The View from the lanai

!We have arrived on the Kona coast. As you can see, our condo is right on the ocean. Adelaide is down making coral messages. We have been here a couple of hours and I have been glued to the lanai.

Akaka Falls

Hilo

We found some sun in Hilo to our surprise!  All the guide books tell about rain in Hilo. We walked around the park by the waterfront as well as Coconut Island which has a varied history from a quarantine area to a military training area with recreational use in between and definitely now. Behind the kids you can see the locals jumping off the platform. We visited the Pacific Tsunami Museum which was educational and sobering.  Hilo is so low lying that you can imagine the devastation a tsunami could cause.

The Glow from Halema'uma'u Crater

We headed back to the park tonight for the crater show. We could see the glow as soon as we approached the parking lot at the Jaggar Museum. The glow from the lava reflects up in the steam. We were happy we could see it despite the drizzle.

A ranger was still there so we were able to get some of our questions answered about sights we saw along the Chain of Craters Rd. The blue cast to the lava we saw at the end is from titanium. The asphalt on the roads is made from lava which is why Hawaii bears the dubious distinction of the state where car tires wear out the fastest. The flows we saw coming down the hillside were from the 1969 - 1974 eruption of the Mauna Ulu lava shield. There are no plans to rebuild the Chain of Craters Rd until Pu'u O'o crater is no longer active (which it has been since the early 80's). Okay--so now you are all ready for any Hawaiian volcano trivia thrown your way!

We are still on the hunt for the nene which is the Hawaiian goose and state bird. Despite the many nene crossing signs, we have yet to see any.

Tomorrow we leave Volcano and will end up in Kailua Kona on the west coast--where we hope to find sunshine!

Holei Sea Arch and pahoepoe

It's the end of the road as we know it

...and we feel fine!  Maybe because we caught some sun at the end of Chain of Craters Road! The kids were pretty impressed with the lava flow over the road. We walked over the lava and saw markers where the road used to be. The kids got pretty adept at finding Pele's hair.  On the way down to the end we saw deep pit craters and so many different lava fields and flows.  Isaac described some of it that we saw aptly as looking like crushed oreo.

Halema'uma'u Crater

This is one of the active areas within Kilauea. During the day we can see the steam from the lava lake deep within. We are hoping see a glow tonight--weather permitting. Have we mentioned that it's raining?? There are some lava flows in a remote area in the East Rift Zone from Pu'u O'o but even a big hike won't get us close. John learned about Pele's hair today which is spun glass fibers from the volcano.  He found some very easily. They often gather in the crevices. Off to adventure along Chain of Craters Road.

Steam Vent from yesterday

I also uploaded the wrong photo yesterday! The cairn you see in yesterday's photos is called an ahu, probably only of interest to the hiking Notte's. The above are the steam vents on the crater rim which gave us the much welcomed heat.

It is pouring out!!!

Kilauea Iki

http://www.nps.gov/havo/planyourvisit/brochures.htm

Either because of my bumbling fingers or because of the autocorrect (sometimes very annoying) function, the name of the crater was posted wrong. You can download the PDF of the trail map to see our loop.

Another rainy day here. Not to be deterred,  we are off to explore-- wet shoes and all.

Volcano Ntl Park

Today we explored the park. We had many of our questions answered about plate movement and lava formations. We walked along the steam vents whose heat was welcoming during this rainy, chilly day. We also went on another extraordinary hike. This one was across the Kilhuea Uli crater which during the 1959 eruption was a big lava lake. We hiked down through a rainforest (did we mention RAIN??!!) and when we reached the crater and looked around about the only thing we could say was a reverent "wow....."  The boys were a bit nervous with the steam vents surrounding us but we managed to come out unscathed. We ended the hike by walking through the 500 year old Thurston Lava Tube. By the end of it all, we decided to call it a day. Our waterproof jackets withstood the rain but we were soaked through every other place! Hoping for less rain and clearer skies tomorrow!

Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

http://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm

Aloha from the Big Island

Here are some of our first views of Hawaii. We have seen lava fields, coral graffiti, green sand, black sand, and sea turtles. And Sir Isaac is standing at the southern most point of the US!  People were diving off cliffs despite the warnings about strong currents and the next land mass being Antarctica!! Either the locals know something we don't or the tourists are lacking a bit of common sense.

We arrived at Over the Rainbow, our cottage for the next few days. It is so fresh and inviting. We feel like we are guests in a friend's house. After being on the go for so many days, it was really nice to kick back and have a home cooked meal. The house has everything we could possibly want or need. It is also a green house and there is a rain catchment in the back yard which supplies all the water. Very cool. It rained last night and this morning. It is supposed to stop and we will be off to explore Volcano National Park today and get our gazillion geology questions answered!

Pics from the boat ride to Santa Cruz Island

Kids catching the spray and dolphins at the bow. Thanks Jeff!

Trivia Time!

What Pulitzer prize winner hailed from Salinas?

Chaparral

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaparral

This is some of the terrain we passed by earlier today. Now we are driving through a valley with yellow mountains on either side (101N). The valley has big field after big field of various crops. We can assume they are owned by large corporations as we just saw a big Dole sign. White busses bring the workers out to field. We can see them picking and filling cartons. Earlier today we saw Driscoll strawberries being trucked up from Oxnard. Probably on their way to Market Basket!

During this drive we are also compiling a California playlist.  So far we have some Beach Boys, California Dreamin, Ventura Highway, Cloudy, and Lights. Anyone have any ideas? They must have to do with CA in general or a place we've been.  So no LA songs please. Mike-- we KNOW you'll have some contributions!  Looking forward...

The Historic El Camino Real

http://www.cahighways.org/elcamino.html

We're counting the bells...

Channel Islands

You know you're not in Kansas anymore....when you pass the local high school and it has a digital scrolling sign!  We have had a couple of days of experiencing things very Californian--like traffic tie ups on the freeway, Mexican restaurants on every corner, a 1782 Mission and by far our favorite--"FroYo!!"  Although this term is not in fashion anymore, frozen yogurt is still popular here. We went to a shop where you make your own decadence by combining flavors and toppings. The jury is still out on which reigns supreme: Down River ice cream or frozen yogurt. A tough choice for some of our crew!

In addition to all these uniquely CA experiences we have been having, today we set off for the ruggedly beautiful Santa Cruz which is the largest of the Channel Islands. The photos above show a view of Anacapa Island (the smallest of the islands) and the coastline of Santa Cruz.  We had a bouncy ride out with big swells. Great fun!! Better than a rollercoaster! And we were also treated to a visit from some dolphins swimming at the bow! We spent our time hiking and snapping loads of photos of this spectacular place.  To truly explore, I think you would need at least a full day or like many passengers--an overnight camping expedition. It's now time to reread Scott O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins. Having seen the landscape of one of the islands,  we'll probably have a better appreciation of it.

It has been a great couple of days catching up with our family! Thank you guys for making the time and meeting up with us!  We already look forward to the next time!

Notte's on the West Coast!

Hi Nana and NJ Notte's! Wishing we were all together! Kids spent the afternoon in the pool while adults shared news and caught up. Tomorrow we head out to the Channel Islands.

A Valient Attempt to Stop the Pacific

Score:
Isaac 0
Pacific 1
I have a feeling that won't deter him at the next beach. We have had a leisurely drive south. We veered out toward the coast at Pismo Beach which was very underwhelming. It appeared very "beachy" with various surf shops etc and the beachfront wasn't quickly accessible so we moved along. The dunes we saw further along were impressive though. Apparently they have been featured in many films. One tour book says they are still uncovering the set from the 1923 film The Ten Commandments. We were wondering if they could have been Tatooine from Star Wars. Another Google search coming up.

From there we traveled inland a bit through another agricultural area near Guadelupe. We did stop today and loaded up on fruit and avacados. Not the prices we saw previously but we're looking forward to fresh guacamole tonight.

The beach pictured above is in Carpinteria.  This town is between Santa Barbara and Ventura. A colony of drilling platforms are offshore. Something must be coming up because Isaac's legs and feet ended up with beads of tar on them.  Hmmm.... Makes you wonder about the local sea life.  The beach was busy but not crowded as we would've expected on a Saturday.  Onward we go!

Visiting the Ranch in San Simeon

Well, it was another SLOW day for the Notte's. We started our morning kayaking in Morro Bay. We glided past elephant seals out sunning and explored the sand spit across the bay. The dunes bumped along out to the big Morro rock. They were covered with an array of color from the various low scrubby vegetation and flowers. Little gray lizards blended in perfectly with the sand and dead wood. Crabs scuttled under rocks by the water and we could hear them clacking! Guess beachcombing is a favorite pasttime for us on either coast.

Lunch was at the Taco Temple, a local favorite. Let's talk fresh!! You start the meal with freshly baked chips and homemade salsas from the chip bar. Then choose from specialty seafood dishes or yummy vegetarian like I did. Or if you're like Adelaide you can have the tostados that were "almost vegetarian but with chicken."

Now for the trivia question of the day. Wendy RS--we expect you to be first to ring in. Consider it warm up for Minglewood this summer! Who is the person who has ties to two places we have visited? Okay--hint here: UC Berkeley and San Simeon.

The afternoon was spent learning about Hearst Castle. Just enough info to whet your appetite for more. I think they should point you to apps you buy tailored to your interest.  William Randolph Heart biography, Art of Hearst Castle, etc.  Mom-- I keep thinking you wanted to visit here when you and dad were out for the Olympics but you didn't have the chance. Is this right? This was right up your alley! We'll share when you next visit.

Our day ended with elephant seals. A little north of San Simeon is the Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery. The beach was full! They were mostly laying about tossing sand up on themselves and their neighbors. Occasionally there would be a tussle for space. We also saw a few swimming in the waves and then making their ungainly way up the beach, collapsing after several feet. Then they too would start the sand toss. Between Hearst and elephant seals, I think Wikipedia will get some hits from us tonight!  Apparently there is a live-cam from the rookery if you are interested in more information:  www.elephantseal.org.

Tomorrow we journey further south. Jean, Jeff and Amanda-- we are all looking forward to seeing you tomorrow in Oxnard !!!

Point Sur

Just one of many of the spectacular views heading south

Monterey

montereybayaquarium.org

Three for three with our "museums." We had to pry ourselves away from the touch tanks where we found the only east coast commonality to be the hermit crab. Kelps were pretty interesting and we learned about all sorts of creatures totally unfamiliar to us. All the exhibits were fascinating and appealed to all! We also saw a show right out back in the kelp beds where the sea otter were feasting and playing.

We had one " should have" moment on our drive down. We found ourselves driving through a small but dense agricultural area. Avocados 7 for $1, grapefruit 10 for $1, and almonds for $3.99 per lb. Holy guacamole!  By the time we made the decision to stop--zip! We were past it all. : (

Still in San Francisco

We had a full day yesterday.  The morning began with us strolling around Fisherman's Wharf and seeing the sea lions lounging about. Then lunch at beautiful Golden Gate Park. The windmills were constructed on 1902 to pump water but now just add interest to the surroundings. The afternoon was spent with some hands-on fun at the Exploratorium. Such an incredible place--fun for all ages.  www.exploratorium.edu. It will be moving soon but it's been located next to the Palace of Fine Arts which was created in 1915 for the Panama Pacific International Exposition. Lastly we braved the bracing breeze and took a boat rode on the Bay.  Off to Monterey and points south today.

Where in the world are those Notte's??

The Relic

Well, all those sayings like " you can never go back" or "nothing stays the same" blah, blah,blah....guess they are true. The cafe on the corner of Bancroft and Telegraph where Della and I used to play Scrabble is now a (sob!)....Subway! For that matter, many of the small cafes and even Peets have been taken over by Starbucks. Cody's is an empty shell decorated by graffiti. Sigh. John was happy to see that Blondies pizza still remained although slices are definitely no longer a dollar! And we stopped in at Moe's to browse the books. Good to see that longevity!

We stopped by John's old lab and the grad students there gave us the tour and were good sports about the walk down memory lane. John's trap was still there ( see above) and they wondered if we wanted to take it home with us : >

Isaac was very interested in the science building and the lab. He thinks he might want to go to UC Berkeley. Let's hope that translates to good study habits coming soon!

And was that trace of song at Sproul Plaza the ghost of Rick Starr??

Majestic Muir Woods

We hiked about 4 miles through the Redwood Forest on the Dipsea Trail. Then a short stop to numb our feet at Stinson beach. Onto Berkeley... /p>

What's for lunch??

Crab! This work of art came from Boudin's Bakery on Fisherman's Wharf who specializes in sourdough bread. Almost too incredible to eat.

Cable Cars

A stop to the Cable Car Museum in the morning where we learned about sheaves and grips. An all day pass to ride to our hearts content. Canvassing the city and seeing many sights
Just learned how fortune cookies are made...

The Toth's and the Tech

thetech.org

We had a wonderful visit with the Toth family! The Tech Museum was "awesome" as summed up by Nicholas (high praise from a 12 year old!).  We designed rollercoasters (see the photo), controlled Mars rovers, constructed wind turbines, composed music and so much more. The day was followed by a delicious Hungarian meal and scintillating conversation about Facebook, education, government regulation and diet. Thank you Gitta, Gabor, Peter, Eszter, and Judit for your warm hospitality and friendship. We enjoyed every moment with you!

Good morning San Francisco

Nothing like Bay Area fog to totally crush the stereotypical thinking of sunny California! We walked across the Golden Gate Bridge this morning surrounded by fog. We saw a huge container ship passing underneath partially obscured by the fog. Very cool. On our way to spend the day with our dear friends, the Toths...

There's a gremlin on the wing! !

Ready in Spirit...