Check the weather on Mauna Kea

            If you want to go to the summit of Mauna Kea, you will need to know what the weather is going to be like. The summit is not a pleasant place if the weather is not nice as snow and ice often close the summit road. Fortunately there is a web site that astronomers use to determine the probability of them having a good night of observation. It is called the Mauna Kea Weather Center and can be found at http://mkwc.ifa.hawaii.edu/forecast/mko/index.cgi. On that site you can get current weather conditions, road conditions, and current pictures from a variety of webcams on the mountain as well as satellite and radar images. Of course, to actually travel up to the summit you will need a four-wheel drive vehicle. But having made that trip frequently over the last 20 years, I can say that it is well worth the effort.

Puʻu Loa Petroglyphs

            When you drive down Chain of Craters Road at Volcanoes National Park you will eventually come to a relatively flat area as you approach the ocean. On the left side of the road is a  parking area for the Puʻu Loa petroglyphs trail. From the parking area the trail is marked by cairns which lead you on a 15-20 minute hike, depending on your fascination with the petroglyphs. This is the largest petroglyphs field on the island and contains thousands of petroglyphs. Puʻu Loa, or Long Hill, was believed to hold great power for the Hawaiians. If a child’s umbilical cord was properly buried there, the child would be assured a long life; unless a rat ate the umbilical cord. So it was a two edged sword which controlled the destiny of a child. The umbilical cords were placed in simple holes carved in the rock. Superstition was rampant back then, just as it is now. Most people have superstitions which control some of their actions; just think of athletes and some of the gyrations they go through. Also, remember the umbilical cord offering that we made on Mauna Kea.