Friday Field Foto #104: Waimea Canyon, Hawai’i
I recently took a trip (a significantly delayed honeymoon, actually) to Hawai’i, which was the first time for me — wow, what an incredible place. I snapped tons of photos of the beautiful landscapes and geologic features, which you all will be seeing in future installments of the Friday Field Foto series no doubt.
Waimea Canyon is on the island of Kaua’i and is sometimes referred to as the ‘Grand Canyon of Hawai’i’. Kaua’i is one of the oldest islands (old around these parts is 5 million years) and, as a result, the shield volcano complex is now dissected by rivers and streams.
Waimea Canyon -- island of Kauai'i (© 2010 clastic detritus)
I just love the combination of red and green colors from the weathering basalt and patches of lush rainforest — absolutely spectacular.
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Happy Friday!
Clastic Detritus 
Looks like you had nice clear weather. Were the trade winds blowing at all when you were there?
I love the lateric soil development on Kaua’i. Did you get a chance to go to the Na Pali coast overlook?
Yes, trade winds blowing pretty good most of the days. This particular day it was very cloudy on our way up, but when we drove back down it had cleared up nicely.
I will be posting many more photos in coming weeks/months, but you can see them all on Flickr here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bromans/collections/72157623399456031/
Waimea Canyon is one of the most beautiful places on the planet! I only regret that in three visits to the island, I still haven’t walked the trails (darn my student for dislocating a finger last summer!). Looking forward to seeing more…