Category: landscapes

Pele vs Construction Workers

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The Road to Pohoiki, December 2018
The new Road to Pohoiki in December 2018

Pele, the goddess of fire and lava, is fast but the Hawaiian construction workers are right behind her.

THE COCONUT TRAIL

Pohoiki (Isaac Hale Beach Park) was cut off by lava in three events between May and June 2018. Shortly after the end of the outbreak, locals created a trail across the new lava flows. They would move rocks, fill in dips with gravel, and mark the trail with freshly sprouted coconuts. The trail was called the Coconut Trail.

ISAAC HALE BEACH PARK (POHOIKI)

Like many beach parks on the Big Island, Isaac Hale did not really have a sandy beach. It was rocks, woodland and famously a concrete boat ramp from which boats toured the lava entry into the ocean West of Kalapana. This lava flow started with the outbreak in 2014 and ended 2018 with a sudden lava level drop in the Pu’u O’o fissure. This marked the beginning of the 2018 outbreak in and around Leilani Estates.

Pohoiki used to be a popular destination for residents and tourists alike. You would always see people swimming in the thermally heated water at the boat ramp. A little bit further along the shore you would find the so called Queen’s Bath (one of several on the Big Island), a small thermally heated fresh water pond, which was picturesquely located underneath trees in the woods.

PELE VOLCANO GODDESS

Pele  is the goddess of lava and volcanoes – or she is the volcano. Lava moves in such a strange ways that it sometimes feels alive. According to legend Pele was killed, but her spirit resided in Halema’uma’u Crater on the Kilauea Volcano. Many people will tell you they saw her as a young beautiful woman, an old woman or simply felt her presence.

THE ERUPTION

The outbreak in 2018 was the biggest in 200 years. The flow that was produced by Fissure 8 just stopped short from taking Pohoiki, not without chewing up parts of the parking lot. The lava flow also produced massive amounts of black by lava exploding into tiny little fragments upon contact with the cooler ocean water. These formed a large sand dune at Pohoiki and covered parts of the old coast line. The boat ramp became landlocked and the Queen’s Bath shallow and dead.

THE NEW ROAD

It didn’t take long for the construction workers to cut a new road into the lava flow that still emitted some heat.  Just three month after the lava stopped just short of Pohoiki a new road was opened on 6 December 2018. Again, it became a popular destination for locals and tourists. When driving on the dirt road you can still spot some of the sprouted coconuts of the trail.

Pride of America

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The cruise ship Pride of America
The Pride of America on her way out of Hilo harbor.

The Pride of America is a cruise ship that travels the Hawaiian Islands only, as opposed to the other cruise ships visiting Hilo that travel the world. She, comes in once a week every Tuesday making it the cruise ship most likely to be encountered in Hilo harbor.

THE KILAUEA ERUPTION

In early May 2018, when the volcanic eruption geared up, the Pride of America, like other cruise ships, suspended her stops on the Big Island for security reasons. No cruise ship was to be seen in Hilo harbor for well over a month.

Mid June she was back, much to the relief of the people in Hilo, many of whose livelihood depended on a steady stream of tourists. It was generally taken as a sign that the worst was over now and things were getting back to normal.

AMERICA THEMED

The interior of the Pride of America is impressive and, of course, American themed. There are 15 bars and restaurants, shops, a library, three swimming pools, a theatre, a wedding chapel. You can watch movies, listen to lectures or take part in dance classes, amongst others. If you’d like to see for yourself, there are video clips by former passengers that filmed a tour of the ship and posted it online.

REGISTERED IN THE USA

The Pride of America is the only major cruise ship that is registered in the United States. The vast majority of other commercial ships calling American ports fly so-called convenience flags, such as the Bahamas, Panama or Malta. That means American law does not apply to these ships. The nations whose open registries are the most popular also tend to be those who possess the most lax labor, safety and environmental codes. In short, it allows them to cut their costs.

ALL AMERICAN CREW

There are 900 crew on board of the Pride of America. That’s one crew for every two or three passengers. All crew members are American citizens or legal residents. Again this is very unusual. Normally crews are multinational and cruise ships pay wages according the country the crew is from. So, an American crew would be paid more than, say, a Malaysian.

NO DUTY FREE AND NO CASINO

Sailing the Hawaiian islands means you’re never out in international waters, hence there is no duty free and no casino on board. Which is unusual as these are standard features on the vast majority of other cruise ships as it’s a good opportunity to generate income.

FIRST AMERICAN CRUISE SHIP IN NEARLY 50 YEARS

The Pride of America was the first American cruise ship to be launched in nearly 50 years. She was built with heavy federal subsidies in an attempt to improve the competitiveness of American shipyards by building commercial, non-military vessels.

ROCKY START

The ship had a rocky start. Work started in 2000, but the company that were to operate these ships, filed for bankruptcy in 2001, citing a low demand after the 9/11 terror attacks, among other reasons. The current operator, Norwegian Cruise Lines acquired the unfinished ship and had it towed to Germany. In 2004, just before completion, a major storm hit the shipyard and caused considerable damage to the ship which sank at the berth. This caused the shipyard, Lloyd Werft, to file for bankruptcy as well. After much negotiation she was eventually completed by Lloyd in 2005 and cruises the Hawaiian islands since.

She can easily be recognized by the stars and stripes artwork on her hull.

Lava glow

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This is how bright the the lava rivers are at night. They light up the sky. It looks a bit like a sunset in the east.

FAST FLOWING LAVA STREAMS

Just to recap, the Kilauea erupted from May in a number of fissures. Fissure eight produced fast flowing lava rivers that overran Kapoho, evaporated Green Lake, and destroyed Vacationland and Kapoho Beach Lots. Kapoho Bay was filled by lava and the land extended out into the ocean for about 500m (which is roughly a third of a mile).

HOW FAR CAN YOU SEE THE GLOW?

You can see the glow not only from Pahoa, but also from certain parts of Hilo, which is the biggest town on Big Island, Hawaii. It’s also visible from the top of Mauna Kea, which, at 13,803 feet (4,207m), is the tallest mountain on the island and ca. 45 m (about 70km) away from the nearest lava streams.

ROADBLOCKS

The subdivision Leilani Estates is currently most affected by the fissures. Its eastern part is a no go area and you can be fined get arrested if you are found there. The western part of Leilani can be accessed by residents, only. There are roadblocks set up by the police to ensure that no one else accesses that area. Some parts of Kapoho are cut off by the lava streams and evacuated for that reason.

 

Best beaches

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Makalawena Beach, Big Island, Hawaii
Makalawena Beach, Big Island, Hawaii

Something completely different, but this is also part of the Big Island – beaches. The island is not only rock and volcanoes, although it mostly is.

THE THING ABOUT BEACHES ON THE BIG ISLAND

Don’t be surprised, if you find that most of the “beach parks” on the Big Island are not exactly sandy dunes. It’s more rocky bays that might have a lawn or even some steps and railing to make it easier to get into the water – and more importantly out of it. In fact, I would argue Denmark has more sandy beaches than the island of Hawaii. Which is ironic, given its beach and surfer’s paradise image. But each Hawaiian island is different. This island has so many weird and wonderful places. It’s just, sandy beaches is not its strong suit.

EXTRAORDINARY BEACHES

Having said this, Big Island it has extra special beaches to make up for it. So, for example it has some of those very rare green sand beaches and an unusual amount of black sand beaches, which have a haunting beauty. In fact, huge amounts of black sand is produced as we speak, as black sand is produced where lava pours into the ocean and explodes into fine particles. You can actually see that on some of the Youtube videos that are uploaded by people who have been to the ocean entry of the current lava flow.

WHITE SAND IN HAWAII

White sand on the other hand needs time. On the Hawaiian Islands, white sand means ground down mollusk shells and coral skeletons. So, it’s not surprising that you find white sand more in the north west of Big Island. Just to recapitulate, everything north west on the Hawaiian Islands is older than the south east, because of its unique geological nature.

As to be expected, black sand feels firmer and almost crunchy. The white sand on the other hand feels lighter and smother, due to its rounded particles. The downside is, if it contains a high shell content, like the sand at Waikiki beach, it sticks to your skin and is really hard to get off.

MY FAVOURITE BEACHES

So, here are my favorite white sandy beaches on the big island in order of preference: Makalawena, Mohoili and Kua Bay beach (also know as Manini’owali beach).  These beaches are situated fairly close to each other, but you will need a car to get there and in the case of Makalawena hike a mile across the lava fields.

There are more of course, A-bay, 69 Beach, Hapuna Beach and down in Kailua Kona, Magic Sands. None of these beaches are very expansive from a European point of view. But they are often less crowded and the warm, tropical water and palm trees make more than up for it.

Should I write or should I not?

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Green Turtle and Manini
A huge, old Green Turtle who was a regular at Champagne Pond with Manini fish grazing algae off its back. It loved to rest in the warm waters of the geothermically heated pond. I do not have a waterproof camera, so I can only take shots like this when it comes right up to the shore – and it often did.

On 2 June 2018 a lava flow from the recent Kilauea eruption reached Green Lake Crater. The fresh water lake in the crater evaporated within an hour. The area south of the crater was untouched by the 1958 flow in the west and 1960 flow in the east. It looked like the crater would save the area from any lava flow. It was pretty much gone the same day. Two days later Vacationland and Kapoho Beach Lots were destroyed and with them the the Waiopae tide pools with their coral reefs and the Champagne Pond. Kapoho bay was filled with lava and the shoreline has been extended one mile out into the ocean.

Farms, gardens, vacation homes – everything gone, burned and melted into the lava. Completely destroyed forever. With the neighborhood went the people. Often I don’t know where they are. Sometimes I see photos or read about them in local papers like the Herald Tribune Hawaii or the Honululu Star-Advertiser.

No parties, no potlucks, no jam sessions, no yoga, no fruit stands, no art. I have so many pictures and memories about this place and planned to gradually write about it. Now, my blog is not chronological. I post whatever I find interesting on the day. It does not necessarily reflect, what I do that day or where I am.

I always had the idea that my blog is about places that people can visit. But what about places that ceased to exist? Would anybody want to read about those? Would it upset people to read about them?

If you have got any thoughts about that, please, let me know.

Mauna Kea

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Mauna Kea

Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano standing 4,207 m (13,802 ft) above sea level. Most of the mountain is underwater. When measured from the sea floor, Mauna Kea is over 10,000 m (33,000 ft) tall and is the tallest mountain on Earth.

With its high elevation, dry environment, and stable airflow, Mauna Kea’s summit is one of the best sites in the world for astronomical observation. Since the creation of an access road in 1964, 13 telescopes funded by 11 countries have been constructed at the summit.

In Hawaiian mythology, the summit of Mauna Kea was seen as a place where benevolent spirits reside – as well as Poli’ahu, one of the four goddesses of snow.

Autumn pic

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Autumn's Polaroid picture of Queen's Bath near Kiholo Bay, Hawaii

There were only a hand full people at the Queen’s Bath near Kiholo Bay. One of them was Autumn. She shot some Polaroids and gave me this one. The Queen’s bath is a lava tube in the woods near the beach flooded with fresh water. It was Autumn’s birthday. And of course it’s autumn in Hawaii.