January 3 2011 - Day 5 in Paradise

Day 5 was all about the fauna.  It was the day that we were going to have the prior day before we got the call to go see the Buddhist shrines.  We spent most of the day at Kilauea Point  which we had visited the first day but had only been able to spend an hour there.  This time we really had a chance to drink the place in.  We saw wonderful things.

I spotted and got a few photos of the brown booby, which is a relatively uncommon visitor to this park.

Tom spotted a monk seal and a sea turtle, which I missed :-((

I spent ages shooting the red-footed booby and the white tailed tropic birds in flight.  VERY fun.

Saw a few albatross, one frigatebird, many nene and their goslings, a few japanese white eyes, and a few red crested cardinals.

We ended the day in the taro fields again, where I saw many other species and Tom recorded some outrageously good bird sounds.

We ended the day early to rest up for the next adventure, which will be an 8 mile hike at 4000 feet - the world's highest swamp, I believe...

Photos of Day 5 are here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157625617853227/

January 2 2011 - Day 4 in Paradise

Day 4 started before dawn again, with a very beautiful sky at sunrise.  I should say something here about the weather so far.  It has been fantastic!  We were warned so many times that it never stops raining on the north shore but we have been blessed with day after day of sunshine.  Very little rain at all.  OK - now I am sure that I have thoroughly jinxed us!!!

The playful whales were back in the morning, flapping tails and fins to the pleasure of all onlookers.  Folks come from around the whole area to stand at the cliffs and watch these whales.  We are again incredibly lucky to be able to just sit on the balcony in comfort with our coffee and enjoy the show. Wow.

We had a day planned out but completely changed gears when we received a call from Lynn at the Lawai International Center.  This is a very cool Buddhist organization that is lovingly restoring a piece of long sacred land on the south shore and is slowly but surely working to build a temple on this site.  We had contacted Lynn to find out about joining a tour on our last Sunday here, but Lynn informed us that there had been interest from several parties and she was willing to hold a small private tour outside the usual days and hours.  We jumped at the chance - packed our things and flew down the coast in our little Nissan rental car.  We were not disappointed with the choice.

 We had a beautiful time at the holy site.  Neither of us is particularly religious, but if there is a religion that we can get behind it is Buddhism.  We were served wonderful jasmine tea and freshly baked manju cakes, and listened to a delightful set of stories about the site.  Rather than try to describe it myself, I point any interested reader to their website here: http://www.lawaicenter.org/pages/restore.html#shrine Anchor

 After listening to Lynn we made our own pilgrimage walk along the path of the 88 shrines where I took a number of photos.  It rained briefly but I was standing at that time under the one tree that could shelter me and the camera equipment did not get wet!  There is more story to tell here, but not today.  I need to get outside!

 More photos of Day 4 here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157625734921872/

January 1 2011 - Day 3 in Paradise

Yesterday we rang in the new year by driving to Hanalei, to Ha'ena State Park Beach, where we tried to snorkel.  The beach was red flagged for snorkeling, which freaked me out completely.  But still we found a calmer spot and gave it a try.  Tom spent a few minutes beyond the rocks but I could not even get my body to try.  I am either very smart or a big chicken.  Maybe a little of both.  But it could not happen for me.  So we ditched the masks and played in the big surf in our wetsuits.  It was great fun!  I played with my water camera and truly enjoyed the freedom of shooting wave movies where the waves actually came up and hit the camera.

We will try the snorkeling thing again, next time at the baby snorkeling hole at Lydgate.  I need to start easy.

At one point I tried to get out of the water to help Tom with his wetsuit zipper, and I had a VERY hard time getting out of the water.  I got stuck in a bit of a washing machine area where the undertow was pulling me out and the waves were crashing me back in.  I ended up with sand and salt water everywhere including way up my nose, and completely exhausted and out of breath when I eventually made it out.  I blew a lot of adrenaline yesterday!!!

Had lunch and coffee and relaxation time afterwards in Hanalei, which is a cute little place with nice food and great views...

Ended the day with take-out sushi and a beautiful sunset at the condo.  Sweet!

Just a few more pics here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157625726483224/

December 31 2010 - Day 2 in Paradise

A truly amazing day!  I could barely sleep last night - too jazzed from the excitement of the first day really.  So when I was just wide awake at 6 am I went with it, made coffee, and set up the tripod for the sunrise.  Tom and my "boys" gave me a beautiful lightweight but very strong carbon fiber tripod and head for this trip.  It is incredible.  So light, easy to set up and knock down and fits easily in a backpack or suitcase and can handle up to 8 pounds of camera and lens.   The condo faces mostly north but we get hints of of both sunset and sunrise.  The balcony covers two exterior walls and both face the ocean.  The sunrise did not disappoint.

Tom got up for the second pot of coffee and we were drinking it on the balcony when we suddenly realized that there was some great whale action taking place not too far off the coast.  Now when we see whales off of Monterey, they are on their way somewhere else.  They blow, they dive, they move on - for the most part.  These whales are hanging out here (great idea!) and they are playful.  The morning whale activity was just a stunning show with all sorts of fin splashing, tails up dives, tail splashing, and blow.

I posted this same shot on Flickr, but posting again here because I am so thrilled with the "catch":

I was actually shooting a different pod of whales and then just happened to catch the breach in the frame.  Surprised that it is as well focused as it is considering that it was well off center frame.

The weather today was really great.  It did not rain all day, which for north shore is surprising enough.  But it was hot but not too hot, and not really too muggy.  We spent the whole rest of the daylight hours at the Limahuli National Tropical Botanical Gardens.  Outstanding place, with so much flora and fauna to enjoy, as well as spectacular views of the peaks of Makana (also known as "Bali Hai" for the "South Pacific" film usage of these same peaks).  There is a one mile loop that climbs to a very nice view as it meanders through beautifully sculptured and terraced property.  They are working to preserve a number of Hawaiian native plants here.  For example, this white hibiscus was thought to be gone, but has been found and preserved:

The birds we observed here included japanese white eyes, java sparrows, northern cardinals, red crested cardinals, plovers, moa, white rumped shama, and the ever present common myna.  I chased the japanese white eyes everywhere and finally got some decent shots in a nectar garden area where they were so interested in what they were doing that they ignored me.

At the highest overlook point we noticed that again there was a lot of whale activity in the ocean.  I witnessed a pair of whales that repeatedly flipped their tails well up simultaneously and slapped them down simultaneously, many times a minute.  Wild!  No idea what that is about, but cool.

We ended our travels today back in the taro fields near Hanalei.  I wanted to find the Hwamei thrush that we saw yesterday.  Still did not get a wonderful shot, but much better light than yesterday.  This thrush has a really fantastic song and there were several of them singing there.  Also got many really fine shots of a pair of red crested cardinals from the car, maybe 10 feet away.  They are typically in pairs.  Superb birds.

More pictures here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157625718182254/

Mahalo for stopping by, and Happy New Year!!!

December 30 2010 - First day in Paradise

Arrived Dec 29 in the late evening.  Small airport at Lihue, and the striking thing is how open the airport is.  Baggage claim area is open to the world.  Ticket counters likewise.  Arrived at the hotel in Kapa'a and the same again.  I love the openness.  The feeling that the whole place is outside.  Inside places feel outside.  And I really like outside!

Awoke to the sound of great chattering in the palm trees outside the window.  Common myna birds.  Lovely birds the size of a blue jay but with a lot of the look of a yellow billed magpie.  VERY noisy.

Ate breakfast next to the pool where we could see the ocean, more myna birds, zebra doves, and pacific golden plovers.

Took a walk and heard some exquisite sounds but have not yet identified who that was.  Sounded like part of the chorus from "New York, New York". Saw western meadowlarks but I do not think this call came from them.  Saw our first red crested cardinals - WOW! gorgeous.  First photos not acceptable, but will get many more chances to try.

Moved on to the condo in Princeville.  Wonderful condo, awesome views (just watched the sun rise over the pacific from the balcony and it was spectacular).

Went driving around.  First stop Kilauea, for fish tacos.  Myna birds and red junglefowl everywhere.  Constant sound of chatter and roosters crowing. Followed this with a trip by Kilauea Lighthouse Point. We had so little time there because they close early but so WOW!! and we will be back.  Watched humpback whales blow and dive, saw lots of wonderful birds including the red footed booby, laysan albatross, frigate bird, white tailed tropic bird, and loads of nene geese with goslings.

 A ranger gave us a marvelous tip for our next stop, along the taro swamps/fields.  The light was a bit poor for shooting but saw some incredible creatures and we must go back with better light.  Among the birds seen here were cattle egrets, Hawaiian ducks, stilts, coots, moorhens, more red crested cardinals, a japanese bush warbler, and a hwamei (amazing! really cool eye).

 Taking a more wide angle view, the mountains, the ocean, the flowers, and the lush vegetation are simply astonishing everywhere you look.  We finished the day with a short walk on the beach at Hanalei. A perfect day in paradise.

Pictures from day 1 are here:

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157625589057661/

October 23 2010 - Coyote Hills Regional Park

A Flickr contact, Harjeet Singh, turned us on to this superb location.  It is a bit of a drive for us, but OH so worth it.  The park boasts a very diverse set of habitats - hills, bay, sloughs, nectar garden - and hence also has a diverse set of fauna that frequent the park.  There are so many ways to enjoy this place, and one can come up with any number of walks to take.

In the nectar garden you will usually find 3 or more photographers sitting quietly and patiently to see who will show up for the adoring paparazzi.  Warblers, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and thrushes seem to appear magically from nowhere.  Depending on the time of day the light ranges from heavenly to a bit challenging, but it is always a divine place to sit and soak in some serenity, and so far we have never been disappointed.  The birds are attracted to the lovely variety of colorful nectar flowers and the array of fine bird baths and fountains.  Below is a fox sparrow looking up from his bath.

There are large oaks, sycamores and eucalyptus surrounding the nectar garden area, and you can frequently find a lot of interesting creatures in these trees.

The hills are home to a large number of raptors, and there is ample rodent life to support this population.  We almost always see multiples of red tailed hawks, harriers, kestrels, and white tailed kites.  Harjeet has also captured a golden eagle juvenile and a great horned owl in this area.

The walk along the bay provides some amazing views.  On a clear day one can see San Francisco, Oakland, the bridges, and Mount Tamalpais, along with all of the baylands across the water.  The ripe smell of the bay can be a bit overpowering, but the view is worth it.  Great egrets, herons, snowy egrets, and american white pelicans are flying overhead or foraging in this area.

The slough paths are delightful.  Some boardwalks have been created that cut through high reeds and there is a great feeling of solitude walking these paths.  Here you are likely to see a broad variety of ducks, shoreline waders, more harriers and kites, and if you are lucky perhaps a secretive sora, marsh wren, or rail may pop out from the reeds.  The twittering of the marsh wrens inside the reeds makes a lovely background sound as you walk through the high reeds.

More from Coyote Hills here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157624756733477/

September 25 2010 - Such a Perfect Day

(cue the Lou Reed song...)

Decided to live this weekend like it might be my last on planet earth, and it was a very fine time.

Saturday was endless great music in the car, too many cappuccinos, and 2 beautiful coastal sites that we drank in until sunset.  First up was our favorite park, Point Lobos, south of Carmel.  The lot was full, but strangely the paths did not seem crowded.  We wondered where all the people had gone.  Saw two distant otters and several of this year's harbor seals. Spent a lot of time in the grove with the old lichen covered twisted trees and enjoyed the views inland and out to sea.  Such an amazing place!

Tom spotted a Townsend's Warbler and I got two mediocre shots of it before it flew and hid.  Nice little bird, and the first time we have seen one, but I was pretty sure of what it was anyway.

From there we traveled north to Sunset Beach and had a great long walk.  Virtually noone ventures beyond maybe 300 feet of the picnic area at this beach, so again it was like we were on our own completely.  However a large crowd did show up to watch and photograph the sunset , which was gorgeous.

More photos here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawkperson/sets/72157624916258161/