A Place of Many Perches

We recently spent a fabulous weekend at Hakalau, a national wildlife refuge off Mana Road on the windward side Mauna Kea. Our group planted around 1,000 koa trees on Saturday. Two good friends that I rarely see were there, and everyone in the group was a pleasure to spend time with. We used power tools, we got dirty, then we rode in the back of an old Army truck in the rain. If that didn't make me happy enough, Baron, the guy in charge of the volunteer program, made us a fantastic dinner of mahi mahi and Portuguese bean soup.

Most folks stayed in the cabin, but I was happier in my tent. We watched the moon set behind the mountain and thousands of stars emerge. I was expecting temperatures in the 40's, but it never got that cold. At dawn, I was awakened by a noisy nene. The fwap, fwap, fwap of his wings pierced the morning's silence. When I emerged from my tent he honked at me.

In addition to seeing at least 20 nene (the endangered state bird of Hawaii) we saw rare I`o, apapane and i`iwi. A chorus of bird calls rang throughout Hakalau, the forest whose name means land of many perches.

In the greenhouse we saw some super-rare plants, like Phyllostegia brevidens, a type of mint that was thought to be extinct until it was rediscovered in the refuge in 1990. Three plants now survive in the wild. We also checked out the Pua Akala cabin, a seven room cabin that was built entirely of koa wood in 1883.Grafitti on the front of the cabin was dated 1901. This was a weekend well spent!

Chris poses by the Army truck:

Carolyn & power tools.

Andi with nene. Endangered species are more exciting when they don't act so tame!

Too Busy to Blog

I'm getting behind on my blog duties again. Whenever that happens, you know I've been out having fun.

Last weekend I impressed my friends by cooking them dinner at my house. Saturday was a hike in Pahala up a muddy pig hunter's trail, then a going away party for James and Lisa. Boo-hoo. Sunday there was a baptism and picnic at Old A's. Baptisms are always a happy occasion, and this event came with bonus shenanigans. Chris decided to steal Pastor's Subway sandwich and exchange it with a nasty old shoe we found on the beach. When that lost its appeal we cracked out the tennis ball cannon he made. The kids weren't impressed but many of the adults were.

A Long Way From Waikiki

Chris and I spent a spectacular day hiking up Mauna Kea. We took a 4WD road west from Onizuka Center and started our hike at around 9,000 feet in elevation. We dropped down into a spectacular red-walled canyon with interesting rock formations and piles of cinder. The sky was clear and beautiful and the crisp, dry air felt like a mainland September day. An occasional cloud blew across our view of Mauna Loa's marble-like lava surface.

Next, we drove to 13,ooo feet and hiked to Lake Waiau, the only alpine lake in Hawaii. It was more impressive than I expected, but maybe we were just feeling euphoric from the lack of oxygen. We were both feeling pretty happy. The lake's ice cold water beckoned me; I guess I still miss my Lake Michigan days. After wading for about 10 seconds my legs tingled with that pins and needles sensation. This isn't the Hawaii you'll find in the tour books. The lunar terrain, brisk temperatures and solitude reminded us we were a long way from Waikiki.

Let's Go Racin'

As promised, here are a couple of pictures from the drag races. The jet limo was my favorite, although it looked better with the body removed and flames shooting out the back. There was also a sweet mid 1950's model Chevy. My camera's been acting up so I didn't get many photos.

50% more fun...FREE!

I love three-day weekends. That third bonus day allows you to pack in 50% more fun than you would on a regular weekend. This Labor Day included a trip to the Hilo drag races with Chris (pics tk) two trips to the Kona Brew Pub and Scuba diving. I truly enjoyed sharing the finer points of beer drinking with two great friends from church. And my first Scuba experience as a certified diver was pretty sweet. Jim took me out to the harbor where we dove to 85 feet. Highlights include garden eels and a pod of dolphins that came pretty close by. Three baby dolphins accompanied the group...cute little buggahs!