Hukaung Vista

N26°59'; E 96°11'

Hukaung Valley Wildlife Reserve (see Hukaung Valley Rattan Survey; Mandalay Express) somewhere between 21 mile camp and Namyun in Kachin State, Myanmar. I remember thinking when I took this picture in 2006 that this was one of the most beautiful pieces of forest that I had ever seen. Still think so. Hope things clear up in Kachin before too long (see Cease Fire? Maybe Not) so that I can get back in and finish my work there. 

Petroglyphs

Centuries ago, native Hawaiian artisans used the local lava flows as blank canvases to carve petroglyphs, or "kii pohaku". Thousands of them. We don't really know why they made these, but the whimsical etchings are scattered all over the island and are a delight to view. The petroglyphs shown above are from the Puako Petroglyph Archeaological Preserve on the Kohala Coast of Hawai'i. [NOTES: The snorkeling (see Snorkeling) at nearby Puako beach is also pretty fantastic - and there's shade. Yes, those are my New Balances in the lower right of the image. Sorry].

Halema'uma'u

Lava glows in the Halema'uma'u Crater as night falls at Hawai'i Volcano National Park. The crater is currently active, with an open lava vent that ranges from 70 to 150 m below the crater floor. Check out the USGS video here for a more close-up look at the lava at Halema'uma'u. [NOTE: I spent a long time looking at this glow and thinking about the molten center of our planet. Humbling].

Snorkeling

Spent a lot of time in Hawai'i face down in the water with a snorkel and mask. Picture above was taken by daughter Amy with a disposable underwater camera. The Moorish Idol (Zanclus cornutus L.) was probably my favorite reef fish, but I spent significant parts of several days swimming along behind green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas L.), Known locally as "honu", these large, slow-moving herbivores are a delight to observe (see below; image from Wikimedia Commons). [NOTE: Couldn't help but think of Crush (father) and Squirt (son) from Finding Nemo]. 

 

Leyfdu Ljosinu

Icelandic cellist and composer Hildur Gudnadottir has just released a spectacular new album, Leyfdu Ljosinu (Icelandic for "Allow the Light"). Recorded live in a single take with no post-production manipulations, the work uses electronics and loops to multiply her cello and voice into a stark, yet breathtaking, world of sound. Spacious. Buoyant. This is an amazing piece of music.   

First Come, First Served

A lava flow can be a tough place to grow. The good news is that there is not a lot of competition from other plants to colonize one of these dry, barren sites. The plant shown above, Dubautia scabra (DC) D.D. Keck or "kūpaua", is a specialist at this. The tiny airborne seeds of this species settle into cracks in the lava where nutrients and water collect. It grows and flowers as soon as it can to produce more seeds, to colonize more cracks in the lava, and ultimately create habitats amenable to other plant species. An important, and beautiful, player in primary succession on Hawai'i.  

Habitats in Hawai'i

Have just returned from two weeks in Hawai'i on the Big Island. Didn't take my computer - which is why there have been no recent posts. Went snorkling instead. What an amazing array of habitats on this sparsely populated island. From tropical rain forests with lovely tree fern (Cibotium spp) understories (see above) to primary succession on volvanic lava flows (below). What a great place.

Incense Offering

Scene in one of the interior rooms at the temple of Bayon (see Bayon) at Angkor Wat. Love the row of seated Buddhas carved at the top, the curl of incense smoke, and the little swatch of saffron cloth on the altar. [NOTE: Off to Hawaii tomorrow for two weeks. Yippeee!]

Bouldering

Ron Kauk, Case Peters (with crash pad; see Vietclimb), and Gary Erikson get ready for a morning of bouldering in the High Sierras. I put down my morning tea long enough to take the picture, but did not go climbing.  

Toulumne Boulders

Even the smaller rocks at Yosemite display a certain poetry and artistic nuance. These boulders are a short walk from the Toulumne campground near the river. Took a lot of geologic pictures on this trip.