A Whirlwind Tour of Hawaii



Aloha. Well, as it usually happens, I took a break from
work and came back more tired than when I left. The special torture this
time was blue Hawaii. Feeling the need to get back to lush surroundings, other than
my cabana, and do some scuba diving I decided to join up with Than and Brian to see if
we could top the trouble we got into in Peru . . . They were going out to Hawaii for a
Mars conference and somehow I managed to talk them into
an extra week and a half.




The trip began as Than and I flew to Kauai, the
most lush island of Hawaii intent on camping on
one of the most remote and spectacular beaches in
the world located on the Na Pali Coast. As soon
as we landed and had our first mai tai, we knew it
was going to be a good trip! So with hibiscus in the
air and Iz (Israel Kamakawiwo`ole) on the radio
we sped off from the airport to prepare for our hike.




The next morning we started up the trail with the
stark blue ocean on one side and dramatic foliage
covered peaks on the other. The trail was a muddy
mess as it rains most days in this area, in fact the
wettest place on Earth is at the top of the peaks we
were hiking below. We quickly gave up trying to
stay dry and ended up just hiking in our
swimming trunks as the rain came and
went throughout the day.




The rain was nice though, warm like being in a
shower and made everything green. The foliage was
very thick including palms, vines, ferns trees,
grasses, and flowers. There were many
types of flowers in bloom including hundreds of
orchids. The smell from the flowers and the wild
passion fruit was almost over powering.







We started off going nice and slow winding along the trail, taking breaks
to enjoy the view or a small water fall, until we realized the hike was going to be a tough one
and we would have to expend some serious effort to make it to the remote Kalalau beach at the end
of the 11 mile coastal trail. The trail was intense. It climbed and fell dramatically, and wound in and out of
canyons as we followed the steep cliffs of the Na Pali Coast. The two photos below are from
about the half way point, the far beach on the left is where we started and
the far point on the right is where we camped






The sea breeze and light rain though was a relief as we hiked. When we finally arrived at the beach we would call home for the next couple days it made it so worth it! It was nirvana, a long secluded beach, crashing waves, steep mountains climbed above, sheltering the area, trees to pitch the hammock, and cliffs on one side with a water fall for washing and drinking water.







We pitched our hammocks in a tree beside
the beach with a view of it all, mixed up some mai tais,
and relaxed for the next couple days . . .






Being a national forest, there were restrictions
of the use of the area. Mainly, boats were
not allowed to dock on the sea shores to
drop off or pick up people, which
meant we shared this amazing
beach with only a couple other people
the whole time we were there and made fun of
the tour boats that passed by occasionally.




We made the most of our time by lying in the sun, playing in the surf,
exploring some near by flooded caves, drank mai tais and generally rested our aching feet and bodies
from the hike in. Surprisingly, once we were at the beach we found we had left the rain behind us
in the forest and we had perfectly sunny days.



When we left paradise we made a promise
to come back some day and make sure to allot more
time, much more . . . the hike out was again very
beautiful, dramatic, and difficult, as a side note, I feel
sorry for whoever got our rental car after us phew!




After cleaning up and sleeping in a bed I was lulled to sleep by a couple arguing in some very foreign and melodic pacific language. The next day we flew to Kona side of Hawaii, the largest of the islands. We met up with Brian with his inflatable kayak in tow and rushed directly to the docks in a brand new rental car (again I'm sorry for who ever got it after us) to do a quick night scuba dive.




We had heard that scuba diving with the manta rays off the Kona coast is probably
the best night dive in the world. It was hard to believe until we were out there and came face to gaping
mouth with a manta with a 15 ft wing span. We would sit on the bottom and shine our lights up above us.
This would attract millions of plankton and shrimp and in turn the mantas. They would fly by, some
times even hitting you as they scoop up the tasty snack you collected for them.


Click for a video of the manta in action! (3MB)


The next day we went back up for a couple day
dives. It was great fun, but not as beautiful as
other places I have dived. The bottom was
mainly lava rock and silt from the volcanic
activity, but up closer to the shore the area was
protected from the deep pacific water. Here
there was some smaller coral and large groups of
fish and eels darting in and out from the natural
caves. On the left is Brian scuba diving.


We figured when in Rome . . . swim with the fish in the caves. So managing
the surge we swam through arches, tunnels, and lava tubes near the shore finding schools of fish hiding
out. Deep in some of the caves it was too dark to see what lurked in there, that was until I used the flash on the
camera (I have a waterproof case for my digital camera). In that split second, the cave opened up, colors
glowed vibrantly, and hundreds of fish emerged from the darkness annoyed that we were
waking them from their sleep . . .






Since we did not plan anything
for the last three days of the trip we thought
it best to regroup and plan a strategy over some beers,
live zydeco, and swing dancing. Here we with some
people we met from scuba diving and at the show. It is
funny how Hawaii can change some one - one moment
you are running Bob's bakery in chilly Nederland and
then next your Kona Bob helping others drop
everything and move to the islands . . .






The planning session was productive. We left the bar
probably around 10:00, picked up mai tai supplies and
drove down to South Point, the southern most point of
the island, and hiked a couple miles into a green sand
beach. The rest of the night was a bit of a blur, but the
beach party involved cliff diving, moon light frizbee in
the surf, and eventually pitching our bivy on the sandy
beach. We woke to find green sand in everything.
Apparently green sand beaches are very rare
as they are composed mainly of the mineral
olivine, which is reactive with water, so it
does not last as beach sand for long.






We then made a b-line to the Volcano National Park since we heard an open
flow had just started since we arrived in Hawaii (it had been dormant for months). We toured
around the park checking out the old flows, calderas, and with our headlamps hiked through a lava tube
off the beaten path. Once evening came we parked as close as we could to the active flows and started
our hike across a wasteland of lava to get a closer look. The lava field was a bit treacherous, edges of the
glass like rock as sharp as knives, smooth sections slippery from a light rain that was coming down, and
the possibility that domes would collapse under our weight . . . it was good we only had to hike
a few miles in . . . The open flows were located on the far hills above
and to the right of the grassy area.






The hike was so worth it. We got there as it was
just getting dark and we saw pockets of red
hot magma peaking out from under older twisted
lava. Then as we topped a hill we saw streams of
flowing magma coming down the hills right for us!
Luckily it does not move very fast and we hiked up
to it and had a dinner picknick by the glow of liquid
rock. We could hear it creep, pop, and
sizzle as it moved down the hill
creating new land before
our eyes.







The hike back across the wasteland was again
challenging, but since I had a couple sacrificial
geologists to lead the way and find the areas with
fresh magma beneath a thin old layer all was well.






Click for a video of the flowing lava! (3MB)
We camped in the
park that night and awoke to
find the tall volcanoes, Mauna Kea and
Mauna Loa got a dusting of new snow . . . the
peaks called to us so we went. Unfortunately, what
looked like a dusting was quite a bit more up high
and the road was closed to go up and explore the
Mauna Kea Astronomical Observatory, so we just
checked out the visitor's center and headed back
down to the beach for one last soak in the sun.
Here I parted ways with Than and Brian as they
rested up from our adventure at a Mars science
conference there on the beach for the next week,
while I had to head back to Colorado to
control the spacecraft collecting that science
- no rest for the weary. Aloha until next
time and mahalo for staying
interested in my adventures.













If you would like to see any other
pictures of specific parts of the experience,
or want higher resolution copies of what are
on the web site, just let me know. Also,
don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions.
jon.pineau@colorado.edu

Check out some pictures from other trips here