Our trip down the coast included some driving down the Pacific Coast Highway. This is undoubtedly a gorgeous place to be. Each turn in the coast brings with it another lovely view of rugged cliffs and crashing waves. Add some sun and it really is wonderful. There is little point in saying much more. Instead, here are a few shots to show just how great it is.
The biggest thing that made me want to go to Big Island was volcanoes. I have seen plenty of photos and video of volcanic activity but I have never seen it for real. I wanted to try and experience the awesome power welling up from the heart of the earth. Awesome is a word that gets pretty free use but I think when it comes to the violence that the layer of energy just below the crust of the earth can produce, awesome is a word that is entirely justified.
The south end of Big Island is the one that is most active volcanically. Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea are both sitting quietly at the moment but neither of them is considered done. Mauna Loa has erupted relatively recently. However, the one that is playing at the moment is Kilauea. It has been busy erupting for a long time now. We checked it out by helicopter – the most easygoing way to see things. We took in two locations of activity.
The first was an open route to the inside of the planet. It has been active for a long time and has a visitor center. Apparently, you used to be able to walk close to the edge of the hole as a tourist. A parking lot is still visible. However, a violent outburst a few years ago suggested that this location was no longer safe. Now the visitor’s center is as far as you can go. There is a circular hole in the larger crater in which the lava bubbles. The level rises and falls daily and often will come over the lip into the larger crater. While we were over it things were a bit below the lip but you could still see the heat just below the surface of the lava. Because the air cools the lava quickly, you rarely see the molten lava is it is usually under a crust. Still very hot, but not liquid.
We then headed off to another area of activity. Here there was a rip in the surface from which gases were billowing. As you looked through the various holes, you could see into the heart of things and the glow from the lava was impressive. The color was intense and you could sense the heat within. As the lava emerged from various fissures in the surface, it would cool to make a new crust. A metallic looking surface would appear. Occasionally, the lava would bubble forward and, oh so briefly, there would be a red glow on the surface. Then it would cool and add a bit more to the metallic surface.
Big Island was a constant stream of references to the incredible forces that had formed the island. The lava fields covered much of the island. Even on the beaches, you had to be cautious of the lava chunks on the sand. My delicate feet did not like the lava. However, nothing could match the raw power that was on display at the volcanoes. I was certainly not disappointed having focused so much on them in planning the trip. Nature is amazingly powerful.
Being lucky is so cool. I don’t know how many excellent opportunities I have missed without realizing it (that’s the benefit of not realizing it), but I have been fortunate to stumble into some good stuff. We were driving down towards Hilo when we came to an overlook above a bay. We pulled over and walked up to the edge to see a great view down into a lovely looking bay. The waves were crashing in from the ocean and the place looked cool. We were so close to moving on after a few minutes.
Just before we turned to go, we saw a couple of people down on a headland in the bay. We weren’t in a hurry so we figured we would head down the trail and see what was there. The area was butted up against a botanic garden which we weren’t planning on visiting so we knew we wouldn’t go far. As we got to the bottom of the trail, we came to an entrance to the garden with a security guard sitting watch over who came through. Then we saw a small side track alongside the fence heading to the water. A short excursion brought us to a beach. The waves were crashing up on the shore by our feet and everything was covered over with a dense canopy of trees. A little climb took me out onto a spur of rock with the waves crashing either side. A rocky cliff face was on one side and the waves were striking it violently.
There was a small blowhole in the rock near where I stood. As the waves came in just right, the water would fire out of the hole. Other times nothing would happen or there would be a small gurgle. I talked to a couple of guys out there who obviously knew the place well. They pointed out how far out you could go without getting completely drenched by the waves. More importantly, it looked like the sort of place that you could get caught out by a wave easily. If you went into the water, I suspect it could have ended badly.
Forget that though. The place was gorgeous. When the guys left, we were the only ones there. The waves were pounding the shore, the scenery was stunning and you felt like you were the only person in the world who knew it was there. It was hard to break away. We stood there for ages. Sometimes the waves would come that bit further up the beach than normal and they would wash over my feet. No point in objecting. Just stand there and enjoy it. Of course, we had to leave eventually. Those visiting the botanic garden had a promontory a short distance away but they were really not in a good position to enjoy the experience because they were on one of the nicer parts. We met a couple coming down the trail as we left. They looked ready to turn back and had not seen where we had gone. We made sure to explain where they needed to go. I hope they liked it.
The drive to the rain forest from Port Angeles took us alongside Crescent Lake. I suspect I don’t need to tell you roughly what shape the lake is but, if you don’t know, check it out on a map! It was a pretty overcast morning when we drove by but this provided some soft lighting on the surrounding hills and also gave some interesting clouds to sit in some of the valleys and near the hill tops.
There were plenty of pull off locations along the road that skirts the south side of the lake. It appears that the north side is pretty inaccessible by vehicle when looking at the maps of the area. Only when you get to the west end of the lake do you start to see properties on the other side so I guess the road access up there does not go too far. The water in the lake was very calm and the whole thing had a very ethereal feel about it.
We headed back in to Truckee one evening for dinner. We were eating at a restaurant called Cottonwood. It is only a short distance from the center of the town but it is up on a hillside so has a great view down to the main street. The sun went down while we were having dinner which was taken out on the terrace. The restaurant has a cool sign that illuminates when it gets dark. Meanwhile, the town lights up beneath you. It was a bit chilly – they didn’t turn on the outdoor heaters – but you could have a blanket if you wanted. We did fine without but, if it had got much colder, I might have taken them up on the offer.
Lake Tahoe is a pretty place wherever you are on the shore (assuming you exclude the casino resort area on the south end). It is easy to get blasé about the great views as you drive around the lake. However, get to Emerald Bay and you will definitely notice the beauty of the place. The highway winds around the bay high up on the hills so you have a view down to the water below you. We approached from the south and there is a viewing overlook as you round the headland into the bay. This was absolutely packed with people so stopping was not really an option.
We continued down to the trailhead and got amazingly lucky to find a parking space opening up as we arrived. People were parked all over the place and along the road in both directions but we were exactly where we wanted to be! Outstanding! The view down to the bay is lovely. There is a small island in the middle of the bay which makes it look evening more inviting. The idea of staying on the shore, swimming out in the bay and across to the island sounds great. Of course, this is snow run-off so I imagine the water temperature as a bit on the chilly side.
The place was hugely popular. Not only were people on the beaches along the shore but there was a steady stream of boats pulling in to the bay from elsewhere on Lake Tahoe. I have no idea how busy this place gets in the summer but I imagine it is absolutely crazy.
Of course, Donner Pass and Donner Lake are named for the Donner Party. If you are not familiar with American history, this was a group heading west that got trapped in the pass in winter and many did not make it out alive. Those that survived had to do some harsh things to make it. The tale is a sad one and there is a memorial to the party near one end of the lake at the location in which they camped. There is a visitors’ center and a number of trails. The focal point is a large memorial. The base of the memorial is as high as the snow was reportedly deep that winter. It is a lot of snow! On top is a group of hardy travelers. When you think what people went through to get across the country in those days, they were truly hardy types.
I posted photos of Donner Lake a while back as I was traversing the Sierras en route to Reno. This time we got a lot longer to look around. We did stop at the overlook on the interstate but then we dropped down the hill to the lake itself. There was a nice beach at one end which had a few people visiting even though it was rather early in the year. Some of the houses built along the lake looked pretty nice too. I imagine they would be very pleasant places to spend some relaxing time.
Ski resorts are designed around the winter season and, come the summer, they can often be rather deserted. The weather was warm and sunny during our visit to Squaw Valley Olympic Village but the place was far from quiet. There was a festival underway so the center of the resort was filled with stalls from various vendors selling all sorts of things but mainly focused on art and craft type items. Meanwhile, bands were playing at a couple of stages.
The event was obviously very popular and large numbers of people were milling about. Some of the lifts up the mountains were also still in use. Obviously a lot has changed since the days of the Winter Olympics in the 60s but there are still signs around the town of the history of the games having been there. I imagine the winter games were a lot lower key in those days but I still imagine the valley was pretty busy at that time. It would have been quite an influx of people. I wonder what the evening entertainment was like then.
Prior to visiting Truckee, I knew virtually nothing about it. I knew some people who had visited and liked it but I knew not much at all other than that it was a station on the railroad over the Sierras. It turns out to be a great little town. The main street provides a lot to see and do on a day out. The variety of buildings is interesting and there is a nice map you can pick up at the visitors’ center that explains the history of various places and the background to the town itself. It has gone through a number of phases as the economy of the area has developed.
The Truckee Hotel looks very cool. A colleague of mine stayed there a couple of years ago and had a great time. A gas station has been restored and used as office space but it looks just like an operational gas station still. The train depot includes the visitors’ center along with the Amtrak station. There are plenty of places to eat and a good selection of shops with arts, crafts and other items. We walked the length of the town and checked out the various buildings. The street runs alongside the river and there is some more on the other side although not as much to attract your attention. The town is not all though. There is more in the vicinity for another post. This would not be our only visit to the town on this trip either.
