Tag Archives: Sunday Stills

I know you’re there

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘National Kids and Pets Day.’ See more responses here.

This is Gigi, one of the cats at work. She wasn’t about to move, but she was keeping a bit of an eye on me, just in case.

Halemaʻumaʻu crater

A view of Halemaumau Crater at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii — Halemaʻumaʻu crater sits within the larger Kilauea calera.

A view of Halemaumau Crater and Jaggar Museum at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii — Jagger Museum sits on the center of the ridge above Halemaʻumaʻu crater. This view gives an idea of the scale.

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

My brother has been visiting from England and, a few days ago, we went down to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to check out the scene. The volcano’s last eruption ended in September 2023, and it’s been mostly quiet since then.

We arrived to find the volcano socked in with clouds, but the next morning the skies had lifted and we got some great views. We started at Uēkahuna, a viewing area next door to the Jaggar Museum. The viewing area used to be at the museum, but that was badly damaged during Kilauea’s 2018 eruption and is currently in the process of being removed.

Halemaʻumaʻu crater is a pit crater within the larger Kilauea caldera. By the end of that 2018 eruption, the crater floor had collapsed into a deep pit. A small lake formed at the bottom, but that was boiled away and covered in the next eruption. Subsequent eruptions have continued this process of filling the collapsed pit. I hadn’t been down to view this area for quite a while and I was surprised at how much had been filled in. The whole floor was easily visible from the many viewpoints around the caldera, and while there’s no active lava to be seen, there’s plenty of steam rising.

A view of volcanic cones in Halemaumau Crater at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii — Volcanic cones, from the last eruption, on the floor of the crater.

A view of steam rising in Halemaumau Crater at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii — Steam rises from cracks in the walls of Halemaʻumaʻu crater.

Ironically, yesterday I got an email from the U.S. Geological Survey announcing that ‘Increased seismicity over the past three weeks, indicates heightened activity. Updates will be provided daily while at a heightened state of unrest.’ In other words, watch this space!

For more information about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, go to nps.gov/havo/.

A purple patch

An orchid tree flower in Hawi, Hawai — An orchid tree flower.

This week’s Sunday Stills monthly color challenge is ‘Diamond, Quartz, Crystal and/or Purple.’ See more responses here. I’m going with purple because I have nothing for the others! I was going to do another flower array, but then I had a wander around beautiful downtown Hawi and came up with these photos.

A water dispenser in Hawi, Hawai — A water dispenser in Hawi.

A screen in Hawi, Hawai — A water dispenser in Hawi.

An abandoned theater in Hawi, Hawai — A sign at the front of an old theater in Hawi.

April flowers from March showers

Water lilies at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden — Water lilies.

Painter's Pallette Anthurium at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden — Painter’s Pallette Anthurium.

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

Looking through my files, I found a dearth of flower photos taken in April, except for one visit to Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden a couple of years ago. These photos are from that visit.

A Phalaenopsis Orchid at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden — Phalaenopsis or Moth Orchid.

Some ‘flowers’ aren’t flowers at all. These are the bracts of the plants, which are far more showy than the small flowers that emerge from them later.

Heliconia Pogonantha at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden — Heliconia Pogonantha

A red Heliconia at Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden — Heliconia Pogonantha

For more information about Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden, go to htbg.com.

A peek into Hilo

The Hilo Armory building in Hawaii — The Hilo Armory, dating from 1931, is the home of the Hawaii County Parks and Recreation department. Their budget doesn’t appear to include funds for paint!

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

I went to Hilo recently, intending to spend time wandering around the downtown and taking photos. Hilo is the largest town on the island. Naturally, I got distracted on the way, arrived later than intended, and ended up with just a short visit. But while I was there I took these photos.

The Palace Theater building in HIlo Hawaii — The Palace Theater has been around since 1925 and is used for movies, stage shows, and concerts. More information here.

The Hilo Bay Hostel building in Hawaii — The Hilo Bay Hostel building dates back to 1912.

The Puueo Street Bridge in HIlo Hawaii — The Wailuku River marks the north end of downtown Hilo. The Puueo Street Bridge is the middle one of three bridges crossing the river near downtown area. This view is out towards the ocean.

Coming up, going down

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Sunrise or Sunset.’ See more responses here.

The top photo is a recent sunrise over Waimea. The bottom one is a sunset along the Kohala coast.

How green are my valleys?

A view of the Valleys of Kohala Mountain in Hawaii — Valleys and waterfalls of Kohala Mountain.

This week’s Sunday Stills monthly challenge is ‘Green.’ See more responses here. Captions on photos.

A Green Anole on a green Ti leaf in Hawaii — A Green Anole on green Ti leaves.

A pueo flies over the pastures of North Kohala in Hawaii — A Green Anole on green Ti leaves.

Tropical Foliage and shadows in Hawaii — Tropical foliage creates strong shadows…

A view of Pololu Valley in Hawaii — A view up Pololu Valley in Kohala

Rainy days and Sundays …

Banana plants thrive in heavy tropical rain. — Rain lashes banana plants in Captain Cook.

… They go together in this week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme of ‘Rainy Days.’ See more responses here.

Kahili ginger in the rain in Kalopa park Hawaii — Kahili Gingers illuminate a wet day in Kalōpā Forest Reserve.

There’s plenty of rain on the Big Island. Most falls on the wet east side, but the dry west side can get its share too. Hilo, on the wet side, averages around 140 inches of rain a year, and just to the west of Hilo is an area that gets more than 200 inches a year. In contrast, Kawaihae, on the Kohala coast, gets around 10 inches of rain annually, though I suspect last year was one of its wetter ones.

Cloud and rain on Mauna Kea — The highway to the Mauna Kea visitor center awash with rain.

Where I live, on the northern end of the island, we get around 50 inches of rain a year, but being on the shoulder of Kohala Mountain, that figure can change quickly going a mile east or west, or a mile up the hill or down toward the ocean.

Rain falls in Hawi, Hawaii — Looking out the window as a passing shower dumps a load of rain.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii