Snow on Mauna Loa - DPChallenge Forums

01/13/2005 10:53:08 AM · #1

After a winter storm this weekend we have snow on the mountains. This is a photo of Mauna Loa as seem from Kailua Kona. Most of the time we don't even notice this mountain because its slops are so gentle it does not look like much of a mountain, but it is 13,681 feet high.

01/13/2005 01:14:48 PM · #2

Where are you in relation to Mona Loa? I don't recognize the vantage point.

01/13/2005 04:01:14 PM · #3

Originally posted by nsbca7:

Where are you in relation to Mona Loa? I don't recognize the vantage point.

We are in Kailua Kona, which would be to the North West of Mauna Loa. As I said without the snow you would not even notice it, which is a pretty neat trick because this mountain makes up half the island.

01/13/2005 06:27:20 PM · #4

Originally posted by scottwilson:

Originally posted by nsbca7:
Where are you in relation to Mona Loa? I don't recognize the vantage point.

We are in Kailua Kona, which would be to the North West of Mauna Loa. As I said without the snow you would not even notice it, which is a pretty neat trick because this mountain makes up half the island.

God! Really? Where the hell did all those houses come from? I guess when you are away from a place long enough it's possible things will change. It looks so different.

01/13/2005 07:16:45 PM · #5

Originally posted by nsbca7:

Originally posted by scottwilson:

Originally posted by nsbca7:
Where are you in relation to Mona Loa? I don't recognize the vantage point.

We are in Kailua Kona, which would be to the North West of Mauna Loa. As I said without the snow you would not even notice it, which is a pretty neat trick because this mountain makes up half the island.

God! Really? Where the hell did all those houses come from? I guess when you are away from a place long enough it's possible things will change. It looks so different.

How long ago were you here?
The photo was taken from Old A. by the way, or depending on how long ago you were there the Old Airport, which is now a very nice park.

There is a real building boom going on right now, it is just crazy.
Housing prices went up 23% in 2004 compared to 2003, and there does not seem to be an end in site.

The stats now run like this
number of homes listed under $500,000 14
number of homes listed between 500k and 1M 81
number of homes listed above 1M 54
least expensive home listed $389,900

They simply can not build fast enough to keep up with the demand,
and yes traffic is getting bad.

01/13/2005 07:42:04 PM · #6

I moved back to the mainland in 1980. Me and a friend lived in cave on lava flow right outside the city limits of Kailua. I worked as a prep cook at a really good resturant with antique fans called the Kona Inn. We ate and partied with a bunch of Hawaiians who were squatting on some old anciant sacred hawaiian grounds by the cliffs owned by Hilton Head Corp.

My favorite place to surf was a little cove called Vanishing Sands. There was nothing there back then but rocks and beach.

Where all those houses are in your picture there was maybe a few ranches. There was 1 highway that went across the island from Kona to Hilo and that road was a winding, dangerous 12 foot wide way to go. We drove it quite a few times in an old VW microbus we had.

Up in the hills above Kailua were some older houses, but most were owned by makadamia, coffee or pakaloa growers.

Land on the Gold Coast back then was still only $1,500 an acre in some places down the coast aways.

I loved that place.

Message edited by author 2005-01-13 19:46:18.

01/13/2005 07:51:19 PM · #7

The Kona Inn is still there, fans and all. They make the best calamari on the island.
Things have changed a lot since 1980.
Vanishing Sands is mostly called either Magic Sands, or Disappearing Sands or White Sands, at this time of year there is no beach there but in the summer the sand comes back.
there is a road all around the island now, but the road from Kona to Hilo is still there (the saddle road) and it is still winding and dangerous and narrow, many of the fatal crasher are on that road.

You can still get land cheap south of here.

There are still plenty of pakaloa growers on the island, they keep trying to get rid of them but I don't think they ever will.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS

01/13/2005 08:03:06 PM · #8

Thanks for bringing all of that back. I can almost smell it.

ellamay

Canon EOS-1D Mark II

01/13/2005 08:32:07 PM · #9

kona is sooo nice I lived there for about 3 months and visited a couple times, you are so lucky to live there, I am jealous! I love the green sand beach you have to sort of hike down to get too, some (dumb) friends and I jumped off those cliffs, can't believe how young and foolish I was then : )

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS

01/13/2005 08:38:10 PM · #10

This is what Ali'i Drive looks like now, including the Kona Inn.
This is a pretty large image and really needs high speed internet to load.
Ali'i Drive

ellamay

Canon EOS-1D Mark II

01/13/2005 08:53:09 PM · #11

if you ever want to do a house swap with me in vancouver let me know : )