GimletBlog

More travel photos in the Gimlet Gallery!

We spent the next morning in Moab shopping for souvenirs.  We found a delightful quilting shop across the street from our motel (more details are forthcoming on Sinister Craftiness), and a bookstore that would be an excellent resource for local maps.  Team Gimlet definitely wants to return to Moab, perhaps on a school break, and spend more time exploring.

After lunch it was time to get back in the car and drive, drive, drive.  But wait!  A few minutes out of town we were lured to stop by large signage for “Hole N The Rock”, and we remembered it was the location of a penny machine, so of course we had to pull over.

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See more dinosaurs and red rocks in the Gimlet Gallery.

After a quick sleepover at the grandGimlets’ house, we were on the road again.  The smog was especially bad along the Wasatch Front, and after lunch at one of our old favorites, Brick Oven, we were glad to get away from the more populated areas and drive through the canyons.  (Little did we know that “brick oven” would be an apt description for our day’s destination.) (more…)

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At 6:00 am on Friday I met up with the other scouts (The Gimlet did not go), and we drove to Paradise, Mount Rainier. The snow is 6-10 feet high now, and after a while, we got there. We hiked a quarter mile up to the place we were going to, and we started on our snow caves.

There were many different kinds of snow caves. My group built a Quincy, where you pile up snow while digging a hole, dig it out on the inside, and put that snow on top. Another group built a double snow cave. There was one door, and there were two  snow caves coming off of that. There also were other groups and their snow caves. Under the top snow, there was a layer of ice, and that was hard to get through. One group abandoned their snow cave because the ice was too hard, and most of the shovels got damaged slightly.

During breaks, we sledded a little, and I sledded down one hill, and I stopped near the end of it. Suddenly, three other guys stopped me because there was a big storm drain in front of me. Later, another scout troop came and camped on a hill close by. When they were sledding, we told them to stop because of the hole. We think they got the message. Not that many people sledded down there again. At nighttime, it was very cold, and an adult leader said it was less than 20°F. The roof in our snow cave was low, three other people were in that cave, but we slept well.

Saturday morning people noticed there were some parts of my face sunburned and some not. Apparently I put on sunscreen unevenly. After breakfast, we cleaned out our snow caves of all our stuff, and smashed them! The spots where leaders thought it would be weak in our snow cave were not weak at all! Before destroying the cave, we took a picture of the scouts all standing on top including some leaders! We actually could have made our roof much taller, based on how long it took to cave it in.

After all the snowcaves were destroyed, everybody went sledding.   After going down the hill a few times, I made movies of people sledding and catching air at the bump on the hill.   After that, we hiked back to the parking lot, and had McDonald’s for lunch (which is getting to be a tradition with snow camps). After camp food, fast food tastes especially good. One scout ate 5 Big Macs! After getting home at about 4:00 PM, my mom took a picture of me with the sunburned spots, and I started to write this article!

Thing One’s sledding videos (all in Quick Time format):

• Assistant Scoutmaster (4.4 MB)
• Another Assistant Scoutmaster (1.3 MB)
• Two scouts on one sled (5.4 MB)
• One scout (3 MB)

ETA 23 February: Check out Another Assistant Scoutmaster’s photo and video gallery!

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Our senior team member took one last GPS reading from the highway on the Kohala Coast before the short drive south to the Kona airport.

The north Kohala coast is naturally quite arid and rocky; the resorts have brought in the palm trees, flowers, and other greenery to create a paradise for the tourists.  The Pu’ukohola Heiau National Historic Site provides an authentic look at the history of this region of the Big Island, with a massive stone heiau (temple) built by the order of King Kamehameha the Great from 1790-91 and a submerged heiau dedicated to the shark gods.  We weren’t able to visit the site on this trip, but we had seen it several years ago with Thing One.

We had rented an SUV on the Big Island in order to make the challenging drive up to Mauna Kea’s summit, and since we had no high adventure in mind for Oahu, we thought we could rent a sedan instead.  The auntie at the rental car kiosk noticed the senior members of Team Gimlet, and when she learned that The Gimlet was taking his in-laws on a Hawaiian vacation, she was so impressed with this dutiful son-in-law that she gave him a complimentary upgrade to a minivan.  (“They deserve to ride in comfort!” she said emphatically.)  It was much more comfortable!

We had originally intended to stay in one of the resorts on Waikiki Beach to show the contrast between the laid-back Big Island and the bustling tourist mecca, but changed our plans to try out a pair of timeshare properties some distance out of town at Ko Olina.

While the manmade beaches were postcard-perfect tranquil and the property was lovely (the senior members of Team Gimlet especially enjoyed the walking paths along the shoreline), at the time we went much of the area was under construction, so the experience was marred by construction noise and traffic.  We also would have liked to have been much closer to the attractions in Honolulu; everything we wanted to see and do was a lengthy drive from Ko Olina.

However, on a positive note, we became addicted to the fried banana pies from the nearby McDonalds and dearly wish our local franchise would include a little aloha on their menu.  Even our most senior team member was willing to pass through the golden arches for a taste of deep fried tropical paradise.

Now that we were in a new location, it was time for a GPS reading from Ko Olina.

Note that underneath the ever-present utility vest, the heavy sweater, thick flannel shirt, and thermals have given way to a lighter-weight (but still long-sleeved) shirt.  Could it be that this balmy January weather is really here to stay?

Next post:  Sightseeing around Oahu

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After a few days on the windward side of the Big Island, it was time to visit the beaches on the leeward side.  Team Gimlet would spend the next few days at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott on Anaehoomalu Beach on the Kohala Coast.

The hotel restaurant was lovely, but with views like these from our rooms, room service won out most of the time.  While some of Team Gimlet were content to sit in the sunshine on the beach, or occasionally take a dip in the bathtub-warm water, The Gimlet enjoyed snorkeling, where he saw several kinds of fish and swam with a sea turtle.  Meanwhile, our senior team member continued to warn us that it was still January, and wore his trusty sweaters and thick flannel shirts in case of an abrupt temperature plunge.

In addition to lounging around in the sun, we drove south to spend a day at Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park.

Originally a place of refuge for lawbreakers seeking sanctuary, this lovely park still has a spirit of peace and renewal.  Several green sea turtles were basking around the beach, and tiny tidepools were full of little fish and other sea creatures.  We followed the self-guided walking tour through the park, exploring the royal and ceremonial structures at our leisure.

We could have easily spent another few days on the Big Island, both visiting other regions of the island we weren’t able to see on this trip, and relaxing on the beautiful, warm beaches.

Next post:  From the Big Island to the Gathering Place

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After a good night’s sleep and breakfast, Team Gimlet spent one day exploring Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, home to Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes.

When Mark Twain visited Kilauea in 1866, he described the caldera as “a scene of wild beauty”:

“Through the glasses, the little fountains scattered about looked very beautiful. They boiled, and coughed, and spluttered, and discharged sprays of stringy red fire … We had circles and serpents and streaks of lightning all twined and wreathed and tied together … and it was with a feeling of placid exultation that we reflected that many years had elapsed since any visitor had seen such a splendid display …” (Roughing It In the Sandwich Islands, ch. 11)

The caldera hasn’t erupted since 1982, so these days one must be content with dodging the relentless flow of fellow tourists which erupts from the buses circling the park.

Our first stop was the park headquarters and visitor center, where we watched a short film about volcanic eruptions and safety. We remembered a story about the senior Gimlet-in-law’s uncle: (more…)

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