Olomana

As I write this, I have rested for a few hours and have a better perspective on what we have accomplished today. We have ascended Olomana and returned! It was much more difficult than I ever imagined it would be...

Olomana stands relatively close to the center of the ancient Koolau caldera. It is a thick stack of horizontal lava flows which were shaped by circulating hot water and steam while the caldera was still molten and active. The translation of the Hawaiian name is roughly "divided hill" because there are actually three peaks - as you can see from this picture I took from our rooftop lanai. The tallest peak is 1,643 feet and is accessible by an ascending 1 1/2 mile trail.

The first quarter mile is done on the paved road that leads to the Olomana Golf & Country Club. You can see the first - and highest - summit (the only one we targeted on this hike). The day was bright and sunny with a hint of a cool breeze. The trail was dry and clouds were few.

Turning onto the trailhead, the hike quickly becomes a dirt trail laced with roots and rocks. We passed a large Banyon tree after about 100 yards and the rest of the trail got steeper and steeper as we ascended toward the summit.







Most of the time, the trail looks like hiking through any wooded area. At about 1,000 feet up (a mile or so distance), the "trail" becomes more of a climb. Fortunately, there are a few spots where people have lashed ropes to help.

You can see that close to the top, we spent a good deal of time climbing rocks and trees to get higher. We stopped frequently to rest and drink our water. As we rested, a man came bounding up and passed us. He was a trail runner who "hikes" this trail every weekend for fun and exercise!


W climbed continuously for an hour or so and reached a spot near the top that was just too much for DeAnna's strained muscles and blistered feet. A 15 foot climb straight up an exposed cliff using someone's rope. DeAnna decided to stay, but I thought I'd give it a try. We were so close to the top and I didn't go that far to get stumped without a try, so I grabbed the rope and began to climb.



A few minutes later, I emerged to a narrow trail along the edge with cliffs dropping off on both sides. Balancing along this trail, I had to scramble up some more rocks before reaching the topmost rock and the absolute summit! I stood for a while in the windless sunlight. It was absolutely glorious!

Since I was the only person at the top, I set up the self-timer on my camera timer and took a picture. After that, I tried to take a short move of the narrow trail that leads back down! So enjoy the panoramic view from the top of Olamana and a short video of walking the trail back down from the top.




What adventures await in the weeks to come? We're deciding. I have ordered inflatable snorkeling vests These vests can be inflated with two puffs of air allowing you to float and relax while swimming. I will feel a lot safer swimming and snorkeling at beaches where I haven't been before so this will open up some new targets of opportunity in the weeks to come. Stay tuned!

Beautiful Weekend

After almost two months of marginally nice weather, it has turned out to be a phenomenally beautiful weekend here in Kailua! I got out twice this weekend to snorkel in Kailua Bay. The second time was today. The water was calm with sunny skies and, after a swim far out away from shore, wonderfully clear water with lots to see. So as a shamless brag, I am including a few pictures and movies just for remembrances. Here's hoping you can make it out to visit us before we leave the island...

This is a small Moray eel. He makes a fierce, open-mouthed appearance, but of the eels I've encountered, none have tried to bite or strike like a snake. Good thing because I got pretty close for this shot!



These two guys were swimming around some coral. They are aquarium-sized and bright colored. They were hard to catch (you should see how many other pictures didn't come out) but this one shot turned out well!


This puffer fish gave me lots of wary looks as I swam around. They are fun to watch because they don't swim like most fish. Their little fins flutter back and forth like a hummingbird, but the fish moves around very slowly. i haven't tried to scare one into puffing...




I've shown pictures of swimming with Sea turtles before, but I saw four of them feeding in the calm waters today. After watching them for a while, I swam away, but a few minutes later, I noticed one of them was following me, so I gently circled back to take a couple of movies. By law, people aren't supposed to pester sea turtles, so I just floated with the current until he swam away with his little fish friends.

It has been a great weekend!. If next weekend's weather permits, I'm targeting the Olomana Peak - a 1,600 ft slice of rock between the Koolau mountains and the Kailua Beach along the Pali Highway. We hiked in this area to the Maunawili falls back in November, but that was in the valley.
Here is a picture from the Pali Highway... Pretty impressive, huh?

I see it every day when I drive home from work. Several locals have said how beautiful the hike is, so I'm looking forward to toting my rough and rugged little camera to the peak!

UPDATE: Kevin had to go back in the hospital because a CAT-scan found blood clots in his lungs. This is not unexpected, but they wanted him to be in the hospital when they administered blood thinners to make sure that none of the clots dislodged. He is back home now and even went to work for light duty! Thank God for Kevin's quick recovery and Pam's continuing care!

Sandcastle Contest & Snorkeling Again

We went to the beach today. The trade winds have abated and that usually means unusually calm water in Kailua Bay - perfect for a calm swim or, in our case, return to the sea. But when we drove down to the parking lot, the beach was packed with people - very unusual when the wind is calm since we're known as the windward side of the island.
Anyway, it turns out that this weekend is a sandcastle contest, so we took several pictures while walking the beach in our wetsuits. We must have looked ridiculous, but oddly enough, wetsuits just don't attract attention on these beaches. Everyone else is wearing a minimum amount of clothing, but we were totally covered in black Neoprene! After finding a spot to put our towels, we headed down into the water to prepare for some snorkeling.


The water these days is not nearly as warm as it was last fall. It's not bad for splashing around in the waves, but if you're going to be out in the water for 30 minutes to an hour, it's much better to wear a wetsuit so you can stay warm(er). I say warmer because the water is still cold when it first seeps into the wetsuit and your body heat makes it warm.




For those who don't know, the wet suit lets water in next to your skin, but that water is insulated so you remain encased in warm water. Oddly enough, it also makes you feel safer or more protected as well.


After swimming out several times in the past and almost getting clipped by kite boarders and wind surfers, we decided to purchase and use a dive flag to indicate our presence. Getting wetsuits, flippers, masks, dive flag and cameras all organized in the water took several minutes, but eventually we were on our way. The water was clear and deep with lots of coral and fish.
We swam out from the shoreline and eventually ended up on Popoia Island (Flat Island). Popoia Island is a bird sanctuary, but around the edges, people can explore.




The island is made of old lava that is being beaten into sand by the waves. The rocks are porous and very very sharp in places. We rested and explored until the sun made us too hot (remember, we were in black wetsuits) so we swam back to Kailua Beach.


Although we were only out for a couple of hours, it was good to be back in the ocean. Everything is rinsed and dry - ready for the next opportunity to explore paradise here in Hawaii!

Back To Normal

Kevin has been gone a week now and we've gotten back to our fairly normal lives here in paradise. I haven't been back to the gym, but that should start back up next week - the scrapes and bruises have been too sensitive. Aside from the fact that my job has gotten seriously busy, we managed to take some time off Wednesday afternoon and follow-up on a visit to the jewelers to replace our wedding rings.

I do not spend a lot of time thinking about jewelry, much less wedding rings. Styles have changed so much that our old wedding rings would have to be hand-crafted. Nothing in the massive catalogues even came close. So this brings up a question: Do you want to try to replace your old wedding ring or go for something new? Think about it...

The meaning and memory of the old rings remains, even though the rings are gone. There have been many happy times shared with those rings so wouldn't you like to bring them back, keep them close and remember? Or maybe you say, "Life goes on and this could be a new chapter!" with the decision to get a new style. Prices supporting either of these decisions don't help because the expense would be about the same... which would you decide?

Well, we decided to go for something new. My decision came pretty easy (after all, the guys ring is pretty simple). The new Tungsten Carbide rings stand up to the abuse I've dished out over the years and they are cut in the comfort band style I like. So I ordered a Trew Tungsten ring with diamond and Platinum inlay. You can see a picture of it HERE. It's sized just a bit smaller than my old ring partly to make it harder to lose, but also because my weight loss a couple of years ago have rendered my fingers more skinny.

DeAnna's choices were far more difficult. She likes yellow gold and the styles these days just don't include much yellow gold. Everything is white gold or platinum! Of course, there seems to be an infinite number of diamond settings, but the thing that really got her attention was a new ring design called a tension setting. The diamond is actually set in between the ends of the band and held in place with thousands of pounds of force. The result is a diamond that is exposed almost entirely, allowing light to shine through the stone in all directions. The design she chose is not exactly like THIS picture, but you can see how the diamond is held in place.

So things are almost back to normal here. We are hoping to get out into Kailua Bay today and do some snorkeling - returning to the ocean for more than a stroll on the beach. I'll let you know how that goes after we get wet!

The Tempest

Download the whole story in a 22 page PDF file HERE under the "Tempest" folder and in a link on the right hand side of my blog page. After less than a week of turmoil, Kevin was released from the hospital Friday afternoon and has returned home to Minnesota with Pam! DeAnna and I are now researching new wedding rings... For those who aren't as interested, here are a few small excerpts...

In God's Hands

As we waited next to the Spitting Cave, I got my footing along the ledge about 10 yards from Kevin and DeAnna. Seeing a nice swell, Kevin called out “Here it is!” Suddenly, I felt water against my legs and then I was lifted up off my feet and dropped back down onto the rocks tumbling until I found myself swimming! This ain’t good… The waves were splashing back and forth as I tried to catch my breath kicking to the surface only to be submerged. I immediately thought to try to swim out away from the rocks, so I tried to swim but I wasn’t getting anywhere.

I turned back and forth, struggling to stay on top of the water. I shouted “HELP!” as I swallowed and coughed up salt water. The waves pounded me and I could see that I was getting closer to the rocks, so I turned away and put my head down to stroke out to sea. When I came up for air I saw DeAnna about 20 yards farther out, struggling to catch her breath! The waves lifted me up and crashed me back down under water.

Again, I looked for DeAnna again and saw Kevin swimming hard out to sea He was in the water as well. With each wave, DeAnna floated further and further away. I put my head down and stroked hard to get to her, but when I came up, I was pointed towards the cave. People on shore were yelling at me to swim out, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to last in the pounding surf against that current. I was already choking down sea water and exhausted.

I tried to float on my back to conserve energy. It was futile. I struggled to gasp air between wave peaks. The waves rolled in from the sea, bounced off the rocks and rolled back out. In the area near the shore, these reflected waves crashed into the incoming waves, making the water extremely rough and angry.

The current here was neither in nor out and I couldn’t make headway in any direction, so I was stuck about 50 yards off shore. Given the roughness of the water, I was convinced that both of them were drowned. I knew that if someone didn’t get to me soon, I’d drown as well. It was getting hard to lift my arms and my neck was hurting from the attempts to stay above the water.

Meanwhile, Kevin and DeAnna were facing the same struggle out at sea. Some people on shore managed to throw an empty water jug out at DeAnna. Miraculously, she grabbed it and it helped her to stay afloat, but only barely. Kevin was not so blessed and continued to thrash against the waves. The current swiftly carried them westward along the shoreline farther from any chance to come to shore or be found by rescuers.

With my last remaining strength, I wanted to make one more try for the shore. The waves crashed over me and behind me. Coming back up for air, I suddenly found myself about 10 yards away from the rocks! I put my head down and swam with all my might towards the rocky shore and lava shelf. This time, I swam in the right direction and with another benevolent wave landed hard on the jagged submerged rocks next to the shoreline shelf. Some college boys threw a rope at me and I grabbed it as another wave lifted me up and smashed me against the shelf. Just as quickly, the wave rushed out, threw me down on the rocks below and back out into the water. I held on and wrapped the rope around my arm by twisting my body.

Another wave lifted me up against the shelf and back down on the rocks. This time, I stood up and grabbed the top of the shelf. The boys pulled the rope and got me about ½ way up before the next wave pounded me into the shelf again. However, this time I wasn’t thrown back down and the boys grabbed my arms to pull me out. I collapsed on the ledge as the boys dragged me further up and away from the water, leaving a bloody smear along the rocks.

Ocean Rescue lifeguards had been dispatched from nearby Hawaii Kai beach on Jet Skis and had made their way along the shore. They found DeAnna first about 100 yards off the Portlock shoreline. As they pulled along her the rescue lifeguard pulled her up out of the water. The lifeguard put his arms through restraints on the edge of the float and pinned DeAnna on the float with his body. They sped back through the waves into Maunalua Bay and to the beach and a waiting ambulance.

Kevin was found shortly after that about 300 yards off shore. The rescue lifeguard pulled him onto the rescue float and they headed back to shore, but the water was so rough that the jet ski hit a large wave and the two men on the float flew across the water. Kevin remembers skipping on the water three or four times, then being too weak to swim. The lifeguard grabbed him up and they got back on the float again. When they got back to the beach, Kevin’s lungs were ¾ full of seawater. Rescue teams drained his lungs and tried to revive him on the beach, but Kevin never woke up. Ambulance workers were doing CPR on him as they raced to the hospital.


There is a whole lot more for you to read in the whole story. All of us have recovered, but it was an amazing week of God's hand moving over many people in prayer. My humble thanks to everyone for their constant prayers and concerns. We are alive today only for God's grace and your prayers!

Master The Tempest Is Raging

On Sunday, February 3, 2008, I, my wife DeAnna and my best friend Kevin Parker were swept into the ocean and a fight for our lives. God, in His endless mercy spared us all in no small part because of the remarkable prayers of people across the United States.

Those who know me understand my tendency to be chatty, so I have written a long document (13MB) of what happened. I'll find a place to post it and give you the link (since Blogspot doesn't do PDF attachments).

I've been working so hard to keep things together this week that my blogging has suffered. I hope you can read the PDF file. I will try to encapsulate the experience and upload a synopsis with a few pictures on this page in a day or so when things have calmed down.

Thanks for being patient and for all the prayers!

Prayers Answered!

I'm still trying to collect my thoughts on events this weekend and will post details for all of you who have been asking for information on myself, DeAnna and my best friend Kevin. Unfortunately, blogging is a little lower on my list right now, but please know that your prayers and support are felt, loved and are working miracles. God is looking on these poor, fragile sinner with great favour. To God be the glory for recovery! For those who may be confused by this reference, I'll post more tomorrow. Until then, my eternal thanks to everyone in the blogosphere for prayers and concerns.