Let me start off by saying that Big Island, Hawaii, is a stunningly beautiful place. Of 13 global climate zones, BI has 11.
Tired of warm sea breezes? Go mauka (up mountain) to the arctic zone on top of Mauna Kea.
Too humid in rainy Hilo? Head to the west side, where there is a true desert.
Our dear friends D and L are planning to visit in November, and though they live on another beautiful Hawaiian island, they have a list of things they would like to see and do when they visit us here. One of those was to visit the west side and the Kohala coast. Well……..
Today the inverter broke. That is the device that converts sunlight into AC power. In other words, it is the electric supply….no inverter, no power. The “fix-the-inverter-man” lives and works in Kailua-Kona…on the west side.
So DH disconnected the thing and we drove off to Kona. It is the most amazing thing to drive through Waimea/Kamuela toward Kona. One moment one is driving through Ireland-like green rolling hills with horse and cattle peacefully grazing. Cross the “line” and you are driving through desert. Prickly pear cactus included.
As you drive further south, you enter the lava fields. Miles of stark, moonlike expanses of black, vegetation-free land are more reminiscent of a walk on the moon, rather than a tour of Hawaii!
When approaching Kona, you enter vog. Volcanic fog, this cloud of Sulpher dioxide and fog has been an unfortunate fixture of the Kona skies for several months due to increased activity of Kilauea Volcano to the southeast-obscuring the ocean and coastline views, causing burning eyes and tight throat.
While waiting for fix-it man to repair the inverter, we wandered around Kona, wondering at the prices that people have paid for homes there…..with views now completely obliterated by the vog.
As we drove back home through the black a’a and pahoehoe lava, I decided to give D and L a preview of their upcoming visit:
…couldn’t WAIT to get back to the sunny, green, VOGLESS, Hamakua coast!
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