Photos of lava viewing

Pictures say more than words ...

and some people here have posted wonderful pictures, but they%26#39;re scattered in various topics.

I thought maybe a topic for photos (and response) might be nice.

I%26#39;ll start with my Webshots album:

good-times.webshots.com/album/566928889VwDAFW

This is two trips, the first to the Kalapana viewing site in mid-July, where I got rained out shortly after the ';red'; began to show up, but loved the waterspouts and what fireworks I saw.

The second is the Halemaumau vent on Sept 7th.

I didn%26#39;t have a tripod. I%26#39;m too lazy to carry one. So this is handheld, and the darker it got the lower the quality.

The last image just sort of appeared. ;-)

Open to interpretation.

Photos of lava viewing

after looking at my own link ... webshots sure has added a lot of ads and crap that get in the way of seeing the images. So if you like them at all, suggest clicking the ';full size'; link and then you can see the real photo in detail.

The slideshow option is OK, smaller photos than full screen, but at least the background is black. (I%26#39;m annoyed because I pay for a premium membership which is supposed to be ad free and it%26#39;s really not ... god knows what kind of flashing ads you guys see if you%26#39;re not members!)

Photos of lava viewing

Great pics! I didn%26#39;t see any ads when I was looking at them in the slideshow.

Cool photos! It is always interesting to see what others witnessed to compare experiences. The water spouts were really amazing. I%26#39;ve never seen one before. I wonder how frequently they occur over the ocean when it rains?

Did I noitce a picture of the vent glowing at Volcano National Park? Thanks for posting the pics.

A Sept. 5 USGS flyover was able to see actual lava in the Halema%26#39;uma%26#39;u vent for the first time only 100 yards down. Not surprising the glow is pronounced now.

hvo.wr.usgs.gov/pressreleases/pr09_05_08.html

Wow, great pix, thanks for sharing. The lava shots and super, and the water spout is real cool. Even if they are not like a tornado, I still would have felt uncomfortable in that little boat.

KK, Thank you so much for posting the pictures!!! I can only hope we are able to see this live in October. I will be crossing my fingers until we get there. I have sent the link to others in our traveling party... now they may actually believe us when we say, %26#39;you may see lava...%26#39;

Thanks again!

Thank you KK, for sharing your photos. They%26#39;re fabulous! The pictures of the the water spout and ';Pele%26#39;s Arm'; are particularly impressive.

We, too, saw a lone boat at the lava entry. It still amazes me that people can be so brainless.

Another big THANKS, KK! Amazing photos! We are hoping to be able to see this in November when we are there. Does it still give you chills (good ones) when you see it? And that certainly does look like it could be Pele%26#39;s arm!

Amazing pics. Great idea for a post! Thanks for thinking of it.

Mahalo for sharing your awesome pics!

River Kayaking--how deep is the water?

We have been visiting Kauai every summer for about 12 years. Usually we come in August as a family trip, but this year it is just DH and myself. We arrive November 1.

On this forum I have read about all the great experiences kayaking either on the Wailua River or the Hanalei River. I find this very intriguing and I would love to try, especially the Wailua River with a hike to ';Not-so'; Secret Falls. But, my challenges are that I am deathly afraid of water, followed by I am allergic to salt water.

With all of our trips to Kauai, I have been taken Na Pali Catamaran or Liko Kauai trips 6-7 times--I just don%26#39;t do the snorkel part. So, I am getting braver around water. I can also now walk along the surf and I am always prepared with a spray bottle of fresh water to wash off the salt.

If we take a kayak tour and I wear a life vest (technically I can swim), I think I should be OK.

How deep is the Wailua River? Given all the experienced kayakers on this forum, what are your opinions on an apprehensive and novice kayaker on a tour? Would I be a drag to the whole group?

Thanks!

jo

River Kayaking--how deep is the water?

Jo,

Bless you for wanting to brave your fear of the water, but kayaks are not super stable like boats.

You will be issued life jackets, and as far as the depth of the water....how tall are you ? let%26#39;s say

five feet four inches....any thing over that is deep.

Now, novice kayakers, which is about 90% of those renting kayaks, are on the wailua in droves.

I would strongly, suggest, that if you intend to go, is to paddle the rivers with a guided tour, and learn something about kayaking in the pre paddle briefing. Could help with your confidence level.

I you were my loved one, I would really sit down with you and quietly and logically figure out if this is a good idea....are you going to be anxious, and stressed during the paddle to the eddy out. It will take some time to do that. And of course the return.

What would your reaction be if you did happen to huli? Would you be able to get back to the kayak, and right it, and climb back in ?

What would your state of mind be dueinf a hour long paddle up river, and then back down ?

What is your physical condition, would you be able to down river paddle into the trade winds, and keep the kayak going straight, and be having fun....or would fatigue set in, muscles get sore, and your mindset then , perhaps be letting some of your misgivings start take over.

It it worth it, to you, and will you have FUN ! Not an ordeal.

Now, that is how I would counsel a loved one, who had shared with me, their concerns.

Also, you might ask if you could go with one of the guides, who knows what the heck he, or she is doing ?

But, be honest with the company and explain what you are telling us before you book it.

Revaling the things that you have, that could result in problems, might not recommend a kayak trip.

You have an alergy to salt water, and concern over the depth of fresh water.....we have lots of other wonderful things to experience on this island that you may want to consider.

Your decision, your choice, just really think it through, and stay within your personal limits...we all want you happy, at ease, and safe.

Incidentally we have kayaked the Wailua, the Hanalei, and Huleia Rivers. The Kalihiwai Stream, the Jungle stream on princeville land, and several other smaller areas, as well as Hanalei Bay , out to Hideways, after paddling the Hanalei river, and Erica has paddled the Napali Coast, 17 miles in one day of ocean kayaking ( twice ). We have also ocean kayaked along the Kona Coast on the BI.

Just mentioning our experience , so that you understand that we are quite familar with kayaking here, and only want what is best for you, and your group.

Denny

River Kayaking--how deep is the water?

Denny,

Thank you for all the information and your concerns.

Over the years, I have become braver around water. I have even snorkeled in water over my head. That is how I discovered my allergy to salt water! Salt water if it dries on my skin causes a burn, swelling and blisters--even if I cry. Good news is I have lotions and potions from the doctor that I always have with me when we visit Kauai.

Whenever I have ventured out on water adventures such as the Na Pali cruises, I have been very upfront about my fear of water. I find if I just talk about it, the boat operators will let me know if I should be concerned about too much salt spray or in any kind of danger. You can always pick me out on the boat trip--I am the only one wearing a life jacket for the entire trip. But it gives me a sense of confidence and certain level of security and I can relax and enjoy the trip.

Also, I get a certain confidence from having my husband with me. Over the years, bit-by-bit he has encouraged my to be braver when near water. (I almost drowned in Lake Michigan when I was 2). I know if he is in the kayak with me and anything does happen, he will be right there for me.

Before making any commitments, I would want to talk to the guide, explain my concerns and if I don%26#39;t get warm fuzzies, I will just pass. Last year in Kauai, we were a party of 8 and everyone kayaked up the Wailua, except me, I stayed at the condo. Everyone came back all excited about the great time they had, I was envious.

I am 5%26#39;9';, how deep is the Wailua? If you tell me it is 25-30 deep in areas, I will definitely pass, but if it is 5-6 feet deep, I could be OK. I am in fairly good physical shape, thru the nagging of my daughter, I am at the gym 5-6 times a week and she has me on a strict workout regime. So, for 50+, I am in good shape, so fatigue is not a concern to me.

But, I will do all my homework before committing to anything and if I feel uncomfortable in any way, I will pass.

The Wailua River is primarily fresh water, correct?

Thank you,

jo

Denny,

Thanks for the chuckle :) Anything over one%26#39;s head is ';deep';.

%26lt;%26lt; am 5%26#39;9';, how deep is the Wailua? If you tell me it is 25-30 deep in areas, I will definitely pass, but if it is 5-6 feet deep, I could be OK.%26gt;%26gt;

Boy I wish I could tell you how deep - I think you will be fine. We kayaked the Hule%26#39;ia River and never kayaked before, although we have canoed. I am a swimmer, grew up boating and water skiing on the Great Lakes. Now when we went out on the Na Pali, I would not go in the water! So I understand how you feel. I honestly think you will be fine. I am one who if I can see the bottom I am fine, but if I can%26#39;t see it then I don%26#39;t like it. It is like flying, I detest flying, I hate taking off but love landing. Personally I think you will enjoy it - go for it!

Jo,

Very pleased to hear that you are working out on an almost daily basis.

That is a big plus, being in good shape.

Won%26#39;t belabor the kayaking, you will make your own excellent informed decision on that one.

However, if you miss your mainland work outs, and would like to continue with your exercise program while on island...In Lihue, across from Kukuigrove Macy%26#39;s is the Kauai Athletic Club.

All kinds of classes, pool, jacuzzi, steam sauna, cardio room, and of course free weights and machines.

Also, we have a great deli, with excellent sandwiches, salads, soups, etc, and large foyer, large TV, and even a sport wear botique.

I know when we are on vacations, if there is a gym near by, we continue with our programs.

Now, I promise not to mention this to your daughter, just in case you are planning on enjoying a short break. A little sabatical does every one good once in a while.

But, should you miss it.....well, the fun is awaiting.

Enjoy your Kauai visit, number 7 or 8...you are going to have a marvelous time.

Denny

Car Rentals?

What%26#39;s the best deal on car rentals for Maui in December?

Car Rentals?

Check out Costco... they ususally have the best prices

Car Rentals?

Priceline is the way to go....very inexpensive for a convertable....

i have never found a cheaper car for the dates that i have traveled then from costco/alamo

just checked priceline for my size car on my travel dates $266 total and thats from alamo

my car from costco/alamo 159.49

had to check rag tops for my nov dates

priceline-alamo 436.00

costco/alamo 377.91

costco/budget 428.61

I actually went through delta.com and used my skymiles acct. Got a convertible for 7 days for $263 PLUS several thousand skymiles points. I was very surprised but it beat all other prices by a mile! Of course, I don%26#39;t have a costco acct... so I have no idea what their prices are.

does anyone have any idea when we will be able to book costco/alamo for feb 2009? the cut-off is still dec 31st, 2008 and have been waiting for months! thinking that it should be soon? thanks.

if i had to guess i would say november

if you go into the costco/alamo site you can do a drop down date til oct 09 but the coupons will not work for any date past dec 08 yet

My friends go online and make a bid of $12 per day with Priceline. Their bid has been accepted every time. Take a photo copy of your personal car insurance that shows car rental coverage. Then they don%26#39;t try and intimidate you into buying extra nonessential and duplicate car insurance

air makeup

I'm afraid to ask....Gas prices?

Watching gas go up by almost a dollar overnight here, I%26#39;m curious as to what the gas prices are running in Maui? We will be there in about 2 wks...thanks!

I'm afraid to ask....Gas prices?

I am sure they are ok in Hawaii. They are somewhat buffered in their gas prices in that they have to bring in all their crude and refine it there so the closing of the refineries in the gulf area won%26#39;t affect them. Gas will still be more than in Florida but not going up by a dollar or so because of Ike.

It went up almost a dollar here in Michigan too but will go back I am sure.

I'm afraid to ask....Gas prices?

Aloha 2irv,

From what I heard from a friend in Lahaina the prices were about $4.59 the other day. Our price here in SB was $3.75 this morn., not that much less than Maui. What are you paying in Florida?

$ 4.40 to $4.65 on the average went down 20 cents last week.....

As of this morning, $4.52 at the 76 station located at 243 Lahainaluna Rd %26amp; Honoapiilani Hwy in Lahaina.

Thanks everyone! We rented a convertible because, hey...it%26#39;s Hawaii! Just wondering if we%26#39;re going to have to trade it in for a more fuel efficient vehicle before we land.

Friday night prices in my city were $3.86. Sat morning they were $3.99 and today they were $4.16. We are about 5-10 cents more expensive than Jacksonville area just to the south of us. Some places have been out of gas since Sat a.m.

Try this link. It gives a pretty good idea.

http://gasprices.mapquest.com

plug in the city, state or zip. It%26#39;s pretty accurate. it listed our prices correctly. We went from $3.91 to $4.15 in two days.

Gas prices in California have not changed due to the hurricane. Different refineries. I think Hawaii has remained the same as well.

For some reason the gas price increases here in Hawaii always lag behind the mainland. We will get the increase, it just will take a little time. When and if they go back down, is also behind the mainland!! Like dan said, they are starting to go down, which has been happening on the mainland for a couple of months now. Then Ike..... The price decrease is also much less than the mainland.

Hawaii shouldn%26#39;t be affected my mainland prices. As the previous poster said, Hawaii has their own refineries. The price of oil actually fell below $100 bbl Friday, so if they%26#39;re just buying oil and refining it themselves, gas prices may actually go down.

$4.60 per gallon but Maui does not have anyone callibrating the gas pumps.

Prices are expected to go up because generally Maui prices are 20% to 30% higher than the mainland pricing.

Rent a small car because of big gas prices and small parking spaces (the smallest in the nation).

Drive carefully - everyone is lost

Holiday in May

I%26#39;m trying to organise our next family holiday and I was wondering about early May in Waikiki. What%26#39;s the weather like, crowds, is spring break over? We have been before in October which was fine but May seems to be the most convenient for everyone going this time round. Any comments and experiences would be most appreciated!

Holiday in May

Yes - May is excellent. Pre-summer, so no summer crowds. Post Easter and spring break. Great weather. Very nice.

Holiday in May

My mother went in late May and into June and she said the weather was perfect and the crowds were not too bad. She also said as a fellow Aussie, that the Sales were fantastic too! We went in April last time and it was great too :)

I hope you have a fantastic time.

We were in Oahu and Maui this past May (first and second week) and had perfect weather every day for 12 days. We never had to wait for a restaurant table and, but did book some activities ahead of time. I think May is a perfect time to visit...good luck!

Using prams on buses in Oahu is a disaster

We have been in Oahu for about a week and a half now and we have to use a pram/stroller since we have a 1+ yr old baby.

But the bus drivers have been rude and not helpful at all.All they say os FOLD the pram before you enter.They won%26#39;t even giv you enough time to put the pram in and out.

Not really helpful with kids :(

Using prams on buses in Oahu is a disaster

Sorry you found them to be rude when informing you of the policy that you need to carry your baby, and the pram need to be folded up on the bus.

After you were told the first time, did you fold the pram before you enter the bus? That would have at least eliminate being told ';rudely'; again and again as you inferred.

Zip Express vs. Zip N Dip

I am planning our upcoming trip to Kauai for my husband and I. We are contemplating the Princeville Ranch Zip Line activity for one of our afternoon in Kauai.

If someone has done the Zip Express, could they tell me how long the activity lasts? I am looking at a 2pm time and their website doesn%26#39;t give many details about the Express, only the Zip N Dip. The Zip N Dip is supposed to be 4 1/2 hours, but how much less time is the Express?

Also, can anyone who has done this activity tell me how much time I should plan for us to drive to Princeville Ranch? We will get into Kauai that morning, check into our hotel, the Grand Hyatt in Poipu, and then head to the Zip Line tour. Should I allow an hour from Poipu or less ... or more?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Zip Express vs. Zip N Dip

The Zip Express takes about 3 hours from the time you check in until you return to the office. The only real difference from the Zip N Dip is that you don%26#39;t stop for lunch and swim.

Zip Express vs. Zip N Dip

So, is it worth the extra $$$? Also, is it more likely to be foggy or rainy in the afternoon?

We%26#39;ve done the Zip N dip twice and we really enjoyed the swimming - it was very refreshing on a warm day. And the lunch was pretty good, too. For us, it was worth the extra cost. By the way, you can get a $12/person discount here:

www.hawaiiwebdesign.com/kauai_activities.htm

I did the zip express twice, both at 2pm. The first time was a larger group and we finished around 5:45. The second time we finished closer to 4:30. I personally prefer the zip express because I am not interested in the swimming part- I would rather spend a shorter time with zip express and spend the other half of my day at the beach.

It seems somewhat counterproductive to drive all the way to Poipu and then all the way back up to Princeville. Perhaps you could go with Backcountry (which is closer to the airport in Hanamaulu) or a different day? It would take about 30 mins to get to the Hyatt and over an hour to get to Princeville. It usually takes me closer to an hour and a half to get to Princeville from Poipu....

Thanks so much for the helpful responses. I think the 3 1/2 hour zip line is about the amount of time we are interested in spending on this activity. Regarding the timing of 1 1/2 hours from Poipu to Princeville ... gosh ... I didn%26#39;t realize it would take that long. I was considering the Princeville Ranch Zip Line because it appeared to be a better zip line tour than the Backcountry one. Additionally, my husband and I have previously visited Kauai and spent most of our time on the South Side of the island. This time, we are making every effort to explore the North Side. WE got a cheap rate at the Grand Hyatt (thus why we are staying on the South Side), but are agreeable to driving the extra hour to get up north and see an area that we haven%26#39;t seen previously. thanks, though, for the thought ... I will reconsider and look again at the Backcountry zip line and see if it is worth the drive. If the scenery is the same, I agree that the extra time in the car is counterproductive.

We did the Zip and Dip at 1:15pm in late August and loved the swim. We were staying in Kapaa, and spent time cruising up and down the island. For our zip day, we went up early, lunched poolside at the Princeville Resort for fun, and just enjoyed the area. On other days up north, we also loved snorkeling and driving up to Tunnels, the lighthouse along the way, lunch in Hanalei Bay...we thought the northern part of the island was stunning. We had spend a morning down in Poipu (didn%26#39;t head any further west though) snorkeling and found the north gorgeous in its own way, much greener than the Poipu area. Have fun!!

We enjoyed the zip express a great deal, but we were staying in Princeville, 5 min. away. Personally, if I were you, I%26#39;d do the zip closer to where you are staying. I imagine the zip scenery on the south side is just as nice. And then you%26#39;d have many extra hours to spend exploring the north shore without feeling constrained by time.

Thanks to the many wonderful posts. I think we are going to go with Kauai Backcountry Adventures for our ZipLine adventure. Mainly, because it is closer to our hotel and they offered a 100% refund if we had to cancel within 24 hours (Princeville is only 90%). Then, we will head to the North Shore to explore on a different day of our trip.

We are staying at Sealodge early October and are also having trouble deciding if the lunch and swim is worth the extra money, I%26#39;m leaning toward no. My question is do I have to pre-book this or can it be done when I get to Kauai. I e-mail them to ask and haven%26#39;t heard back.

THANKS

We felt like the lunch and swim was worth it, but it%26#39;s really a personal decision. The swim was refreshing on a warm day and the lunch was good - sandwiches and cookies.

I would book in advance if you want to go a certain day and time, especially if you have a large party that wants to go together. If you%26#39;re flexible on days and times you can probably wait until you get there.

You can book for a $12/person discount here:

www.hawaiiwebdesign.com/kauai_activities.htm