TropicalCastaway

Building A Deck

As we continue to stumble around trying to trim the vegetation, it becomes apparent that we need somewhere flat and level to simply sit. Also someplace to work from. The topography of the property is rough and tumble. It seems that the trees and shrubs are rooted in and among a jumble of rocks and boulders of varying size from 2 to 3 feet in diameter to pebbles, with the majority between the size of a large grapefruit and a basketball. Over the years, the leaves have fallen onto these rocks and created a layer of mulch where the roots of the vines and smaller plants and grasses have taken root. But still, the ground is very unlevel and difficult to walk around on. We are constantly tripping and stumbling over these different sized rocks. Having someplace flat and level would give us a place to sit or even lay down to take a break. Also, having a wooden deck would give us an area under the deck to store things we are collecting – various hand tools, a couple of ice chests, a few folding lawn/beach chairs, etc.

Just past the pile of rocks is the knoll where I will build the deck.

About 40 feet in from the road, there is a slight rise – a small knoll – just before the ground begins a slope down to the bottom end of the property about ten to fifteen feet below the road elevation. On this knoll, I have decided to build our deck. It will be simple – 12 x 12 in size – mainly because 12 foot material will be easiest to transport.

After hacking and trimming on the jungle, it was time for a little recreation, so we headed off to Kona to go whale watching. We had booked a tour with a boat called the Manta and were looking forward to a day on the water.

We were not disappointed and saw numerous whales along the Kokala coast north of Kona.

While we were in Kona, we stopped in at the home inprovement warehouse and picked up some concrete for the foundation of the deck. The next day saw us forming and pouring.

Building and setting the forms for the foundation of the deck

We have been staying in a neighboring town about 15 miles towards Hilo called Pahala. We found this place through a well known on-line vacation rental group. Since we were 15 miles closer, the next afternoon we took a drive into Hilo. We did a bit of sightseeing – a trip to Rainbow Falls and other rivers in the Hilo area, and picked up some lumber for the deck along with some mulch and a few coconuts from a guy over in Pahoa.

We had rented a mini van-SUV as our transportation for this trip knowing that we would be doing some hauling. A truck would have been better. Even with both rows of seats folded down, the 12 foot 2 x 6’s stuck out the back a little more than a foot. The lower section of the rear door folded down to support the lumber, and the upper section opened up as a hatch. After loading a dozen of these 2 x 6’s into the back of the mini van, we tied down the hatch. We also picked up a dozen sprouted coconuts that I wanted to plant.

Sprouted Coconuts, mulch, and more concrete on top of the lumber.

It will take 7 to 10 years before a coconut tree produces any nuts, so I want to get these in and started as soon as possible. We also picked up a couple of bags of mulch. Needless to say, we were loaded. Somehow, as we headed out of Hilo towards Naalehu, we got turned around and ended up on a the wrong road.

This doen not look like the right road to Naalehu.

After driving on what appeared to be a deserted country road for about ten minutes I said, “I don’t think this is the right road.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, first of all, I don’t recognize anything,” I answered. “Second, the road seems much smaller than the road we drove to get into Hilo. And third, I haven’t seen another car in the last ten minutes.”

“Let’s just go a little further and see if it changes.”

“With the back hatch open, this stupid idiot beeper telling me that we have an open door is driving me crazy. It also seems we are going up in elevation. The wind is coming in the back and it is colder. Not just because the sun has gone down, but it seems to be a change in the temperature.”

“Well, whatever you think,” is the answer I got.

“Let’s go back to that intersection we just passed. I think it will take us bact to the highway where we should be.”

“What intersection? I didn’t see any intersection.” She replied.

“There was an intersection just back there a little ways.”

So, we made a u-turn and headed back the way we had come. I thought it was much closer, but when we did find another road, the sun had gone down and it was dark. Really dark! But following this other road took us to highway 11 – the main road between Hilo, Volcano, and Naalehu. We pulled into the rental property and were glad to have had yet another adventure!

The next day, the framing of the deck started in earnest, and it didn’t take long to have some beams up and begin on the floor joist.

As I was building, I was designing. Working out the details. I contemplated the spacing of the floor joist. 16″ apart was standard, but if they were 12″ apart, the deck would feel much more solid. The few additional joist would be worth it in the end, but I did not have enough lumber for that. Also, with the 2 x 6 decking, I would get the strength I wanted. They went in at 16″ apart..

With the floor joist in place, we made another trip into Hilo for more lumber for the decking. This time, we made sure to get on the right road heading back.

After the floor joist were in place, the decking began.

Again, the intent is to have a flat, stable, strong working surface and provide some storage underneath, so I used 2 x 6 boards as the decking and installed them butting together rather than the typical 1/2″ space between them.

This will not shed all the water, but a majority of it.

We now have a deck.

TTFN

Thar She Blows!

In January of 2019, we took a whale watching trip out of the Honokohau Marine and Small Boat Harbor aboard the 36 foor cruiser named Manta. The boat was handled by the captain and a deck hand.

Talking with the deck hand, he told me that a few weeks ago he had come to Hawaii from living for two years in Australia. Small world, as my wife is from Australia.

There were four other passengers on board, so it was a pleasurable experience.

Leaving the harbor is a bit exciting as the harbor entrance is narrow and the waves come in with authority.

Soon after clearing the harbor entrance, the captain wasted no time in heading out to the coast north of Kona with Maui in the distance.

We left Kona behind and proceeded up the Kohala coast. We came across some interesting structures sticking up out of the ocean. I would assume that these are some type of commercial fish farms.

The captain gave them a wide berth and proceeded on up the coast. It was not long until we began to spot some humpback whales.

They kept their distance from us and we did the same, but we still were able to see quite a few. None of them breached, so that was a bit disappounting. Pehaps the best view was of a whale centered with Hualalai volcano in the back ground.

It was enjoyable to get out on the water for a leisurly cruise up the coast and back and seeing the whales was a bonus. On the way back, we got a closer view of the net pyramids.

The afternoon was over and it was time to head back into the harbor.

TTFN

Halekini

Na’alehu is the southern most town in the USA, but it is not directly on the ocean. The road through Na’alehu heads east towards Hilo as it descends the hill toward the ocean. The town is about 500 feet above sea level – give or take. At the bottom of the hill, after driving along the coast above the shoreline, there is a turn off for Whittington Beach Park.

This area was once a thriving port town called Honu’apo in the 1870’s through to the 1930’s. Across the highway from the park is the ruins of the Hutchinson Sugar Plantation. The sugar cane from the plantation was ground and processed into sugar in the mill and warehouses at Honu’apo before being loaded onto ships at the pier that extended out into the bay. There was also a railroad from here that went up the hill. When the highways were developed in the early part pf the 1900’s. the railroad and the shipping became obsolete as they could transport the sugar cheaper across the roadways. The town fell into ruins and the tsunami of 1946 pretty much wiped out everything except the skeleton of the pier and a few concrete foundations.

The area of Whittington Beach and the six or seven parcels of land to the north of Whittington up to Hanakaulua Bay are all part of Honu’apo Park.

I found the name Halekini on a map that identifies the area north of Whittington. From Highway 11, there is a dirt road leading out to the ocean through Halekini. I like to come here as often as I can. The shore line is a rugged lava flow, with short cliffs of jagged lava where the waves crash to create tall splashes. There is even a few places where the water washes up onto the lava creating tide pools that are fun to explore and wade in.

Standing out towards the ocean, it is common to be caught by one of these crashing waves and be instantly soaked. In fact, it would be highly possible to be swept off the lava into the churning waves with no way out. I have often stood and watched hawksbill turtles floating in and out on the waves, trying to snatch a bite of whatever is growing below the waterline. I have found large pieces of turtle shell up on the lava, indicating just how dangerous it would be to fall in.

I don’t know if the correct name is Halekini or Honu’apo, but I like coming out here to watch the waves.

TTFN

Hookena Beach

I had been in Hawaii for a week. I needed to return the rental car. I called the rental company and asked about changing the drop off location to Hilo. They told me that it could not be changed. The car MUST be returned to Kona on the scheduled day at the scheduled time. So, I rented another car to be picked up in Kona and dropped off in Hilo – a one day rental. I am headed in to Kona to exchange cars. Tomorrow I will go to Hilo to drop off the second rental and pick up the car I bought earlier this week in Hilo.

Between South Point and Kona, is a beach called Hookena. It is 2 miles off the highway, and is a great place. The water is always warm and inviting.

It is a rainy day. It is overcast. It is a rainy day. It is overcast.

As I look out into the bay, I can see thirty or more dolphin fins coming up out of the water, and even a few of them jumping out and spinning in the air. I stand here in the rain and watch the dolphins playing in the bay, about twenty yards off shore. I walk down to the ocean edge and walk into the water. The water is warmer today than it is standing here in the rain.

TTFN

All Good Things . . .

It’s Saturday night. I am thinking about my exit strategy. I think backwards. My plane leaves on Monday morning at 8:20 AM. Therefore, I must be at the airport no later than 7:00 AM. I’ll need to drop off the rental car, and catch their shuttle to the terminal. I have two large suitcases with basically nothing to bring back. I do have the 6 tee shirts I bought at the ABC store that say something about Hawaii on them. They were probably made in China, and printed in Thailand before being shipped to Hawaii to sell to the tourists. 6 tee shirts for $20.00. It’s a crazy world. I also have a small roller suitcase that I left here from an earlier trip, along with a duffle type bag we bought in Florida. I put the small roller suitcase into one of the large suitcases, with the tee shirts inside the small roller bag. Then I stuff the large duffle into the other. In my back pack I put a hawaiian shirt, a pair of shorts, my computer, and the two portable chargers. I’m packed!

It’s at least an hour and a half drive to the airport, so I’ll need to leave by 5:30 AM on Monday morning, and that leaves me all day tomorrow. I still need to pack up my kitchen, take down the shade/rain tarp, dismantle and put away the solar system, and lock up the shed. I still only have two of the four doors I will need.

Sunday morning – I have half a papaya for breakfast. It is bright and sunny, so I make sure the water bottles are out in the sun heating up. I’ll want to take a shower later and will want hot water. I plug the charger for the portable tool batteries into the inverter and hope they will charge. I gather all the extra lumber from the drive way area and store it below the shed floor, and carry all the full length pallet 2 x 4 supports down to the porch floor. I put the wheels back on the chipper and reinstall the pull rope mechanism with a new pull rope. Then I cover the chipper with a small tarp and tie it in place. I move the mini fridge to the corner inside the shed, and stack all my plastic tubs containing my clothes, blankets, pillows, tools, food, etc. into the corner as well. I eat the other half of the papaya for lunch.

Then I set to work to build the last two doors I will need. It is late afternoon when I have finished glueing and clamping together the last door. The solar panels have done great to keep the drill batteries charged up. A sunny day was the needed imgredient. I take a shower, wash my hair and my feet using eight of the 2 liter water bottles set out to heat up. I walk out to the road and contemplate walking down to Scott’s to see about moving the car to his place. Instead, I get my cell phone. I’ll give him a call. I look up and see his car coming down the road towards me. He is driving very slowly. His dog – Charlotte Ohara – is sitting in the passenger seat.

As he pulls up next to me, I bend down and peer into the car as I pet Charlotte. “Good afternoon”.

He smiles. He has a very mellow expression on his face. I continue, “I was just about to call you to see about moving my car over to your place.”

“i’ve been down to Bill’s.” He says. “I was watching the Super Bowl and drinking all his beer.”

“So, did your team win?” I ask. I didn’t even know that today was Super Bowl Sunday, or much care. Nor did I even know which teams were playing. I’ve lost interest in professional sports since they have decided to become platforms for advancing social programs that will accomplish absolutely nothing.

Scott just frowns and mumbles something unintelligible. He brightens up and says, “Just follow me down.” And he slowly rolls towards his place. It is a good thing that he did not need to go out on any roads to get home from Bill’s place. It appears as though he has had more than his share of Bill’s beer.

I get in my car and follow him to his place . . . at about 2 miles per hour.

He parks his car, something like a Suzuki Sidekick with a soft top that looks like it has seen better days, in the middle of his driveway and gets out. He staggers toward an area off to the side and indicates that this is where he had thought of parking my vehicle. I maneuver around his car which is still running, and back my car into the spot, kind of under the trees. He is worried about vegetation growing up under and into my car and goes and gets a piece of corrugated roofing and places it under my car. I get out a big tarp and throw it over top. I get out some ropes I had brought as he goes in search of some bungy cords. By the time he returns, (without any bungies) I have the tarp secured over the car. I walk back towards the road and he staggers beside me. I leave him as he is trying to manage the steps up the hill.

The sun has gone down and the light is starting to fade as I carry my doors down to the shed. I still need to put on the hinges and hang them in the opening. I secure two of them in the side opening on one side of the shed with a couple of boards and screws. Not the most secure, but it will have to do. They fill the opening and from the outside, they look to be secure – Looks are everything. I begin to chisel the hinges into the side of one of the 18″ doors I want to hang. Then I begin to chisel into the post on the door opening. The light is gone. I am working with the light from my solar inflatable light. I get both doors installed and install the locking hasp I had purchased earlier at Ace in OceanView for this purpose. It works. I can now lock up the shed.

I go up to the kitchen area and heat up a can of spaghetti and meatballs for my last dinner. As this is heating, I begin putting my pots and pans and utinsels and dishes into the large tupperware tote. My solar light goes out. I am in the dark. I pull out a small flashlight and use it to find the second solar light. My spaghetti is ready, so I eat dinner. I pack up the stove and wash the last of my utinsels, then I carry everything down to the shed. The last item is the tarp hung up in the trees. I sit down on the bed after storing the last tupperware tote. I am so tired. I lay down.

I wake up. Slowly, I roll off the bed. I am so cold. I put on a sweatshirt. I still need to take down the tarp. I stagger up the hill with the small solar light that is still working, so I wasn’t asleep too long. I begin climbing trees in the semi-darkness trying to untie the ropes holding up the tarp. I wonder what I will do if I fall out of a tree and break something – like my arm or leg – and think about finding a knife to just cut these ropes! But I finally get the tarp down and folded up. I put it under the deck and go down to the shed. I sit down on the bed, take off my shoes, and look at the clock on my phone as I crawl under the blankets. 11:42.

Four forty seven in the morning on Monday, February 8. It is still dark outside when I get up. I change into the clean levis, clean shirt, clean socks that I have set aside for my trip back to the mainland. I look around the shed, and make sure that everything is as I want it to be to leave for a month or so. I go out onto the porch, lock the doors and go up to the upper deck area. I find the papaya that I had set aside for my breakfast and cut it in half. I eat half the papaya and leave the other half for the geckos, birds, and feral cats. I drink the rest of the milk, and empty the ice and water out of the ice chest, and stow it under the deck. I get in the rental car and head out to Kona. It is 5:20 AM.

Three or four times, I pull over and let other cars pass me on the highway. I must be getting old, because I do not like their headlights shining in my rear view mirror. As I come into south Kona, I pull in and fill the car with gas, and get a large drink. At 15 minutes to 7, I arrive at the airport. I’ve made good time. There was little to no traffic. I wonder how I will manage two large suitcases, my backpack and my drink on the shuttle bus from the car rental agency to the terminal. I find the cell phone parking lot at the far north end of the terminal and park there. Even though the signs say not to leave the car unattended, I take the two large suitcases out of the trunk and lock the car. Then I walk up to the airline check in desk. I check in for my flight, ask them to print my boarding passes, and check both bags. I go back to the cell phone lot where my car is the only one in sight and drive to the car rental agency. I check the car in and get on the shuttle bus for the short ride back to the terminal. I breeze through security and wait at my gate. At 7:55 AM I get on the plane and settle in for the flight home. We taxi out and take off. As we are gaining altitude, I look out the window toward the island. I can clearly see Hualalai volcano with Mauna Loa in the background and Mauna Kea to the left. Both Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea have snow at the summits. The perfect photo, and my cell phone is dead! The plane rises into the clouds as the island disappears from view and I settle back and go to sleep.

TTFN

Rental Cars

Looking back towards Kona from Highway 11 on the drive to South Point

It was a short walk from the highway where the bus dropped me off down to the rental car center located between the airport and the highway – or as they say in Hawaii, mauka the airport; makai the highway. Then to the Hertz rental car center. I had actually rented from Dollar, but due to the decrease in travelers, Avis and Dollar had moved their operations to Hertz – consolidating as had many of the other rental agencies.

I had rented from Hertz the first week I was here, and then from Dollar for one day so that I could return the car to Hilo instead of Kona. Hertz customer service told me that they could not change the drop off location on the first rental contract. That I HAD to return the car on the specified day at the specified time, to the specified location. So, I rented a car for one day from Dollar at Kona; to be returned in Hilo. So, after having been in Hawaii for a week, I drove to Kona where I dropped off the first car and picked up the second car. Then the next day, I drove to Hilo dropped off the second rental car and picked up the car I had bought earlier in the week.

It had been raining for most of the last three days, when I went to Hilo to return the second rental car and pick up my car. In fact, it was raining on the 26th when I left for Hilo. I was concerned about flooding, because the day before when I was coming back from Kona, I heard on the radio that Highway 11 was closed around Punaluu Black Sand Beach. I stopped in at the county highway department maintenance yard on Kamaoa Road and talked to a worker there. I told him that I was headed to Hilo and was wondering if the highway was open between here and there. “Oh yeah!” he said.

“That’s good enough for me.” I replied. “I figured that if anyone would know, you guys would.”

Just past the turn off to Whittington Beach Park, the road drops down onto a low flat area. There are signs here that say, “Road floods during rain”.

There were two highway workers standing along the side of the road in rain coats. One was holding up one of those reversible signs that say “stop” on one side and “slow” on the other that they use in construction zones to stop one lane of traffic at a time. The rain was coming down pretty steadily and about 200 yards further on, the water was rushing across the road about 6″ deep. There was a regular river of water coming out of the vegetation on the mountain side of the road about 500 yards further on and followed the side of the road before crossing and continuing towards the ocean. There was another highway worker further down the road stopping traffic from the other direction so only one lane could be used at a time. They waved me through and the road rose up as I head towards Pahala.

A few miles further on you pass the turn off to the town of Pahala and cross a series of three bridges covering river beds that usually are very dry. All three had water rushing down towards the ocean.

It rained on and off the entire trip to Hilo and back to Naalehu.

The next day, I went down to the ocean just past Whittington Beach Park to a place called Halekini where we have found a few shallow tide pools that we can wade in, and even sit and soak in. The shore line here is rocky cliffs that rise 6 to 8 feet up from the water, and the waves crash against these cliffs. Because of the storm, the wave action was producing better than average displays of water shooting into the sky.

From here, I could look inland and see Mauna Loa. There was snow on the very top under a thin layer of clouds

I drove my own car until three days before I was to leave and return to the mainland, when I took the bus from Waiohinu to Kona. I got off the bus on the highway at the turn off to the airport and walked down to the rental car center where I had rented two cars so far this trip. This would be my third trip to this same rental counter during this trip.

Everything went smoothly until the clerk asked to see my negative covid test.

“I’m not sure I brought it with me.” I said as I started to sort through the paperwork I had brought with me.
I’ve been here on the island for about three weeks now, “I mentioned “and my covid test was back in the middle of January. It was now Feb 4th.

“I still need to see it,” she replied mechanically.

I’m thinking that this makes no sense. When someone arrives in Hawaii without a negative covid test result within 72 hours of traveling, they must quarantine for 10 days. When you are under this quarantine order, you cannot rent a car. To prove that you are not under quarantine, you must show your negative covid test results. I had been here for the past 25 days or so! Could someone come to Hawaii, quarantine for 10 days, and then rent a car? I didn’t want to ask and confuse her any more than she already was.

“This will be the third car I have rented on this trip from this very counter,” I offered as I spotted the rental agreements for the other two times.

“Well, maybe we can look it up from those,” she said. And then I found my negative test results and the QR code from the Hawaii Travels website.

I showed these two papers to her, and she was happy. “Oh, OK!” she said. “The car is the Chevy Malibu right there in the first row.” She pointed out the window as she continued, “the keys are in the car.”

When it comes to this pandemic, things aren’t supposed to make any sense. Intelligence is not allowed! Just get on the train in the cattle car with everyone else and the government will take you to a “secure location”. After all, we’re all in this together, and its for your safety as well as the safety of those around you!

My neighbor Scott texted me while I was in Kona and told me that he needed the main ingredient in the concoction that is sprayed on the trees to fight the fire ants. My other neighbor Bill who gave me a ride this morning to the bus stop in Waiohinu must have told him that I would be in Kona. Scott said that the most cost effective place to get this stuff was at the Farm and Garden store in Kona or Hilo.

The chemical is named “Tango”, and it is mixed with peanut butter, cooking oil, and something else. Theoretically, the ants are attracted by the peanut butter and carry the tango to the nest. The cooking oil helps to make the mix easier to spray. The tango makes the queen sterile so she cannot produce any more worker ants. The worker ants have a very short lifespan, and as they die off, there are no more to replace them to forage for food for the nest and the queen, so the colony starves and dies.

So, after going to Home Depot and picking up some 12 foot 2 x 6’s for the porch which I loaded sticking out the back of the Malibu trunk, I picked up the tango. This gave me the opportunity to talk to Scott about leaving my car in the back of his property where it would be a bit safer and away from the road.

TTFN

Another Day . . . Another Adventure

Riding on a bus on my way to Kona. It is actually a large, rather comfortable bus – more of what I would call a motor coach.

I got on in Waiohinu – at the chinese store that is no longer open. I wonder why. Someday I will have to ask. I asked my neighbor Bill to give me a ride from my place to the store this morning at 8:00 AM to catch the bus at 8:25. Bill is in his late 70’s and lives about a dozen lots down from mine. He fancies himself as a kind of neighborhood organizer. He organized a group of neighbors to collectively fight an invasion of fire ants into our subdivision. They would get together every six weeks or so and spray some kind of concoction with peanut butter and a chemical called “tango” onto the trees to kill the ants. Apparently there is some kind of political disagreements going on. Some neighbors are opposed to spraying anything, and some want to go the full route with a more powerful insecticide. But a couple of months ago, something must have happened because he abruptly quit participating. Small town politics – even in paradise!

Yesterday, I got all the floor boards cut and placed for the shed floor. I have not glued and nailed the last 6 or 8 boards because I was working in semi-darkness – working by flashlight as it were – and I want to check them today before I nail them in place. Rather than install these boards parallel to one side or another, I decided to install them on a diagonal. This complicates the installation. Also, I have to select those in the same row to be the same size, and have even had to plane some of them to fit. It has been a tedious process, but it is almost completed.

Yesterday morning started out bright and sunny. I had breakfast, did the dishes, washed my feet, and then washed all my dirty clothes and hung them out on ropes strung between the trees so they can dry. Then I started to build doors for the shed. No sooner did I have all the tools and materials laid out on the deck, but it started to rain. I had not noticed that clouds had rolled in and covered the entire sky. It was just a light drizzle at first, but then it began to really rain.

I quit with the doors, gathered up my tools and materials, and moved inside the shed to work on the floor. It was well after dark before I finished and then I still had to put the bed back together. In order to work on the floor, I take the bed apart and stand it up against the walls in the corner where I will not be working or where the floor is already done. Then I have to put it all back together in order to go to sleep at night. So, when I get back from Kona later today, I will take the bed apart, move it out of the way and glue and nail the last floor boards in place.

I am scheduled to leave the island in three days – going back to the mainland. I have a flight at 8:20 in the morning. The best way I could come up with to ensure that I will be at the airport by 7:00 to catch this flight is if I had a rental car. So, I am going into Kona to pick up a rental car for the next three days. Then I can leave my place around 5:00 in the morning, drive to the airport, drop off the car, and catch the flight. Oh, the plans of mice and men . . . let’s just hope that these plans do not go astray!

The bus trip to Kona was actually quite pleasant. A more relaxing way to see the coast while someone else worried about the narrow winding road. As we came into Kona, the bus turned down Kamehameha III Road towards Keauhou Bay where the Sheraton Hotel is built out on the point. Many years ago on a trip to Hawaii I went on a night scuba dive with a man and wife from Switzerland who spoke mainly french. They had moved to Captain Cook to open a scuba diving outfitting company, and they barely spoke any english. We went out in a large rubber boat like a zodiac from Keauhou Harbor on a rainy stormy night. The ocean was quite choppy – making for a rather rough ride out to the point in front of the Sheraton. Once we got out of the boat and descended about 15 to 20 feet, the rough chop was replaced by a tidal surge moving in and out from shore. The bottom was covered in huge boulders the size of a VW bug, and the surge pushed us back and forth among these huge rocks. The purpose for the dive was to see Manta Rays. Huge, gigantic Manta Rays. 8 to 10 feet across from wing tip to wing tip, and even larger. The Sheraton had installed huge flood lights to light up their gardens along the shore line for their guests. The light shining on the water attracted the plankton . . . millions and millions of small ocean creatures . . . and the plankton attracted the Manta Rays. Manta Rays feed on plankton. They scoop up vast amounts of ocean water with their large mouths – mouths large enough to swallow a man whole – filtered out the plankton and spit out the seawater. The husband had tied four diving flashlights together to form a single beam of light and shined this beam straight up from the ocean floor. This beam would attract the plankton and the Manta Rays would come towards the shaft of light with their mouth wide open. When they got to the beam, they would turn and swim straight up at the last moment coming within a few feet of us. It was amazing as well as a bit unnerving to have these monsters coming out of the darkness, swimming straight at you with their mouth wide open, only to turn up at the last second. They were close enough to touch and I tried to do that, but was chastized by the woman. Apparently, human hands harm the soft underbellies of these creatures – you can look . . . but don’t touch!

The bus drove into the tight parking lot at the harbor and it was all familiar from when I had been there before. A few cars had to be moved so that the bus could make the turn and head back out, and we went up to Alii Drive. We drove through the heart of tourist Kona along the shore line past the billion dollar resorts and million dollar houses. There were surfers out trying to catch the waves and many of the other passengers were trying to catch glimpses of the waves as they came crashing to shore. Apparently the surf was a bit higher than usual today.

After passing through the coast area, the bus proceeded to a shopping center at the north end of town by the old airport. When the driver stopped at the shopping center, the other 7 or 8 passengers all got out, so I moved up to the row of seats behind the driver. He was a large Hawaiian who looked to weigh at least 350 lbs. I said to him, “I know that the bus stops at the airport have all been cancelled, but I need to get to the airport.” He just looked at me as I continued. “I figured that if I got out at the courthouse stop, I could call an uber from there. Would that be the best way?”

He suggested, “I could just drop you off on the highway at the entrance to the airport and you could walk down from there.”

“Wow!” I answered. “I didn’t think you went that way. I thought you turned up and went out the other highway.”

“Naw!” he said. “I go right past there. It would be no problem to stop and let you out.” He continued, “I would take you all the way down to the airport, but they’ve got tracking devices on these busses.”

“Well, that is better than I had hoped!” I said.

“Where are you flying out to?” he asked.

I told him that I wasn’t flying out until Monday morning, and my mission today was to pick up a rental car. That way, when I do fly out on Monday, I will be sure to be able to catch the 8:20 plane. “Yeah,” he added, “you don’t want to rely on the bus schedule. Always running late. It’s better now. Since they got these big new busses. The old ones were always breaking down.” He continued, “I’ve been driving the bus for 10 -12 years now. So, where you going on Monday?”

“Back to the mainland,” I replied. “Back to Arizona.” I explained, “I’ve got a place down by South Point and I try to come over as often as I can.”

“Yeah, you got on in Waiohinu.” he observed. “Your place in Discovery Harbor?”

“No,” I answered. “In Mark Twain Estates, next to Discovery Harbor.”

He nodded as he maneuvered the big bus down the highway. ‘Then he added, “I went to the university in Arizona.”

“Oh, really?” I asked. “Which one?” Fully expecting he would say ASU, and hoping he would say U of A.

“The one in Flagstaff,” He offered. “NAU”

“I got both of my degrees from NAU,” I answered, excitedly.

“So, we’re both Lumberjacks” he laughed.

“Yeah” I said. “How about that?”

“I played football for them” he explained. “Transferred from Junior College to NAU in Flagstaff.”

We were approaching the intersection for the airport road and he said, “I’ll just pull up over there, just past the light, and you can walk down from here.”

As I got out, I said, “It was great to meet a fellow Lumberjack here. Thanks!”

“No problem,” he replied, “and be careful, and be safe.”

TTFN

Accomplishments

Now that I have been here in Hawaii for a few weeks, I guess it is time to stop and see just what I have accomplished.

Perhaps the most important is that I have my solar panel system set up. Previously, I had purchased a 100 watt solar system, but I have yet to set it up. I got the boxes out from under the shed and proceeded to put it together. The instructions said to connect the battery (batteries not included) to the charge controller before connecting the solar panels. It did not explain why, and I did not want to risk it, so I put it all back into the boxes and put them under the deck. I have not purchased any batteries yet. Tomorrow I will be in Hilo, and I will pick up a battery then. So, after returning from Hilo, where I purchased a deep cycle marine battery for $87.00 plus a $12 core charge, I got everything out again. I remembered that the instructions also said something about covering the solar panels so they would not be producing electricity until everything was hooked up, so I covered each panel with a piece of cardboard.

I hooked up the battery to the charge controller with the cables provided. A very simple connection – red for positive, and black for negative, and two set screws on the controller labled positive and negative. This powered up the controller which registered 12.4 volts in the battery. So far, so good.

I connected the two panels to the provided cables with the snap together connectors – no chance for error here – and then connected the cables to the controller. Again, two set screws labled positive and negative. Then I uncovered the solar panels and immediately the controller registered that there was power flowing from the panels to the battery. There are also two set screws for DC output – I connected a pair of low voltage lights to these two set screws. There is an on/off switch for DC output on the controller. I turned the switch to the on position and the lights came on – Success – I now have 100 watts of solar power. Progress!

I have been using two inflatable solar lights for light at night. Hopefully, I will be able to do something better with these solar panels. Not that these lights have not worked great, it is just that each day I had to remember to put them out somewhere in the sun to recharge.

Two inflatable solar lights with yellow tops and square solar panels.

A few times I would forget and had no light at night.

Additionally, I purchased a mini fridge. When I am in Hawaii, I need to buy a bag of ice every other day to keep things like milk and eggs and butter cold. I am hopeful the solar system would be able to operate the fridge with an inverter. I have a 300 watt inverter to convert the power from DC to AC. The inverter hooks up to the battery – red lead to the positive terminal, black lead to the negative. The problem I have had so far is that the solar panels are not in full direct sunlight, and many of the days I have been here, it has been overcast and raining. Additionally, 100 watts just isn’t quite enough. I was able to use the fridge maybe three days. I think I need additional solar panels. As I keep reminding myself, one thing at a time.

Another significant accomplishment is that I have bought a car – a 2008 Ford Escape. I bought it from a used car dealership in Hilo. The car has lots of miles on it, did not cost an arm and a leg, and is transportation. I have felt that each time I come and rent a car, that is money that could be spent on buying instead of renting, which to me is like throwing money away. However . . . owning a car brings other issues. The first issue is what to do with it when I am not here. Once the house is done, I will be able to lock it up under the house, but until then, . . . So, why not wait? Well, I will need a car when I build the house, so do I rent a car every time I come over? I figure that I have spent close to $2K on rental cars so far.

Also, cars need maintenance. This one needs tires. I am sitting outside a local tire dealer waiting for them to install two new tires. I could have rented a car for a week for the cost of the tires, but . . . Then there is always the liability of a rental car being damaged. Even if I buy the extra insurance which just increases the cost, any damage creates a major hassle. Finally, I bought it on 1-21-21. That seems like a good omen. Time will tell.

As part of the car ownership problem solving, I

The car is parked across the road from the property.

have been working on lengthening the driveway. Currently it is only about 20 feet into the jungle which makes it about 10 feet into the property as the property line is 10 feet past the tree line at the edge of the road. I have much clearing along the road still to do. I think that if I could park the car far enough into the property, it will be safe to leave it here. I have cut out the vegetation – the easy part of this job – and have been working on removing a hump of boulders about 2 feet tall all interlocked together blocking the driveway. In order to remove the hump, I have been using a small sledge hammer and a 2 foot prybar. This is a lot of work. I have been loosening and digging out rocks that are 2 to 3 feet in diameter. A backhoe could accomplish in an hour, what I have spent over 4 hours doing. But I do not have a backhoe. But I have successfully removed the hump. Now I need some smaller stones and / or cinders.

Some of the boulders I have been removing with a hammer and a prybar

The last time I was here, my next door neighbor had commented on some of my trees along the property line that were growing towards his house. He suggested that we could work together to cut out the ones he was concerned about. Most all the trees are hanging down and overgrown, and I would like to trim them all – especially the ones hanging over his property. I also need to thin them all out just to attempt to gain some sort of control over this jungle. Also, it might improve my view of the ocean.

So, without any other directions, I have started cutting in the area just above the shed. Cutting down anything that was extending over the fence line, or that might in the next year or so. I have been cutting it not just at the fence line, but all the way back to the trunk. Over the course of two days, I have thinned out a great deal of these trees, and created quite a pile of limbs on the ground. It’s time for the chipper. Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things?

Sunday afternoon I took the chipper apart to clear whatever was clogging the blade. Actually, it is quite simple. It just requires figuring out what to do, and then doing it. Kind of like anything else in life. I took apart a few bolts and the chipper came apart to expose the blades and the branch clogged in the blade. I dislodged this and put the chipper back together. Monday morning around 8 AM I started up the chipper, and ran branches through it for about 30 minutes – and it clogged again! Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things? So I took it apart again. This time was easier, as I knew what to do, and had broken the bolts free the last time. I cleaned out the clog and checked to make sure the blade would spin. Then I put it back together. I pulled on the started rope to start the 8 hp motor and the rope broke!

Have I mentioned that I really do not like mechanical things?

I removed the rope pulley and retrieved both pieces of the rope. Now I know the length of rope to buy when I am in Hilo. I have also removed both rubber tires from the rear axle, as they have both gone flat. I should probably fix these as well. Have I mentioned that I really don’t like mechanical things?

Back to what I have accomplished so far on this trip.

Previously, I had put roofing over three of the triangles that make up the shed roof. I ran out of materials to finish the last side. Yesterday, I put the last part of the roofing on this triangle – so the roof is now finished.

I have been installing 1/2″ and 3/8″ thick boards on the floor of the shed as the flooring. These boards I have removed from old pallets. Some of them appear to be oak. I have been installing them on a 45 degree angle for a little bit of a design. I am a little over 3/4 finished and I need more boards. I have a few more pallets that I can disassemble.

I have also been building concrete pillars for a porch on all the sides of the shed.

It will wrap all the way around the shed and have varying widths – 3 foot, 4 foot, 5 foot, and 6 foot. I am working on the 4 foot and 5 foot sides. I plan on using the 2 x 4 supports that I have removed from the pallets as the floor boards.

I may have to replace these with 2 x 6 material. This will be more expensive, as the 2 x 4’s are free.

The solar panels don’t seem to be able to keep up. I have quit trying to use the mini fridge because I keep getting an error message on the controller that the output is too large. I have added a second battery, but this does not seem to have helped. I think that I need to change the location so that they are more in the direct sunlight, or add more panels. The last few days have been stormy and overcast, so that might be part of the problem. Back to buying ice.

Crime Spree

The other morning, I was having breakfast, and went to the car to get something. As I came through the trees and around the corner I saw a Hawaii County Policeman standing in the middle of Holowai Street in front of the car. I immediately wondered what I had done. Had my covid test at the airport come back positive and they have been trying to reach me? Unable to reach me, the government has sent the cops.

As far as I knew, I had done everything the state required of me – I had gotten a negative covid test result within 72 hours of traveling, I had submitted my information to their website so they could control the population, I had submitted to a covid test upon arriving in Hawaii, I had filled out the Department of Agriculture form while on the plane – that must be it. They have come for the sandwich baggie of carrots I had declared on the form!

I should be good to go – just like the teenager masquerading as a medical worker at the airport had said. As I walked past the car, I saw that the officer was listening to one of my neighbors – Brian, who I had just met yesterday. As I got closer, I gathered that Brian was telling him a story about chasing after a couple of guys two or three days ago who had broken into a house in the neighborhood. Brian indicated that one of these guys was the one that the police had arrested in the little blue car sitting along the side of the road towards the end of Holowai Street at the other end of my property.

What little blue car?

I looked down the street, and there it was. A mini Toyota sitting almost in the trees on the side of the road.

Apparently, the little blue Toyota had been stolen a few days ago. A regular crime spree; happening right here in front of me and I had missed out on all of it. There were two Hawaii County cop cars parked in the road and four police officers working over the car – gathering evidence, photographing, taking fingerprints, etc.

I later learned that Lorenzo had been talking with the guy in the Toyota, trying to detain him until the cops arrived. Scott and Brian had been working together nearby when they saw this guy -someone who grew up in the neighborhood and everyone knew – in fact, he was best friends to Lorenzo’s son who lives on Oahu – drive past them and they called the cops.

More concern about just leaving the car parked at the lot when I return to the mainland. Just one more thing to work out!

Later, I was at the park in Waiohinu filling up my water bottles at the free water station there, when an unmarked police car drove into the parking lot and parked about 20 feet away. I knew it was a police car from the little blue light on the top, and the two cops who got out. One of them walked over towards me, while the other walked to the front of the car as if to block me from jumping in and speeding away.

I recognized the officer coming towards me as one who was working on the blue Toyota and said, “So, you guys are all done up there with the Toyota?”

The officer stopped and the look on his face was one of “HUH?” “WHAT?”

He gathered his composure and asked, “Is this your car?”

I continue to fill the two dozen gallon water bottles I have with me as I talk with him.

“Yes” I answered. “well, it’s actually a rental”

“Is that your place up there?” he asks as he indicates in the direction of Mark Twain Estates.

“Yeah” I reply. “I own those two lots on the opposite side of the road from where you were looking at that little blue car.” As I am saying this, four more cars pull in to the parking lot – all with little blue lights on top, and all with two police officers in them.

The cops all get out of the cars, and I recognize the tallest one as the cop who was talking with Brian. I nod towards him and he nods back and kind of ducks his head and slinks back to his car with as much dignity as he can salvage after recognizing me.

I continue to explain to the other officer, “Yeah, my wife and I bought that place a couple of years ago and we come over as often as we can. Trying to tame the jungle so we can eventually build a house there.”

“I see,” he replies. “Did you talk with the guy in the car?”

“I didn’t even see the car until Brian was telling that officer his story about it” I answer as I nod towards the tall policeman who is trying to be as inconpicuous as possible.

“Well, have a good day”. He and his partner walk away and all the other cops join in a little huddle next to their cars before they each get into their cars and drive away.

What was THAT all about? I wonder as I watch them all drive away.

The Envelope, Please!

The southern most town / city in the US is Na’alehu, Hawaii. Na’alehu looks like a small rural town from the 1950’s, but it has been here much longer. There was a sugar plantation here in the 1880’s, and it is rumored that Mark Twain rode through here in the 1860’s, so it was probably here much earlier.

The most prominent landmark in town is the abandoned theatre that was built by the Hutchinson Sugar Plantation to provide entertainment for the workers.

Na’alehu Post Office with abandoned theatre behind (with turtle painted on the roof)

Perhaps the most famous is the Punaluu Bakery.

There are also a couple of small grocery stores, an Ace hardware, a post office, two or three places to eat, a very large elementary school and at least 5 or 6 churches. There is a feed store at the south end of town just before the police station. In spite of there being two grocery stores, most people do their shopping in either Kona or Hilo.

There are maybe a hundred homes in Na’alehu, and there are perhaps fifty in Waiohinu about a half mile up the highway from Na’alehu. In Waiohinu, there is a monkey pod tree that is said to have been planted by Mark Twain when he was on the island and wrote “Roughing it in the Sandwich Islands” There is no mention of the tree or either town in his book, but there is a sign next to the highway by a monkey pod tree.

The towns are surrounded by ranch lands where cattle graze. Neither town is an organized municipality, but they are a both a CPD or a census-designated place.

To the west, southwest of Naalehu, is a subdivision called Discovery Harbor. No, it is not on the ocean, and you have to go through Na’alehu to get to the ocean from Discovery Harbor, but that is what the developers chose for the name. There are around eight hundred lots about a third of an acre each in this subdivision. They have paved streets that are maintained by the county, electricity, telephone and cable TV on power poles along side the road ways. Each lot is served with potable water from the county. The subdivision is laid out around a Robert Trent Jones designed golf course with 18 holes and a community center. Not all lots are backed up to the golf course, but most all of them have some kind of an ocean view. They have an active community homeowners association complete with CC&R’s. The golf course is privately owned, not open to the public, and not very well maintained, if at all.

On the east/northeast side of Discovery Harbor, towards Na’alehu and Waiohinu, is another subdivision called Mark Twain Estates. It is interesting to note, that the same developers developed these 300 lots as developed Discovery Harbor, but they chose not to pave the streets or install water mains. Also, this was their “Phase I” with Discovery Harbor being “Phase II”. The lots in Mark Twain Estates are each just under a half an acre, the roads are rough gravel/rock,dirt roads but passable, and they do have power poles at the roads with electricity and phone. Most of the lots are overgrown with christmas berry trees over twenty feet tall.

Water is available from the county, but the meter would be on the street that divides the two subdivisions and the property owner would have to install a water line above ground from the meter to their individual lot.

At the far north/east end of the subdivision, I found two lots side by side that were for sale. And the price was almost half the price of any other lot in the subdivision, and a third the price of any lot in Discovery Harbor. After a bit of discussion and considerable work on the part of the agent, we closed on both lots in August of 2018.

These trees have been growing for thirty years, with branches that are twisted together and manyn that have fallen down. There is no way to walk through. The immediate task ahead is to clear the jungle and try to tame the vegetation. Stay tuned as we continue with this long term project.