Outro
Sunrise over Pauoa Bay, Kohala Coast, Hawai'i Island
As I sit and sort through the photos, thoughts, and emotions I brought home from an epic trip to Hawai'i, it is hard to know where to begin with a post. So I have decided to start at the end, with sunrise on the day we flew home.
This was actually the only sunrise that I photographed on this trip. Something that is unusual for me in Hawai'i, as I usually catch at least a few, especially in the first days when I am still adjusting from my home time zone and tend to be awake very early in the morning. However, this time my daughter and I traveled with long-time friends of ours, and with 5 kids in our group, including 3 teenagers, and a swimming pool that was open 24 hours, there were no early bedtimes to offset an early morning. Thus I did more stargazing and less sunrising...a tradeoff for which I have few regrets.
On the morning of our departure however, I had to be up early anyway, so I set my alarm for 5:15am instead of 6am, and headed out with camera in hand as the first light of dawn began to awaken the sea and sky. That awakening was initially a disappointment as the mountains were shrouded in clouds and a rainstorm over the water drenched the horizon in shades of gloomy gray. But I decided to sit and wait, enjoying the quiet before a hectic day of travel, and just before official sunrise time, the first glimmers of light started to break through the clouds. And for the 40 minutes thereafter I was bestowed with a beautiful and enthralling show of light, color, and amazing clouds in every direction, where the main challenge was deciding where to point the camera. (Although I did have to make a hasty retreat from the spot where I was photographing the mountains, when the sprinklers at the edge of the golf course suddenly came on!)
By 6:30am the sun was cresting the 13,803 foot/4207 meter peak of Mauna Kea and as it emerged from her shadow it felt as though someone had flipped a switch from lamplight to floodlights, and another bright Hawaiian summer day was underway. And as I went to wake up grumpy teenagers and prepare for our departure, I offered a silent, and heartfelt, 'thank you' for this farewell gift from the islands.
Outro
Sunrise over Pauoa Bay, Kohala Coast, Hawai'i Island
As I sit and sort through the photos, thoughts, and emotions I brought home from an epic trip to Hawai'i, it is hard to know where to begin with a post. So I have decided to start at the end, with sunrise on the day we flew home.
This was actually the only sunrise that I photographed on this trip. Something that is unusual for me in Hawai'i, as I usually catch at least a few, especially in the first days when I am still adjusting from my home time zone and tend to be awake very early in the morning. However, this time my daughter and I traveled with long-time friends of ours, and with 5 kids in our group, including 3 teenagers, and a swimming pool that was open 24 hours, there were no early bedtimes to offset an early morning. Thus I did more stargazing and less sunrising...a tradeoff for which I have few regrets.
On the morning of our departure however, I had to be up early anyway, so I set my alarm for 5:15am instead of 6am, and headed out with camera in hand as the first light of dawn began to awaken the sea and sky. That awakening was initially a disappointment as the mountains were shrouded in clouds and a rainstorm over the water drenched the horizon in shades of gloomy gray. But I decided to sit and wait, enjoying the quiet before a hectic day of travel, and just before official sunrise time, the first glimmers of light started to break through the clouds. And for the 40 minutes thereafter I was bestowed with a beautiful and enthralling show of light, color, and amazing clouds in every direction, where the main challenge was deciding where to point the camera. (Although I did have to make a hasty retreat from the spot where I was photographing the mountains, when the sprinklers at the edge of the golf course suddenly came on!)
By 6:30am the sun was cresting the 13,803 foot/4207 meter peak of Mauna Kea and as it emerged from her shadow it felt as though someone had flipped a switch from lamplight to floodlights, and another bright Hawaiian summer day was underway. And as I went to wake up grumpy teenagers and prepare for our departure, I offered a silent, and heartfelt, 'thank you' for this farewell gift from the islands.