Moon, Mauna Kea, Merry Christmas and Bees!

This morning, hoping to take advantage of the weekend and the clear weather the storm has brought us, I drove up Huehue Street to the 5075' trailhead at 5:15, stopping at McDonalds for a Southern Chicken biscuit, whatever that potato patty is called, and black coffee, which, unhealthy though it may be, was delicious and gone in short order. Even though the sun wasn't going to be up until 6:49 (thanks, Google weather!) the pre-dawn glow and the light of the full moon were more than adequate, and there are rewards for being up there early:


I had to be back at 9:30 to take my 15 year-old to a hair appointment for her first high school dance, a bittersweet occasion to be sure (for me, not for her) so there was no time to try for the top (6.5 miles each way). I decided to try a "road" that's not on the topographical map I got from offroute.com (customized combo of four USGS maps on waterproof paper for about 12 bucks!) but which I found on Google Earth. At about 2.25 miles in, I was rewarded with the sight of Mauna Kea in the early morning sun:


Then it was time to turn around and head back. The predominant shrub above 6000' is Pukiawe, as Christmasy-looking a plant as you'll find in Hawai'i (More so than the awful Christmas Berry) so here is today's "Merry Christmas" picture:



Finally, as I made my way back to the main road, I heard buzzing, which only got louder as I approached this ohia tree. As I looked I discovered (apology in advance) a beehive of activity: