Maui Air Flight Over Kilauea Volcano

Location:  Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii
Address:  4050 Honoapiilani Hwy
Date: June 2010
Website: www.volcanoairtours.com

  The Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanoes.  The island of Hawaii is usually referred to as the Big Island and is home to the most active volcano.  It has been erupting for close to 30 years.  We chose to book a small plane tour and fly over this volcano.  Why not?  The volcano is called Kilauea and has been erupting for decades.  It is currently wreaking havoc on homes on the Big Island.   A 6.9 magnitude earthquake at the beginning of May 2018 took things to a new level.  When we visited it was during quieter (but still not silent) times.

  Our flight departed from Kapalua airport and it wasn't long until we were flying along the Maui coastline.   

  Our pilot was Captain Billy and he made sure to turn the little twin prop plane so that we could get a bird's eye view looking straight down at the coast.  To get from Maui to the Big Island we had to travel across the Alenuihaha Channel.  The channel is about 47 km wide and for a while there it was just Pacific Ocean as far as the eye could see in every direction.   We were glad when land came back into sight.

  The Big Island has beautiful valleys.

  It also has the Kohala cliffs which have waterfalls streaming down the side.

  And of course it is home to the Kilauea volcano.  As we approached the crater we could see steam rising into the air.

Captain Billy made sure we could get a good view.  We got closer to the mouth of the volcano.

And even closer.

  And then closer still.   We could smell and almost taste the sulphur. The small plane was completely engulphed in sulphuric gas.  Looking out the window we could just see the propellers working to guide us through the thick smoke.

   Traffic ! Traffic ! went the warning in our headphones.  A small buzzer sounded.   Lights flashed on the control panel.  As we emerged from the smoke we realized we were not alone.  Several other helicopters and planes were bringing tourists to take a look down the throat of Kilauea.

  As our plane turned sharply to give us another view, the combination of gas and turning started to take its toll.  We started to sweat in our big noise cancelling headphones.   Traffic ! Traffic !  went another warning as we turned yet again.  We felt a bit queasy.  Many people including at least one of us are quite allergic to sulphur. 

 

  We moved away from the main plume coming out of the volcano and we started to feel a bit better.  On the edges of the volcano we could see flashes of bright orange lava along with the dark grey from lava that had cooled and formed a crust.   Some groups of trees were on fire as the volcano's lava flow took them in its grasp.  We were in awe of the destructive powers of the volcano.

  Eventually we left the Big Island behind and it wasn't long before we were headed past the hotel row near Lahaina.  One smooth landing later and we were back on Maui.  Captain Billy gave us the shaka sign as we said goodbye and left him beside his plane on the runway.   He would probably be re-fueling and then doing it all over again.  We can always re-live it all over again in our memories as we watch the sun set across the Pacific.

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Map of Our World
Kilauea Volcano
Maui Air (Kapalua Airport)

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Post # 214

Snowy Day At The Leslie Spit

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  1 Leslie Street
Date: April 2018
Website: www.tommythompsonpark.ca

  Snowy Owls are large white owls that spend most of their lives up in the Arctic.  They are usually found in Alaska and the territories of Canada.  We traveled to Churchill, Manitoba which is almost as far north as Nunavut and hoped that we might see one there.  We were not so lucky.  They breed even further north still, even as far as the top of Greenland.  In the winter they do come south and this is when you might see them in southern Ontario.  We had heard that some owls were out on the Leslie Spit in Tommy Thompson Park so we went to try and spot one.

  It gets very cold out on the spit which juts out into Lake Ontario so most people don't get too far in the winter.  Snowy owls like the terrain out there as it reminds them of the Arctic tundra they usually call home.  Since snowy owls are almost completely white it is very hard to spot them in the snow.  It is still a difficult task even when the snow has gone.  This photo could have contained an owl but it is just a tree stump.

  Owls do like to perch on something where they can survey their territory.  In the photo above a seagull is doing the exact same thing an owl might do.  Sorry seagulls, but we already see you everywhere we go by the lake.

  On our first very cold outing we didn't see any owls.  We did see a poor duck who had possibly fallen prey to an owl, or one of the other raptors like a hawk or falcon that frequent the spit.

  On our second attempt we came across a photographer who had seen an owl up near the end of the spit.  We decided it was worth braving the cold to catch a glimpse of these beautiful birds.  It takes up to an hour to walk to the end of the spit and then the same time to get back again.  We made it all the way to the end but we didn't see any owls.  We suspect that the owls saw us.

  While we didn't get to see owls we did get a different view of Toronto.  At this point we were further into Lake Ontario than the Toronto Islands.   In this photo above you can see the Toronto skyline behind the Island trees.

  The third time is the charm.  Once again we saw a photographer with a large, zoom camera.  We asked if they had seen anything exciting.  "There was a snowy owl" they said.   They kindly told us that they had seen it just beyond the floating bridge.  The floating bridge is usually a good spot to see swans, geese and ducks.

Sorry swans, geese and ducks but today it is all about the owls.

  Luck was with us as not too far past the bridge on a long, curved branch sat a female snowy owl.  Adult females have the dark barred pattern, while the adult males are almost completely white.

 

  We spent a good deal of time watching the owl watching out across the spit.  Unfortunately, we are not designed to sit happily in the cold winds that blow across the lake and decided we must head back.

  We took one more look back at the owl.  You might be able to spot it in the two curved branches on the left of the tree above.

  We were headed back to the warmth of the city.  Soon spring will be here and the owls will leave and head back to the cold of the Arctic.  Thanks for spending some time down here with us.

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Map of Our World
Leslie Spit

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Post # 213

The Rick Mercer Report

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  250 Front Street West
Date: Nov 2013
Website: http://www.cbc.ca/mercerreport/

  Rick Mercer first appeared on television in the satirical news show, This Hour Has 22 Minutes.  After leaving 22 Minutes he went on to star in Rick Mercer's Monday Report which eventually was renamed The Rick Mercer Report.  After about 15 years, Rick Mercer has decided to retire the show.   We were lucky enough to see a taping at CBC Studios in Toronto.  After Rick welcomes you to the "Mercer Report" the camera always does a quick awkward pan from one side of a pillar to the other.  We were sitting in the seats just below where the camera ends up after it pans.
  As part of the show Rick travels somewhere in Canada to attend an event.  The show we watched took Rick behind the scenes on the set of Murdoch Mysteries and to the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair.  He didn't have to go very far as both of these events also take place in Toronto, Ontario.  We have also been lucky enough to visit the fair and the set of Murdoch Mysteries.  We can't quite compete with Rick who has also been to every province and territory in Canada to film his show.
  Rick's show is also known for its commercial parodies and his rant.  Rick's rant is where he discusses a topic he feels strongly about usually while walking through a graffitti covered alley.  It is also known for sticking to a very rigid script between segments.  Rick basically says the same things each week such as "All that and so much more, but first please take a look at this", "And now it's time for The Front Page" or "I'm Rick Mercer, see you next Tuesday". 
  We will miss The Rick Mercer Report as it was as much a Canadian travel show as it was a comedy.  Thanks Rick!

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Map of Our World
CBC Studios

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Post # 212