A happy-go-lucky English rambler dude goes to New Zealand for a year. Here he interfaces with some of those he left behind and details his nefarious activities. Or summat.
Recently clicked on MP3s - 7th June 2005 The Lucksmiths - Warmer Corners
Jens Lekman - When i said i wanted to be your dog
The Trashcan Sinatras - Weightlifting
Teenage Fanclub - Man Made
Laura Veirs - Carbon Glacier
The Decemberists - Picaresque
The Eels - Blinking Lights
Thursday, August 08, 2002
I survived the worst that Kilauea could throw at me. Which turned out to be a slow ooze of lava, and an awful lot of steam where the poor unsuspecting Pacific washed up onto a load of 2000c liquid rock - ouch!
The road leading to the lava flow was rather surreal, a perfectly good highway, until you came up to a huge, black field of congealed lava, leading from the summit all the way to the ocean.
Who left that lava lying around?
Driving over here, on the wrong side of the road, has been an experience in itself. At first it completely spun me out and i ended up taking several detours to avoid being the first person at the lights having to turn left. It was also hard to stop youself using the left wing mirror as the rear view, reaching for the belt in the middle of the car and opening the passenger door, only to notice the complete absence of a steering wheel. Nnngah!
By the time i went back to the airport, i just about had the hang of it, and was overtaking plenty of big-ass chevy pick ups. I didn't have much choice though, as i was unsurprisingly late for my flight back to Oahu.
[Warning to non ramblers - In depth account of hiking expedition follows]
Despite being slightly put off by peoples reactions when i told them i was thinking of climbing Mauna Kea, "What! Walk, up there! You can get 4WD tours up you know?", i decided to go for it. I didn't even let the fact that it was off limits for my hire car stop me.
It's not often you get the chance to climb a 4,205 metre mountain, so it had to be done.
The road up there was windy, desolate and steep, but the car was fine - until i parked up at the observatory visitor centre, when the engine coolant stuff boiled over, leaving a large, green puddle underneath the car, whoops! But i didn't let a potentially knackered car put me off, and after an hours acclimatisation i set off for the top. (Starting at 3000metres, higher than my previously biggest mountain! And no it's NOT cheating, SHUT UP!)
The first parts of the climb, were pretty steep, loose, scree, not too tough, but before long the first symptoms of altitude sickness started to kick in. To begin with i just felt slightly absent minded, and a little dizzy, but gradually got shorter and shorter of breath and my legs began to feel like lead.
As ever though, i just kept plodding away, picking my way through numerous volcanic cones, and passing a lake where the locals used to throw their babies umbilical cords, to guarantee them good luck, or possibly due to them all being completely mental.
Eventually though i popped out into 'Millimetre valley', the home of the world's top observatories. I would have loved to have a better look around them all, but only had the energy to look at the ones that the path went right next to.
I thought once i could see the observatories i'd be almost there, but no, a further hour or so of ass-dragging and wheezing was required to get to the top, occasionally being passed by 4WD's full of smug looking astronomers. I spent as long as i could do at the summit, but a rather vicious altitude related headache had begun to drill it's way through my brain, convincing me that i should go and seek out more oxygen immediately. The fact that it would be dark in 3 hours was also a deciding factor.
In traditional style, i made it back to the road just as it got totally dark. (If there's one thing i've learnt about hiking this year, it's make sure you're on a road by the time it gets dark - NOT stuck in a gorse bush, with a low power torch and an Australian. In the rain)
Even better, the car still seemed to be alive, though i kept the heaters on for as long as i could bear, to prevent any more overheating, with the limited amount of coolant i had left.
The gubbins lying around on top of Mauna Kea
[Tedious rambling stuff ends]
Back on the mainland of Oahu, i've been keeping busy. Rented a road bike today, and rode around the mostly gorgeous coastal road to Waimanapolu(?) Beach park and back, about 40 miles. Not bad, but i had to take several snooze stops on beaches along the way, so i doubt i'll be much of match for you Rob, on my return home :o(
Spending my last day in Hawaii in a slightly more relaxed fashion, watching my mate Dave do all the hard work in the World Ultimate Championships. Go DAVE!!
11:24 am
