawaiian life. Several of these canoes are stored at Spencer Beach Park, which is where I saw these armas, floating in the air, like birds on the wing.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Something to Do.’ See more responses here.
There’s plenty to do here on the Big Island, with outdoor activities available year round. Here’s a selection.
The trunk of a False Kamani tree (Terminalia catappa) at Spencer Beach Park.
I saw this House Sparrow one morning, standing over this fruit of a False Kamani tree (Terminalia catappa) at Spencer Beach Park. It didn’t seem interested in the fruit, not making any attempt to peck at it.
After a while, it raised its head, opened its beak and … silence. It did this several times and never made a sound. I assume it’s a juvenile trying to get its parents attention without otherwise drawing attention to itself. I never did see the parents, or if they came to the youngsters assistance.
Spencer Beach Park is a place I visit fairly often. Recently, I had the opportunity to fly to Maui and, while I was in the air, took the usual plethora of photos. Some of these were of the park.
The top photo shows the park with its sandy beach, surrounding trees, and calm blue waters offshore. It also shows how close the recent brush fires came to the park. The building on the left side of the photo is the visitor center for Pu’ukohola Heiau National Historic Site, which adjoins the site.
In the bottom photo, Spencer is at the lower left. To the right is Mauna Kea resort, which did suffer some damage in the fires. Mauna Kea Volcano provides the backdrop.
A few days ago, I headed out on the trail from Spencer Beach Park to Mau’umae Beach Beach. I was curious to see how far last month’s brush fire, that burned near Mauna Kea Resort, had reached down by the ocean. A hundred yards into the walk the answer became clear. It reached the shore. Spencer Beach Park was untouched, but the woods on the edge of the park are one tree deep in places.
I walked back to Spencer on the service road, a quarter mile inland. The power line ran along the ground or was draped in blackened trees. There was a clump of poles and other supplies in one spot, ready for restoring service.
The vehicle access road to Mau’umae Beach beach is closed now, as two small wooden bridges were destroyed in the fire. Currently, and for the foreseeable future, the only access to the beach will be along the coast trail from Spencer. It’s only a 15 minute walk, but that’s often enough to discourage people from going there.
One recent early morning, I spent a while watching A’ama Crabs on the rocks at Spencer Beach Park. This one held its position as the waves washed over it and then receded ….
…. Time after time.
