Our little place of paradise

Here are a few pictures of the place we stayed at. The home was almost thirty miles north of Kona, on the northwest side of the island. This is also the driest part, so if we were looking for rain, it was the wrong part of the island. I think they get about two inches of rainfall a year here.

The front of the house

From the front porch looking in

The view from the living room

No explanation needed

Making dinner... one night we had ono fish and another evening was an amazing succulent filet mignon.

The sunset from our backyard

Operation "Dinner Out"

If you don't get the title, just watch the movie "Spy Game". On the evening of our second to last night on Hawaii, I took Lauren to an outdoor restaurant with nothing in the way of the ocean view. We enjoyed watching the sunset while eating delicious food.

Just the two of us

Can't beat this dinner table view!

Lauren

Another picture from our table

Me

Helicopter tour

On our second full day on the Big Island, Lauren and I took a two hour helicopter tour so we could take in a different view of how beautiful this place is. Neither of us had ever flown in a helicopter before, so it was really exciting. I was doped up on dramamine and Lauren did get a little sick about halfway through, but the sights were amazing.

We used Blue Hawaiian and our pilot was fantastic, with an abundance of knowledge of the island

Just before takeoff

The Pu'u 'O'o vent from above

Lava escaping the tubes and gushing into the ocean

Same as above... but notice the village in the background. They were just "lavaed" out a few months back and relocated only a few hundred yards away. Hmmm... doesn't seem too bright... maybe it's those gasses.

The northeast side of the island is covered with huge cliffsides reaching over 1,000 feet. This creates amazing waterfalls dropping straight into the ocean below. There is evidence on the cliff walls of tsunamis reaching the tops of them. Some parts of the island record annual rainfall of over 400"!

Hiking the Kahauale'a Trail to Pu'u 'O'o vent

This trail is marked many times with warning signs to "keep out", "closed" or "danger, do not enter". There was even a helipad rescue area half way into the hike. But trusting my guidebook that it was open to the public, we ventured on through the rainforest. Roundtrip it was an ankle breaking nine mile hike, up and down old lava, over and under trees with occasional sudden cracks in the earth. We made it to the end, where the forest comes to a screeching halt, and vast fields of lave are all that remain. The Pu'u 'O'o vent is the only active volcano on the Big Island at this time. The lava flows under the earth's surface through multiple lava tubes until reaching the ocean a few miles away. If you plan on hiking this trip, make sure to keep your nose clear. If you smell something funny, it would be the sulphur dioxide from the vent, which spews 1,500 tons of the gas each day. Once in a blue moon, the wind won't be blowing in the normal direction, making the hike a deadly encounter if you continue on.

From the forest to the lava

Looking at the Pu'u 'O'o vent

Close up of the steam rising

Chillin' on the lava field... we had lunch here

Admiring the "big crack" (not the plumber type)

Photo from another hike, looking back at where we hiked originally. You can see the Pu'u 'O'o vent in the middle-right of the picture, along with the edge of the forest where we came out.

Quick update

The last few weeks have been a blur. It started out with a quick move, which always ends up being way more work than you originally think. I moved out of the house where I had been renting a room from a co-worker. I'm still living in Monroe, in a three bedroom/two bath townhouse about the same distance to the police department. Now that I officially have a dedicated guest bedroom, I will be requiring all of you to visit me :-)

After three very long days of packing and unpacking, I was off to acompany Lauren on another dressage competition, this time on Whidbey Island, near a little town called Coupeville. We arrived back home on Sunday evening, and the following morning, the two of us took off for Hawaii. One of her dressage sponsers was gracious enough to let us use the house she owns on the Big Island. It was an amazing week with incredible weather, hiking, snorkeling, great food and sunsets. We even toured the island on my very first helicopter ride!

Now I'm back (to earth) and at the beginning of fifteen straight work days as our PD powers through the Evergreen State Fair right here in little ol' Monroe. I'll post pics of the last few weeks as I have time and start to settle in a little more into my new place.