Jim Colyer in Hawaii 2003

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Mauna Kea (White Mountain)

In "Swim With Dolphins," I wrote, "I wanna see the stars, Mauna Kea's calling me." September 13, 2003, I stood atop the extinct volcano 13,750 feet above sea level. "This is beautiful!" I thought. The volcano was stark and brownish, barren of vegetation. There was a Mars-like surrealism. I watched the sun set above the clouds. Stars blazed. The Milky Way, the plane of our Galaxy, arched brilliantly overhead. I was on the Big Island of Hawaii in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It gets no better than this. Hawaii is at 20 degrees northern latitude. The north star appears lower and the constellation Scorpius higher than from Kentucky/Tennessee although not as high as from Australia where it gets straight up. I sensed the curvature of the earth. Mars was at its closest. It looked like Jupiter. I wondered why it was less red than when it was farther out. The guide said the increased sunlight hitting its surface neutralized its redness. The moon rose. I like astronomy and saw a bit of everything. 13 telescopes spread across the summit of Mauna Kea. There are the Keck domes and the Japanese Subaru. Subaru is Japanese for "Pleiades." Mauna Kea is run by the University of Hawaii and Caltech. It is the only large observatory I have seen. I was above 40% of our atmosphere's oxygen but felt no different. It misted on the drive up. Rainbows were everywhere. I felt invigorated.

Waikiki Beach

I stayed two nights at the Waikiki Grand. I explored the beach area. I walked to the top of Diamond Head Crater at the end of Waikiki Beach. Diamond Head is also an extinct volcano. It is a state monument. It was named by British sailors who mistook shiny minerals for diamonds. It looked like a short walk from the beach. Not so! It was a long, arduous trek. My arthritis screamed. I kept going. The perimeter of the crater circled me. I thought, "My God! I am in a volcano!" I kept climbing. I went through tunnels and cave-like features. It was worth it when I reached the top. I looked down on Honolulu. Ocean and sky were everywhere. The crater is not unlike Meteor Crater in Arizona except that it is of volcanic origin. It was an exhilarating experience. Some nice people gave me a ride down.

Pearl Harbor

I went to Pearl Harbor, to the USS Arizona Memorial. The battleship, Arizona, is below water. The memorial is the white structure built over it. It is a National Park. Over half the men who died at Pearl Harbor were on the Arizona. The ship is their tomb. I thought it ironic they were killed by their own ammunition when the Japanese bomb hit. I noted the parallel between Pearl Harbor and 9/11. We were attacked in both cases. I voted for Gore but approve of what George Bush is doing in the War on Terrorism and in Iraq. He rose to the occasion. The endgame is to hunt down Bin Laden. Hard line for a liberal! I am not going to Iraq. and I do not want my son there. There is no draft. No one is in uniform today against his will. It is Bush's coalition of the willing.


Hawaii email:

Larry
Plans for Hawaii are proving problematical. No surprise. The Sweden and Australia trips came after long periods of preparation. I went to sites about Mauna Kea. The volcano is over 13,000 feet and the weather can be severe. Mauna Kea is on the Big Island. I started thinking I should hook up with an astronomy group like I did in Australia. I found the Hawaiian Astronomical Society (HAS) on the web.
Jim

Friends
10 days to Hawaii. It is a formidable undertaking. I have a plan. I think I can do it. Karen will take me to the airport on September 11. I fly at 2:05pm. It is 12 or 13 hours from Nashville to Honolulu. Honolulu is on the island of Oahu. From there, I will purchase roundtrip airfare to the Big Island. Mauna Kea is on the Big Island. This is the 14,000 feet extinct volcano on which the University of Hawaii operates big telescopes, one of the best places in the world to see the stars since Hawaii is 2400 miles off the west coast in the Pacific Ocean. I have a reservation for the night of September 13 to be part of a tour group which will ascend Mauna Kea. We will be on the volcano for sunset and into the night. My Hawaii experience will be astronomy based as the Australia trip was last year. There is a hotel on the Big Island called the Seaside. I will make some kind of reservation with them. I am unsure about accommodations and and may sleep when and where I can. I recall the Greyhound trip west in 1978. I went 6 days and nights before finally getting a room in Salt Lake City. I was a dead man walking when I hit the bed. From the Big Island, I will come back to Honolulu and hang out on Waikiki Beach. I will climb Diamond Head, another extinct volcano at the end of the beach. I may visit the State Capitol Building. Hawaii may be a one time thing. I never expect to see Sweden or Australia again. Karen and I had a joke in our traveling days. We said, "Let's look at the son-of-a-bitch and get back on the bus." That is how it is.

Larry
I am waiting for Karen to come and take me to the airport. I fly at 2:05. I may spend the night in the airport in Honolulu and fly to the Big Island tomorrow. I have reservations for Friday and Saturday nights at the Kona Seaside Hotel. The pickup point for the Mauna Kea Summit tour is within walking distance of the hotel. There may be only 2 hours of stargazing between sunset and when the moon rises, but that is enough. This is another once in a lifetime thing. Take what you can and move on. My contact at the tour group said the buses are still on strike in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu. That could cause problems. I will deal with it. I may go to Pearl Harbor. I want to stay in Honolulu around Waikiki Beach as cheaply as possible. I will email you through the week if I have access to computers.
Jim

Larry & Pam
I made it! I am in Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii. It is close to paradise. The sky is blue. It is warm but not hot. There is no wind. The ocean is beautiful. I have 2 nights at the Kona Seaside Hotel. Tomorrow, we go up Mauna Kea, the 14,000 foot volcano. We will watch the sunset and star gaze. Sunday, I fly back to the island of Oahu and Honolulu. I will be on and around Waikiki Beach for 4 days. I feel relaxed.
Jim

Pam
I will mention the passing of Johnny Cash. I lay in my hotel watching segments about him last night. He had presence. Pam, I hope you fly again and eventually are able to make a living outside of those smoky, crazy bars. I go up Mauna Kea in a few hours, the highest point in Hawaii. It is like standing on the edge of our planet looking out into the Galaxy and beyond. You will hear from me tomorrow before I leave the Big Island.
Jim

Friends
I am in Honolulu on Waikiki Beach. I turned the corner, and there it was---Diamond Head. I feel like I am in a movie. I am challenged every minute but making it. I wrote a piece about Mauna Kea which I will email later. My time on the computer is limited. The lady let me use it for free. Everything is expensive here. Gas is $2.58 a gallon on the Big Island. Hawaii is beautiful, no doubt. I may stay on the beach tonight and get a room in the morning for tomorrow night. I economize. That is how I afford to travel.
Jim


Hawaii Trip
I got an e-ticket from Expedia.com. My number was 17379616446. I flew Delta. Roundtrip airfare was $559.60 from Nashville to Honolulu. They billed my AmSouth account from my Check Card. I carried my passport for the picture. Karen took me to the airport and picked me up. I left September 11 and returned September 19. 8 days. A year and a half after Australia.

Expedia username:
Password:
Expedia phone: 1-800-Expedia
BNA - Nashville
HNL - Honolulu
13 or 14 hour flight.

Mauna Kea
I went straight to Mauna Kea. I got a roundtrip fare from Honolulu to Kona on the Big Island. Roundtrip from Honolulu to Kona was $139. I flew Aloha Airlines. Aloha means hello.

Mauna Kea is a state park and a great place to see the stars. The University of Hawaii operates telescopes at its summit. It gets cold up there. The tour provided parkas and gloves.

I hooked up with the Mauna Kea Summit Adventures tour. I made my reservation online at maunakea.com. In Kona, I stayed at the Kona Seaside Hotel. I looked west into the Pacific Ocean. The ocean had no odor. Palm trees and blue sky enhanced the beauty. Hawaii is composed of 132 islands. 6 are important. I visited the Big Island, called Hawaii, and Oahu.

Oahu
Honolulu and Waikiki Beach are on the island of Oahu. Honolulu is the state capital. I rode by the Capitol Building on the Pearl Harbor tour. Diamond Head is an extinct volcano at the end of Waikiki Beach. The British led Captain James Cook discovered Hawaii in 1798. Cook was later killed by Hawaiians. The first people to inhabit the islands were Polynesians who sailed east. American missionaries came, and the United States annexed Hawaii in 1898. It became our 50th state in 1959.

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