A NEW Big Island Thread

[bgl 3,193]

The old Hawaiians definitely had a thing for rockwalls. And they did it the old fashioned way - just putting the rocks on top of each other, hoping that gravity would not disappoint them!

[bgl 3,193]

After a nice and relaxed walk around Pu'uhonua o Honaunau we drove north to Kailua-Kona, and our first stop was up on the mountain above Kailua-Kona. This is of course where our Moderator, Dean, resides, and we enjoyed a brief visit with a few palms thrown in! This is me, our Co-moderator, Angela, and our Moderator, Dean.

[bgl 3,193]

Then we headed down to Kailua-Kona village and did the obligatory walk along Ali'i Drive. This photo is taken from the exact spot where the Ironman swim begins and the marathon race ends, a number of gruelling hours later. (2.4 mile ocean swim, 112 mile bike run and a 26.2 mile marathon).

[bgl 3,193]

And the last one for now: Ali'i Drive in Kailua-Kona. From here we drove north, arrived at Ana'eho'omalu Beach just in time for a shot of the sunset (posted in a different thread a few days ago), and then a great dinner at the Marriott right next to the beach.

[Jeff Searle 1,204]

I always enjoy the tour and the beautiful sights, thanks guys and Angela.

Jeff

[putu enjula 196]

(bgl @ Feb. 17 2008,17:14)

QUOTE

Angela,

Great pictures of that bird! But what makes you think it's a "she"? I thought it was generally the guys that wanted to show off...! ???

Bo-Göran

And I have some more Big Island photos - to be posted soon...stay tuned!

Yeah usually it's the male birds that show off!

The bird's name is Gidget and the employee referred to it as a she...  so that's what made me think it was a "she"  

[Carlo Morici 151]

(bgl @ Jan. 26 2008,07:27)

QUOTE

And I pull into a parking spot for a quick minute to get a shot of a couple of the C. samoense. These palms live a rough life, which is why the nodes are so close together (even though the palms appear relatively healthy).

... so healthy... that's the mom of my clino! I got seeds from those plants in June 2004 and soon I will put it in the ground.

Carlo

[putu enjula 196]

Meanwhile, back at the "Disneyland" Hilton....

Steps from the lobby.

View from the other side...

This hotel has its own lagoon...

Where was this again??  Disneyland or...?

Gee what a cushy job

[doubravsky 768]

Wow... great shots, bo! Love the pics of the place of refuge. Something about that place... instantly recognizable... brings back great memories of our visit there. Maybe it's all the mana....

[putu enjula 196]

(JakeK @ Feb. 17 2008,16:17)

QUOTE

I don't think I'll ever get tired of the 'Big Island' threads, so post on!

Angela, what type of camera do you use? All the pictures you're posting are of really good quality. I'm looking for a new camera, possibly a Nikon D40 since I'm so attached to my Nikon N60. Also, do you record the flv files with the same camera?

I actually use a cheap digital SLR camera...  a Pentax istD.  I do a lot of photography so what was important to me was the size (my hands are small).  I couldn't afford a Canon at the time I was looking for a camera so I had to decide between a Nikon or a Pentax.  I chose Pentax just because it was smaller and fit in my hand better.  The movies are taken with a different camera, a Fuji S700.

Post 27 & 28 was taken with my Fuji camera.

[amazondk 91]

Bo,

Are there many pre European Hawaiian stone structures still around?

dk

[bgl 3,193]

Don,

No, I don't believe that there are "many" still in existence, but some of the ones that have survived are very impressive. There's one VERY massive heiau (Hawaiian temple) rock structure very close to the Kawaihae harbor up on the Kohala coast (a bit north of the Hilton where Angela posted these pics from). Havn't been there in a while, though, so I don't have any photos, but may go there next month. My sister from Sweden, and her husband, will be visiting us, so will be acting as "tourguide" again!

Bo-Göran

[putu enjula 196]

I finally got to go to City of Refuge....

It was  a really nice day for pictures so...  here they are!

[putu enjula 196]

I think everyone has a picture of these guys...

[putu enjula 196]

[putu enjula 196]

I guess this is how they greeted each other!

Not a good idea...

[putu enjula 196]

I have more to upload!

[putu enjula 196]

More of the Tikis...

[putu enjula 196]

How many rocks and cocos in this picture?

[putu enjula 196]

[doubravsky 768]

Wow... awesome pics! more more more!

[putu enjula 196]

(doubravsky @ Feb. 19 2008,18:13)

QUOTE

Wow... awesome pics! more more more!

Gee thanks!!    

Don't say "more" unless you mean it because there's a lot more I could post..

[putu enjula 196]

[putu enjula 196]

Looking makai... seaward

The edge of this roof is made of fern.

[putu enjula 196]

Posterior view...

"Our" moderator hard at work...

These tourists thought Dean was apart of the exhibit.

[putu enjula 196]

Noni

[putu enjula 196]

The fish pond

[putu enjula 196]

My parents and I went to South Point.  We stopped at a view point along the way near Ocean View...

You could see two different lava flows... the brown one is older.

Ooops the horizon is WAY off!!  You could see where we were headed in this shot... past the windmills and out to the southern tip.

Stay tuned for more...  South Point was really interesting...

[putu enjula 196]

After traveling down a dirt road we finally reached "South Point"....

This is near the most southern part of the U.S.

I double checked on google earth and we pretty much made it to the most southern tip  the other point might beat it by a few meters...  anyway it was close enough!

[putu enjula 196]

Well the Hawaiians at least thought it was the most southern point.  They made a rock wall here...  you can see it on Google Earth.

[putu enjula 196]

There were some crazy "local" kids jumping into a "puka" (hole).  It was a very large puka, it is hard to get a sense of the scale!

He's waiting for a good time to jump...

Another kid jumping in...

My shadow for a little scale..

[putu enjula 196]

My mom trying to get some pictures of those crazy kids...  we must have watched them for a half hour!

My dad shot this video of the jumpers...  

http://s36.photobucket.com/albums....124.flv

[bgl 3,193]

Angela,

Great pictures (and video!). That's really a very dangerous game those kids are playing. Considering how far away any medical facility is from South Point, an incident or accident could obviously have very serious consequences.

I have actually never been out to South Point. We're too busy trying to get over to the Kona side early enough...!

I checked my Hawaii Atlas & Gazetteer, which has excellent maps that are VERY detailed. If you were just east of HOVE (Hawaiian Ocean View Estates) when you took the pictures in Post 188, then the older flow (close to the camera) is from 1887 and the "newer" flow is from 1907. With almost no rainfall, those lavaflows are going to be visible for centuries. A hundred year old flow on the Hilo side will have 100 ft tall trees on it!

Bo-Göran

[putu enjula 196]

Me watching all the craziness...

Another video: http://s36.photobucket.com/albums....117.flv

[putu enjula 196]

Where all the excitement was taking place...

Long walk on a short sidewalk...

...ends up here.

[putu enjula 196]

[putu enjula 196]

It was interesting to the waves coming from the east and the west...

[putu enjula 196]

So did anyone check out the videos of the puka jumpers?

Doesn't it look like fun?   (yeah right, no way!)

[MattyB 2,158]

Wow!  Can the co-moderator win the photo contest?  'Cause you're pictures are kick puka, putu!  Loving the photos Angela, keep 'em coming.

[bgl 3,193]

After dropping off a Forum member at Hilo airport (hope you had a good trip back!! ), I headed in to Hilo, where I stopped at the Farmer's Market. Reportedly the best Farmer's Market in the entire state!

Here's the parking lot across Kamehameha Avenue.

(Note - if YOUR local parking lot doesn't look like this, you probably live in the wrong place....! )