Mauna Kea

A few weeks ago some friends and I took an afternoon trip up to Mauna Kea. Carl was working, so he wasn't able to go. Its about a 2 hour drive from home to the summit (14,000 feet), and its paved the whole way.

All 7 of us piled into Tracy's Sequoia and charged it up the mountain. Because of the huge change in pressure at that elevation, you have to take it slow on the way up and down. Its recommended that everyone stop at the Information Center, which is at about 9,000 ft, for at least 30 minutes to acclimate. They have a nice little shop there where we got cup noodles and hot chocolate.

We started off the day in shorts and slippers, but as you can see from the photos, we quickly had to throw on some layers. At 9000 feet the temp was in the low 50s. I thought that was about as cold as it would get, but boy was I wrong!

Here's a pic of the whole gang, minus Mike. From left to right, me, Cone (our dive instructor), Jill, Dic, Diane, Tracy.

After our acclimation period we headed up to 13000 feet. For most of the drive up the hill it feels like you're on the moon. Until you see snow....

Mike decided it would be a great time for a snow ball fight.

There are only 2 natural lakes on the island of Hawaii, and one of them is on Mauna Kea at roughly 13,000 feet. Its just a short hike in from the road, but it can feel like miles if you're not careful. Because of the elevation any kind of physical activity can be very exhausting. For me the hike in was a breeze, but the hike back was a different story. It was more uphill on the way back, and I couldn't go more than 15 feet without having to stop and rest.

Dic tried to see how many push-ups he could do. I don't really remember how many he pulled off, but I know it was in the single digits.

After the hike to the lake we went up to the summit for the sunset. It was incredible!!!! And man was it cold! I couldn't believe the difference just from 13 to 14,000 feet. It was in the low 30s, but it felt like the teens because of the wind chill. Needless to say, we didn't last very long up there. As soon as the sun set we were out, which is unfortunate because the star gazing on Mauna Kea is, according to most astronomers, the 2nd best in the world. There is no light polution, and because of the layout of the island, there is never any cloud coverage. We didn't stick around to look through any of the telescopes, but even to the naked eye it was breathtaking.

The hill top you see in the background is Haleakala, a volcano on Maui. On a totally clear day you can see the entire island chain from the summit of Mauna Kea. That will definitely be a cool thing to see some day.

Hanapa'a

"Hanapa'a" is the term that Hawaiians use when shouting "fish on!"

We finally got the chance for a little "hanapa'a" now that our buddys Brian and Kodi bought a boat. We spent last saturday and sunday trolling for Ono (wahoo) without much luck. Sunday we found some fish around a FAD (fish aggregation device), which the state puts out in the water to attract fish. It is basically just a bouy anchored in deep water that attract all kinds of little fish, which in turn attract the big ones. We trolled around the bouy for an hour or two with only one bite.

Our baits were a little big for the fish that we found. A local Hawaiian was fishing near us and catching a ton of Aku, which is a small tuna that tastes a bit fishy. The locals love them. After watching us make pass after pass with no luck, he pulled up and tossed us a few small, homemade baits and said "try these, the shibis should start biting soon." A shibi is a small yellowfin tuna. Sure enough, we get a hookup and I land a small shibi. It was getting dark, so after we boated the fish we trolled around for a few more minutes and headed back to the harbor. It was the first fish for the boat, and we were stoked! We had a bit of sashimi, and saved the rest for the frying pan. Tasted great!

We sometimes troll baits on the boat that I work on during the morning trips down south. Earlier in the week the other crewmembers caught a nice Ono. We trolled today and had a good fish on for about 5 seconds and it came unhooked. It was an exciting five seconds! We will get em next time..

Night Time in Puna

Night time in Puna is so incredibly relaxing. There are no lights, so its pitch black. This photo was taken on the road right outside the house.

As soon as night falls the coqui frogs come out to play. They are cute little tree frogs that were accidentally brought over here from the Caribbean in some plants. Right now there's a big debate in Hawaii about controlling the population of the coqui frogs. They would pretty much go unnoticed by humans if it weren't for their mating calls at night. You never hear them or notice them throughout the day, but as soon as the sun sets, the whole area is overrun by coquis. You can't go 2 feet without finding a frog. At night they climb into trees and the males make a sound that gave them their name. It can be as high as 100 db, and it goes "co"(a very high-pitched sound, but relatively low compared to the second syllable), and then "qui" (very, very high-pitched). Its really spectacular to hear, and when you're outside, or inside for that matter, its all you hear. And it sounds like millions of them all going at random intervals. I loved falling asleep to the coqui frogs. Here's a video I took at night. If you don't listen closely you probably won't be able to distinguish the individual sounds of the frogs, but if you listen closely you can definitely hear the "co-qui" sound.

Carl's Birthday Weekend- Finally...

Memorial Day was Carl's 27th birthday, so we all loaded up and headed to the other side of the island for the weekend. Alan had his 30th birthday that weekend as well, which gave us all the more reason to celebrate. Our friend Audry has a house in Puna, which was our destination. Its called "The Purple House", and its incredible! The district of Puna is primarily made up of jungle-like terrain, and all homes and such are off the grid. You use solar power, candles, and a catchment tank for water. The shower is solar heated, and there is an unlimited supply of hot water. It was the best shower I've ever been in.






When we weren't outside exploring or hanging out on the beach, we were all on the back porch. We had so much fun playing cards, listening to music, and grilling. The whole gang surprised Carl and Alan with some really nice gifts and a handmade card, which was the coolest thing we've ever seen. They put so much time and love into it, and it was really special. Carl was touched beyond words.




The first night we were there we went to the Champagne Ponds for a sunset swim. It was gorgeous of course, and quite warm. All along the floor of the pond are volcano warmed springs, which makes the water feel perfect.





When we woke up in the morning, Carl and I both jumped on a bike and went for the most amazing ride ever.




Most of the ride looked like this. Riding beneath a tree canopy is incredibly peaceful.




There were also tons of little trails along the road. We left our bikes at the road and checked out a couple.



And this is what was at the end of the tunnel. Each trail you took and every direction you looked was breathtaking.

We also came across a little fruit stand along the way. They had avocados, papayas, and mangos, and you just had to leave a donation if you took anything. We didn't have anything to donate, so we had to pass.