I saw: black sand beaches, coffee plantations, rainbows, whales, an active volcano's glowing lava pool, the southernmost bakery in the United States, donkeys, huge macadamia nut farms, rain forests, miles of lava fields, mongoose, native temples, dugout canoes, and waterfalls.Our group of twelve cyclists -- all strangers before -- representing all ages and skills quickly formed an amazingly warm connection. We laughed heartily and well throughout the day from the pre-cycling circle to the open air dinner. None of us wanted this to end! (Of course who would, given the fact that much of the US experienced an Arctic blast in our absence.)
As for the cycling in Hawaii, I must report that the state leaves a lot to be desired. While the views are spectacular, the roads have many flaws. There were several times that the safety margins disappeared and the risks grew much too great for my practiced eye. I would never lead a bike ride along some of the roads that we traveled this week. In addition, the surprisingly large amount of glass on the highway kept the Backroads pit crews busy changing tires. I had two flats myself.
The photographs, of course, represent those quiet moments on the relatively few backroads that could be found. In heavy traffic, with little shoulder on broken pavement one would never stop to take a picture! But it's done! I'll be back for a project wrapup soon. And, yes, I realize I will have to be developing a set of links to the 2013 centuries. So much to do, and so little time until bicycling season!
