-
The Original King Kamehameha Statue
The Original Statue of King Kamehameha The story of the statue is interesting. There are four copies of the statue: one in downtown Honolulu; another in Washington, D.C.; a 14-foot, five-ton statue in Hilo and the original statue in front of the old court house in Kapa’au in north Kohala. The sculptor Thomas Ridgeway Gould had…
-
Binoculars for Whale Watching
Four humpback whales played in the sunset at the mouth of the bay. Normally I’m a person that does lots of research before buying, but an impulse buy turned out to be perfect. We bought binoculars in September, because the package specifically said they were good for whale watching. I bought them the day we…
-
Submariner
Tang at Two Step, Big Island, Hawaii It is always exciting looking for the rare or large fish. The thrill of crossing paths with a shark, swimming in tandem with a dolphin, or a close up of a hungry eel. During these searches we pass over schools of yellow tangs, black triggers, raccoon butterflies and…
-
Shark Tale
We have seen her before. Visiting her cave is now part of the ritual. Swim to the left over the first big canyon, through octopus flats and back into shark shallows. Today, she was there sticking her tail out further than the last time we were together. We snorkeled above her fighting the currents, trying to…
-
Dive Skin to Protect Your Skin and the Reef
Before we arrived in Hawaii, I purchased a new dive skin, which is the Lycra equivalent of a wetsuit. Skins are thinner, stretchier, cooler, easier to get into, and more comfortable than wetsuits. A dive skin is a one-piece bodysuit made of very stretchy Lycra material. I hate to sunburn. The day I saw an ad for reef-safe sunscreen, I thought,…
-
Don’t Pet the Sea Life: It might follow you home or worse.
When snorkeling, I try to follow the rule “touch nothing.” It simplifies my life, because I don’t have to remember which things are dangerous and which are not. I can simply enjoy myself, and the sea life appreciates it, too. Bill doesn’t always follow the “don’t touch rule.” Most notably was the time we were walking on the beach near…
Info about our island from our photos, writings, and video