Wild Beach in Maui /  by Dave Hileman

I am traveling but contracted both Covid and the flu. Day three of don’t leave the small capsule we travel in. Feeling like I may have turned the corner but still have to figure out how much to do each day. Very tired. CJH has so far not come down with either.

People /  by Dave Hileman

What goes a long way toward making your visit to Disney good is the people who work here. I was in the bird house on the Asian walk and talked at length to Stephanie (binoculars) whose job it is to count all 303 birds twice each day to see if they are happy and healthy. She determines that by the “bird things” they do. The oldest bird in the house is 23 years old. They live longer here than in the wild. The other young woman asked about my camera and I asked about a specific bird and have no idea how the conversation went - there was a third person engaged - but before I left I learned her X grandfather was on the original Philadelphia Eagles team.

Sarus /  by Dave Hileman

This is the largest flying bird in the world. It is found in Southeast Asia (and at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. I photographed the head of a Sarus between two of the prayer cloths that are hung over the path. The second photo is the full bird. Striking colors.

Yes, we are.... /  by Dave Hileman

once again at Disney. With friends from NJ we are going to four parks in five days. We started at Magic Kingdom and rode my favorite of all the rides, the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. I chose to try and just take photos with my iPhone instead of my camera. I will use my Fuji tomorrow at Animal Kingdom but the iPhone photos turned out pretty well and it is certainly lighter! There is no processing on these three images and I did not need any bag for the day. Nice.

Big Thunder

Late night shot in front of the Yacht Club.

Tangerines /  by Dave Hileman

We went to a huge citrus and plant farm to pick tangerines. It was a good morning and we picked a two pound bucket to split between the Harman’s and us and a one pound bucket for a local food bank. The farm was well organized and there were a lot of kids coming to pick as well. They had a few games set up and a smattering of food trucks. Not too bad for their first public picking event. And the fruit is delicious.

ROAR /  by Dave Hileman

It is easy to see why movies like Jurassic Park are filmed in Hawaii with this kind of lush scenery and abundant waterfalls. Not to mention good weather, good food and really easy I expect to get actors to agree to a few weeks on location.

Gratitude /  by Dave Hileman

Cindy and I wish that your Thanksgiving Day is all that you imagined. We are traveling today south toward Florida and expect our Thanksgiving meal will be at Buc-eees. Maybe. Yet we are extremely grateful for health, faith, family, friends, church, travel, and so much more. We are blessed beyond description.

An overlook along Chain of Craters Drive in Volcanoes National Park.

Volcanoes National Park (NPS # 323 Two Lane Touring) /  by Dave Hileman

Volcanoes NP is one that you can actually say is always changing. There are active eruptions and lava flows in the Kilauea Caldera that change the landscape and create additional land on the island of Hawaii. We started on our 90 minute drive to the park early in the morning to hike the old lava flow and petroglyph area of the park along the Pacific Ocean, a 19 mile drive one way from the VC to the end of Chain of Craters Road. We were warned to do this hike early because of the heat. Good advice! It was getting hot on the trail by 9:30. There is a sea arch in the huge cliffs along the shore which is being worn away constantly by the wave action. We did three short hikes to four different old lava flows and craters of now dormant volcanoes as the road ascended to the rim, and we walked though the Thurston lava tube and up to the rim of the Kilauea Iki Caldera. Along the West Crater Rim Drive, we were on a walkway surrounded by steam pouring from vents with a strong sulphur odor. At the end of the drive is parking for the historic Hawaiian Volcano Observatory building. It was closed and condemned after the last eruption. Much of the cliff it is built on fell into the caldera, and the building is on a precarious edge. A 1/2 mile walk led to excellent viewing overlooks. Back near the VC, we went to the Volcano House Lodge, another historic park structure, for an early dinner and interesting gift shops. Another walk about a mile from the hotel led to a great overlook for watching the sunset and the lava field glowing red in the darkening sky. The impression was of many small campfires which grew in number as the darkness settled in. It was a long drive home in the dark after a 16 hour 8 walking miles day but seeing the lava eruptions in an active volcano was well worth the energy spent. Spectacular experience!

Along the Steam Vents trail. The young woman just visible along the trail has the same color hair as the rising steam.

Halema'uma°u Crater lava flow at sunset

Kilauea Iki Crater, you can hike across this wasteland but we chose not to do so. Long hike and would need another day.

Puhimau Crater, short hike to this one but across very jagged lava.

Some of the thousands of petroglyphs.

Holei Sea Arch - a lot of this fell into the ocean last winter and the rangers say it might not last too much longer with another strong storm.

Petroglyph hike area.

Even in the midst of this rugged scenery you would find beautiful flowers in places.

The Hiker /  by Dave Hileman

We were very late in the day well past Hana in the Haleakala National Park on the south end of Maui. It meant we had to drive back to our room in the dark on the road from Hana and that was harrowing. But look at the waterfall we got to see. Over 400 feet tall, Waikmoku Falls is deep in the rain forest. What a treat. The woman who is hiking and her husband (not shown) walked back with us the 2.3 miles to the cars and he is a photographer from Charlotte and they own an Oliver. Who would have guessed.

The Cook /  by Dave Hileman

We were warned by several people to take food on the Road to Hana because options were very limited or even non-existent. Not the day we drove. We stopped for a great banana bread in a little village and then, stumbled on this place. An old bus served as the kitchen and a platform around it with picnic tables provided the dinning area. Only two choices, coconut shrimp or fish. We ordered the shrimp. I do not like coconut but I figured I could eat one and the potatoes. The shrimp was fantastic. The coconut was fresh, fried, abundant and crispy. No aftertaste, just a great dish that Cindy and I made quick work of finishing. And the owner/cook was entertaining as well. Nice stop.