There is a constant battle between island and ocean, but ocean always wins...

Picture this, it's April 1, 1946. It was business as usual in the small town of Laupahoehoe, Hawaii, a low-lying peninsula jutting out from the mouth of Laupahoehoe Valley. A little before 7:00 am school children ran down to the shore to view the barren sea floor from which the sea had just receded, leaving fish flopping. Without warning the ocean reached out its angry arms and sucked 16  young children along with 5 of their teachers into a watery abyss. A Tsunami had devastated the valley.
The town of Hilo, Hawaii, where we are temporary residents, also suffered 96 casualties. This once bustling town is now only a shell of what it used to be. The Pacific Tsunami Museum in Hilo stands as a reminder to all residents and visitors alike, the powerful force that water can exert.


Did Someone Say Road Trip......

After our homage to the victims of an angry sea we took a road trip along the Hamakua Coast to Akaka Falls. This 420 foot waterfall is a site to behold. Akaka, located along Kolekole Stream is one of many occurring near the oceanward end of the numerous streams that drain the wet, windward portion of Mauna Kea's eastern slope. Water falling over the cliff by the gallons makes for a soothing hypnotic sound that would put anyone to sleep. Hammock  anyone?

Our next stop was the Laupahoehoe Peninsula and Tsunami Memorial where our story began. A memorial honoring the school children and teachers that perished that fateful day stands where offerings of coins and flowers pay homage to the victims. The school is no longer there and neither are the cottages where the teachers lived. Today there were families who were picnicking and children frolicking in the cool water on the very same spot where tragedy struck so many years ago. Life must go on....

Picturesque views, rolling foams of water crashing ashore along black sand beaches composed of crystalline basalt rock fragments. This is Waipio Valley generated from the erosion of the Kohala Volcano. Waipio Valley is the Big Islands largest valley at over 3 miles in length and nearly a mile wide at its mouth. Steep walls over 2000 feet high display several dramatic waterfalls. No other part of the island displays such precipitous topography. When looking down in the valley one sees lush vegetation and a few farms. Even though Tsunamis have washed away those farms several times throughout the decades, farmers keep coming back. It probably won't be long before the massive waves return to drag those farms into the ocean once again. As we all have seen before, the ocean always wins...