Saturday Stroll

We went for a hike August 2nd. It was overcast and rainy down here in the Park. So we headed up Saddle Rd. Under "normal" Hawaii weather (is there any normal weather here?) this would mean we were heading into even colder, heavier rain. But this day was pleasant at 4,000ft. We drove just 14 miles out of town and then hiked along a hunter's road toward the Waianaku River.

Our good friend, doctor John Price, joined us and provided wonderful information about the local flora and fauna. Although I can't remember but a fraction of the beautiful green native plants he pointed out, I sure enjoyed his knowledge. We did get to see many Clermontia montis-loa plants.

One of which was flowering. He collected a specimen for a project he is working on in which he's comparing the flower shape to the extinct bird bill shapes to determine which bird pollinated this plant. I think he was simply enjoying hugging a tree.

Oh and for my birding aunts, we heard an Oma'o. It's a native Hawaiian bird that is now only found on the Big Island. Come for a visit; we'll rock your life list and make your friends jealous.

Miley was a trooper. She enjoyed riding on mommy's and daddy's warm tummy. What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

These are the photos we took with our new camera. Thank you so much to my family for giving it to us. I love it! You can look forward to many more beautiful photos.

Here is the USDA classification of our Clermontia montis-loa.
Kingdom Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass Asteridae
Order Campanulales
Family Campanulaceae – Bellflower family
Genus Clermontia Gaudich. – clermontia
Species Clermontia montis-loa Rock – Mauna Loa clermontia