A spinner dolphin leaps high out of the water as a local boat looks on.
Today we spent the morning exploring the picturesque, and historical Koloko-Honokohau National Historic Park. At one time, an ancient Hawaiian village thrived here, with numerous fish ponds, fresh water springs, and plenty of coastline to fish and collect shells from. However, lava flows from nearby Hualalai Volcano covered and destroyed most of the village. Now the area has been turned into a National Historic Park. There are paths through the lava flow, connecting the visitor center with the inland brackish fish ponds and the beach.
My goal today was to share the history and beauty of the place with my guests. I wanted to show them the remnants of an ancient heiau or temple, some petroglyphs in the rocks, and also the fish ponds, some of which have been rebuilt. But another big mission was to go birding. Different birds can be seen out over the water, along the shoreline, in the strip of forest, and in the fish ponds. We totaled 17 different species in one morning, which is a big success. Numerous sea turtles also could be seen, chomping on algae, very close to the shoreline. Some of them I was able to get very close to, without disturbing them.
Everyone was so excited by the time we got picked up by our small boat. There were smiles all around on our ride out. But then the smiles got really big, when a big pod of spinner dolphins showed up just outside the harbor. They were leaping and spinning high into the air. Check out the picture above.
Entering Koloko-Honokohau National Historic Park.
Hawaiian coot turns and looks at me. I found this swimming in the large fish pond in the National Historic Park.
I can often find a few of these shore birds, called a wandering tattler, here along the lava rock coast.
It is actually quite rare to find a gull species here in Hawaii. Being 2400 miles from any large landmass, we are too isolated for most seagulls. It is possible that this one hitched a ride on a big cruise ship.
A Hawaiian spinner dolphin, showing off why they are called 'spinner' dolphins.
I heard this Northern cardinal before I saw it. These are 1 of 3 species of cardinals that were introduced to the islands.
This is a yellow-billed cardinal, often confused with the Brazilian cardinal that we have on the other islands.
This little gecko leaped onto my shoulder, and rode around on my neck for awhile.
This beautiful bird is often confused with our endemic honeycreepers, however it is an introduced saffron finch.
I led this small group on a tour of Koloko Honokohau National Historic Park. This is a recreation of an ancient canoe house.
I wish this turtle would have turned around, but I thought it was a cool opportunity for a super wide angle shot, since the turtle was only inches away.
A long stretch of sandy beach stretches along the shoreline here. Ancient fish ponds can be seen on both sides of the beach.
The waves were pretty big today, but the shallow lava, and rock walls of the ancient fish ponds break the waves and create a calm swimming area near the beach.
The national park has created very nice walking trails through the park. Most people just head straight for the beach, but there is a lot of area to explore if you have the right guide.
A small strip of forest separates the lava fields from the beach. Salt tolerant plants like naupaka and tree heliotrope line the shore.
An old lava flow creates a patchwork of tidepools just offshore. It can be quite interesting moving slowly and really taking a look at these tidepools. I've seen baby moray eels, small reef fish, and beautiful shells here. Not to mention hungry sea turtles scraping algae off the rocks.
Out on a point of land, an ancient heiau, or Hawaiian temple, stands watch over the pounding waves.
In typical Hawaiian fashion, these temple walls were put together with giant lava rocks and no mortar. Ancient wall builders were highly prized in old Hawaii.
A black crowned night heron stalks the tidepools. Our ship can be seen in the background.
A hungry green sea turtle eats algae in the shallows.
A native Pacific Golden Plover walks across the sand. These small birds migrate back and forth to Western Alaska every year....an amazing 6000 mile roundtrip flight.
Petroglyphs in old lava flows can be seen here if you know where to look.
A petroglyph drawing of a rifle, carved into the lava rock. This must have been done after 1779, when Captain Cook landed on the Big Island.
Another beautiful sunset brings another day to an end on our Hawaiian Island cruise.
As always, keep traveling and keep posting! And thanks to the Hive community for always coming along for the adventure!
- Dai Mar