Monday, February 1, 2021 [020121]. Finally the sun!

 Whew!  Though weʻve seen lots LOTS more sequential rains (three months, one time), itʻs always a relief and joy to lala (bask) in the sun.  And even better when said basking is at Kūpinaʻi pali on a rim of Kaluapele.  So lucky.

kū.pinaʻi 

nvi.  1. To echo, reverberate; 

The ʻōhiʻa below:  the one on the right, recently succumbed to likely a cocktail of maladies. ʻŌhiʻa die-back (cohort senescence), thrips, Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death (ROD) paha, invasive species, etc., ...and the left-hand one is in sad decline.  Fortunately, the uluhe in foreground is happy and healthy.

From viewpoint, itʻs just under a mile to the edge.  The now-closed Halemaʻumaʻu Trail over 1974 pāhoehoe can be seen, albeit faintly, between the two trees, leading straight to the fume cloud.  Kūpinaʻi is the section of pali covered with talus (a slope of broken rock) by the red dot and word "Crater".  Those cracks are BIG, and the sections all lean in, toward Halemaʻumaʻu, making them stick up from the floor.  Google Earth still depicts the water lake.

E, try smile, brah!  Itʻs been too long since Iʻve walked far-ish, and focus, while holding steadying rail, is necessary.  TryLook keen-eyed between two trees at the right:  On the rim is the abandoned Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and Jaggar Museum.

I find it interesting that to the right of the moku nui, there are repeated long narrow lobes of pāhoehoe, one on top of the other.  The leading edge of the most recently active is that thin orangish line.  How come?  Because... And, looks like west vent is mostly crusted over.  For now.

Pics below, from HVO, taken yesterday, 013121, add clarity and keener vision.  The different shades of grey to the right of the moku are hours to a few days apart in age.  Remember:  silver (palest grey) = youngest.

Excellent closeup!  We see the bounding pali of the moku, 25 feet or so tall, and at its base, successive lobes and lobelets of pāhoehoe marching around the bend, the wide crack separating west (L) and east (R) papa o ka loko ahi (surface of the lava lake).

Speaking of marching:

Ha come: ānuenue and ʻānuenue?  Hmmm.  In conversation with a friend:  "The inadvertent ʻānuenue is a product of someone who thought those words would look more Hawaiian if we scattered some decorative ʻokina in them."

NOTE:  Supposed to be ānuenue.  We must be care full when spelling.  ʻOkina (ʻ), and kahakō, the stress line over the vowel, changes the meanings of words.  Cannot make anykine.  Though many do.  Even if not intentional, compilers of Dictionaries err.  They misspell words, forget to include something germane...all of us are human and make mistakes.

The Update:

And then thereʻs this:

If you look closely, you can make out a relief carving (or pecking) of a kiʻi pōhaku (glyph-petro).  What what why when?  I know the current where location.  Full of curiosities is our ʻāina.

Thatʻs it for today.

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC

maniniowali@gmail.com