In the past, when we have traveled to the Big Island, it has only been for a week at a time. One of those trips, years ago, we saw a snow cap on Mauna Kea. You never know when the snow will come or how long it will last. It is safe to say that mid December through January is the most likely time. This January we had a HEAVY snowfall that topped Mauna Kea nicely and also covered Mauna Loa. This is just one of the experiences that I have enjoyed witnessing as a temporary resident of the Big Island. My anticipation was for the clear moments when we could see the mountains. Waikoloa Beach area, where our condo is, is a great vantage point....although crystal clear moments are not prolific. The mornings tend to be clear but then the clouds or haze moves in and visibility is poor. So, needless to say, I took way to many pictures of our mountains... every morning on my walk I enjoyed the view... and the novelty of walking in 75-85 degrees with palm trees and tropical flowers all around and snow covered mountains in the distance.
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| Mauna Kea, early morning, from Waikoloa Beach Resorts. |
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Clouds rolling in.
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| Mauna Loa, morning light, from Waikoloa Beach. |
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| "A" Bay at sunset. |
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| Going over the saddle road to Hilo....Mauna Loa! |
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| Saddle Road from Waikoloa side to Hilo. |
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| Mountain Sheep as seen from the Saddle Road. |
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| Telescopes at the top of Mauan Kea, 14,000 feet. |
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| Mauna Kea from the Waikoloa Beach Resort entrance. |
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| Mauna Loa, coming into Waimea from Kawaihae. |
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| Mauna Kea from Waimea. |
With the snow beaconing us, we planned a trip up the mountain with the Campbells. Saturday morning we made a quick trip to Waimea, caught the Saturday Market, switched vehicles so that we had the 4-wheel drive Explorer and met the Campbells to head up Mauna Kea. Friday evening I made a quick sweep of Target and Ross and found a few pairs of clearance gloves and a stocking hat for Kelly. Cold weather gear is not SO easy to find in Kona!!
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| Cub's favorite booth at the Waimea Farmer's Market.....Orchids. |
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| Yep...he had to buy one more. |
We picked up Charles and then met up with Terry, Keala and the girls.
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Bundled up and ready to go!!
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As we headed up the mountain here's what we saw....pickup after pickup loaded full of snow.
There is nothing like building a snowman on the beach! |
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| Heading to the summit from the observatory. |
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| Notice the holes in the sign....it can be extremely windy up here...this saves the signs. |
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| These folks just made a snowman on their pickup. |
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| The Campbells...avid Seahawk fans!! This was the day before the BIG GAME!! |
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| Ditto...with the addition of, Charles, Keala's dad. |
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| View from the top....it didn't feel like Hawaii up there. 14,000 feet and COLD!! |
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| Charles with his Seahawk's flag. |
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| Chilly me. |
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| It was SO beautiful...a whole different world... at the top of the world. |
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| The guy that started the snowball fight. |
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| The guy at the other end. |
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| A panoramic shot...a little out of proportion...but you get the idea. |
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| Cub the snowman! |
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| Cub and Kawena moving the snowman so the background would be better. |
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| Adorable Kawena the minion snowman with Mauna Loa in the background. |
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| SWEET!! |
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| My awesome hubby holding up the telescopes. |
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| The "marine" pose by the Campbells. |
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| Cali's awesome sunglasses!! |
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| More telescopes. |
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| They looked like sentinels standing guard. |
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| What can I say....incredible!! |
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| Terry and Kawena. |
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| Right before sunset. |
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| Me and my hubby.... we have shared some of the most amazing experiences together!! |
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| Terry, Keala, Cali and Kawena....our Waimea family. |
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| Terry and Keala Campbell |
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| Our version of the sunset heart. |
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In Idaho if there are holes in a stop sign it is
usually because someone has been trigger happy...
up here on the mountain it is to help
the signs survive the gale force winds. |
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