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Although it may not be obvious to many, the Hawaiian Island chain is still growing. Mauna Loa and Kilauea on Hawaii Island (aka the Big Island), are still considered active volcanoes, but only Kilauea appears to be the more obvious one erupting. Though most of the lava is not deposited at the volcanic vents there, it readily surfaces near the ocean after traveling through miles of lava tubes. We were lucky enough to have contacts who live on the Big Island that were kind enough to show us some of the continually growing parts of Hawaii. An adventure I will never forget for the rest of my life!!!...

Whether local to the islands or just visiting, it is almost a right of passage to ride around the island on a moped and in an entourage. On this particular weekend, friends from around the nation [AK | HI | AZ | CA | WA | WI | MA] gathered in Hawaii to run-a-muck on Honolulu town... on scooters... with cheesy aloha leis. EPIC SCOOTER ADVENTURE!!! Nahh nahh-nahh nahh... MAKE SURE to watch the video at the end!!! The day started early at Hawaii Moped Rental on Lemon Street in Waikiki. We chose this rental location because of their convenient online reservation system. We did the 24-hr rental...

Before I could drive, I used to "ride bike" quite frequently with friends, terrorizing our neighborhood. After donating my old mountain-bike to Goodwill many years ago, I never revisited the idea of biking recreationally until just recently. Since none of us hiked today, Reanne impulsively brought up an awesome idea, to investigate the new experimental shared-biking program has recently been introduced into Kailua. Using the conveniently placed kiosks, the public can inexpensively rent bicycles both for exercise or just to explore the town. Troy, Seth and I were all enthusiastic to check out what...

I used think the Moiliili Karst (underground cavern) was a pristine habitat, isolated from the world above, and a fragile ecosystem. Boy was I never more wrong in my life... even more wrong than the scientists in the movie, "Prometheus" in fact. By the photo above, one might second guess my statements... but if they were with us, I'm sure they'd agree it would rival the "most disgusting thing they've done in their life." The adventure started out 100% "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle" style, in the storm drains below Honolulu... and yes, that meant whatever piles up along nearby gutters...

[Part 1 - Olowalu Valley] [Part 2 - The Pass] [Part 3 - Iao Valley] [Gallery] Now that we were in Iao Valley, the final leg of our expedition was to follow our tributary to it's confluence with the main stream channel. With either our spiked or felt-bottomed footwear, we set out for the Iao needle Some of the historical documentation of other attempts we had read, stated that descending large waterfalls with rope was required once on the Iao side of the pass. Top-tier orienteering and topographical map analysis by Pete helped us avoid any of these sizable waterfalls, though we did have...

[Part 1 - Olowalu Valley] [Part 2 - The Pass] [Part 3 - Iao Valley] [Gallery] The Iao-Olowalu Pass was by far the most dangerous part of our journey, and from the following photos and documentation, it shouldn't be unreasonable to understand why. The ridgeline we were on steepened as we gained elevation. Now nearing 3000 feet, we were subjected to the northeast tradewinds that were being funneled through the saddle... And although the brush was now only hip to chest-high, it became much thicker than previously encountered lower on the ridge... which probably has to do with the strong...

[Part 1 - Olowalu Valley] [Part 2 - The Pass] [Part 3 - Iao Valley] [Gallery] Dwarfing the mountain ranges of Oahu in elevation, the West Maui Mountains summits at 5,788 feet on Puu Kukui. The largest valley on the windward side of the mountains, Iao watershed, borders another sizable valley on it's leeward side, Olowalu, by a 3200 foot saddle known as the Iao-Olowalu Pass. The pass was used as an ancient Hawaiian route to crossover the West Maui Mountains, which may have considerably shortened travel between the districts of Lahaina and Wailuku. The pass has particularly been known as the escape...

My first entry using only photos taken with iPhone 4s... Chikao Kunitake is a simple man. He does not own a car and does not drive miles to go to work. He does not rely on electricity to watch TV, or power his household appliances. Built by his grandparents, Chikao lives on a small coffee farm in Holualoa, Kona... but don't be fooled if the place appears small and run-down, there's something much bigger going on here. Despite it being late in the season, my University of Hawaii colleagues and I were privileged to receive a first-hand experience to how the top-tier and award winning,...

After a great hike at Kaau Crater Rim, the Lost Trailblazers (Seth Eason, Jen Liu, Reanne Solomon and I) decided to check out the Mu Ryang Sa (Brokem Ridge) Korean Temple in the back of Palolo Valley. The Buddhist temple is located on 2420 Halelaau Place, just off of Waiomao Road, and is open to the public daily. As typical with many other Korean temples, the colors of the structures are much more vibrant when compared to other places of worship. The architecture is also equally elaborate, i.e. the complex desing of this awning / roofline. There are several places where...

In addition to being an an aquatic biologist, part of my occupation is to deploy/maintain wireless sensor networks throughout the State of Hawaii. The weather station shown in the above is located at an elevation of ~6000 ft on Hualalai, a mountain range in Kona which peaks at ~ 8300 ft. These stations are often both weather and water quality stations in remote areas, and can be used by agencies to make more informed decisions about their management practices. For instance, does native plant restoration / weed removal have an impact on water quality by decreasing runoff? The figure...