Hawaii (January, 2016)

Sunset over Waikiki Beach

Pearl Harbor

USS Missouri, now a museum ship

Oil still leaks out from the USS Arizona.

Memorial building is a very moving experience.

Statue of King Kamehameha, the warrior king who united the Hawaiian islands

Iolani Palace, now a public museum, the only palace in U.S.

Sunset over Honolulu

Java finch, wild in Hawaii, a popular cage bird

Vista of Honolulu skyline

Hawaiian moorhen, or gallinule, an endangered bird of the rail family; seen in botanic gardens of Waimea Valley

Example of a traditional family sleeping quarters

Banyan tree

How did monarchs get to the islands?

Pretty flowers, don’t know what they are

Waimea Falls

Wild chickens cause many problems on Oahu.

Waimea Coast

Last Oahu sunset

Trees in the sunlight of Waipi’o Valley on the big island

Finger cliffs of Waipi’o Valley

Quite the waterfall

A small hidden waterfall

Luau at the Wailokoa Hilton

The luau sunset

Mauna Kea, highest point in Hawaii, if measured from ocean floor, the tallest mountain in the world

Rainbow Falls, near Hilo, formed by Wailuku River

Kamehameha statue in Hilo, one of four statues on the island

Halemaumau crater in Volcanos National Park –

Nene, Hawaii’s state bird, endemic only to Hawaii

Steam vent in Volcanos National Park

One of the older craters

Hardened lava around what was a tree

Life always finds a way, even on lava fields.

Pahoehoe lava field

Glow from volcano visible only at night

Spinner dolphins at Captain Cook at Kealakekua Bay, marine sanctuary

Snorkeling with spinner dolphins

Notice the baby dolphin

Coral reef

More coral reef

Had to take a swim at the Kona Iron Man start!

Big Island sunset

No snorkeling today at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel

Ancient temple on the Hill of the Whale

Original recovered statue of King Kamehameha near his home town of Kohala

Pololu Valley lookout

Looking out at the valley

Down in the Pololu Valley

Leaving one’s mark for having hiked the trail

Back up on top

Reward for some rain

Looking down on the clouds and the Haleakala crater

Silversword bush, a rare bush that can grow in the harsh climate of the top of Haleakala

Ready to bike down the mountain

Announcing the start of Black Rock rock diving of Kaanapali Beach at Puu Kekaa Sheraton Maui Resort

The hula dance explains the ritual.

Heading off with the torch

Crossing the black rocks barefoot

Lighting the ritual torch at the top of the rocks

Leaping to the diving rock

Saluting the gods before the dive

Finally the dive

On a whaling tour from Lahaina, Maui

Nakalele Point, blowhole

Some love at Nakalele Point

First lookout on Road to Hana

Early morning spider webs

Look out point in Kaumahina State Wayside Park

Ke’anae Arboretum

Sun lit spider webs

Rainbow eucalyptus trees, only eucalyptus in rain forest but not Australia

Colors of the rainbow eucalyptus trunk

A bamboo patch

Ohi’a tree with its lehua, flower, is the official flower of the island of Hawaii.

Waterfall bleeding from the rocks

Beautiful waterfall on road to Hana

Made it to Hana

Wailua Valley State Wayside Park

Hawaii state flower

Hiking down into the Haleakala crater

Beautiful view of a dormant volcano crater

Multiple cones of past explosions

More beautiful colors of the cones

Growth always finds a way.

Ocean Vodka distillery has a farm of a variety of sugar canes.

Unique bottles of Ocean Vodka