Tag: sunshine

Haleakala Sunrise

Sunrise on Haleakalā has become so famous that crowds were fighting for a few parking slots on the summit of the volcano. Nowadays access to the summit between 3 and 7 A.M. has been limited. Fortunately, we got one of the few last-minute registrations two days ago. It didn’t change the fact that you need to get up early for the sunrise: we set our alarms to 3 A.M. and reached the summit at around 5 o’clock.

It was freezing cold at 3’055 m.a.s.l. and a bit early for sunrise, but right on time for a few astrophotography pictures.

Moon (center), Venus (to the left), Saturn (green object to the right), clouds, crater, beginning dawn and the Milky Way… proud of this shot! 🙂
  • All together…
  • Stellarium screenshot
  • Milky Way
  • Nightsky over Haleakala

After a quick warm-up in the car (that could be misinterpreted… 😉 ) we rejoined the sunrise viewers at 6 A.M. with the beginning dawn. It really was a wonderful experience to see the sky changing colors. Again, clouds make the difference, without them it might have been much less spectacular.

  • Setting dawn
  • There it is!
  • A real spectacle

With the sun and temperatures rising we checked other overlooks and did a part of the Halemau’u Trailhead to the crater.

  • Clouds
  • Inside of the crater
  • Volcanic cones

Shipwreck Beach

First day without rain on Hawaii! Having already completed our bucket list for Kauai, we didn’t expect much of this day. But it turned out really well. We googled “Kauai easy hikes” and stumbled across Maha’ulepu Heritage Coastal Trail, close to Shipwreck Beach.

Red coast on Kauai

It was a nice coastal walk with remarkable coastal sceneries and a cave to visit (Makauwahi Cave).


  • Makauwahi Cave
  • Rock formations

On our way back we have been rewarded with whale sightings on the horizon.

Didn’t have the zoom camera with us…

And we finally went into the sea and had some fun with the breaking waves. 🙂

Cast Away Island

Beautiful weather, 31°C air temperature, 29°C water temperature, snorkeling and coconut drinking – why can’t every morning be like this?

  • Sea life
  • Nudibranch (?)

In the early afternoon we went on a short trip to the island where Cast Away (starring Tom Hanks as modern Robinson Crusoe) was filmed – also with great snorkeling possibilities. Fun fact: the island is not that remote, Tom Hanks could have swum to the neighbour island and enjoy a cold drink. 😉

  • Cast Away corals
  • Snorkeling in a natural aquarium

Wonderful sunset in the evening – no photoshop involved!

Paradise found!

Milford Sound – Fiords, Sharks and a Hike

We joined a small group with Trips & Tramps. It’s a scenic drive to Milford Sound with some good photo stops, e.g the Mirror Lakes.

As written in the previous article, Milford Sound is known as the wettest inhabited place in New Zealand and one of the wettest in the world (up to 9 meter rain per year!). Travel guides write it basically rains every day. Might be a bit exaggerated, but you get the idea. However, we had a warm and cloudless day and a wonderful time cruising through the fiords. After spotting some seals we wondered if we could also view some dolphins. Well… no, but even better. Even the captain and the tour guide were surprised, as a tresher shark jumped out of the water – multiple times. Hard to believe, but we have the footage. Gerry’s theory: the beginning of a Sharknado!

The ride back to Te Anau had to be earned. We did the Key Summit Trail hike and enjoyed New Zealand’s alpine region. Well, that was a day, even to our (now very high) benchmarks! Thank you, land of Kiwis!

  • Mirror Lakes
  • Milford Sound
  • Milford Sound
  • Jumping Tresher Shark
  • Jumping Tresher Shark
  • Milford Sound Waterfall
  • Milford Sound
  • Trap for stoats and weasels
  • Key Summit
  • Key Summit

Bondi Beach

Good morning sunshine – let’s go up to 250m on the Sydney Eye Tower observation deck. Sydney Tower is 309 meters to the top of the spire and the tallest building of the city.

View from Sydney Eye Tower

Then we used our Opal cards to get to the famous Bondi Beach.
We just arrived at our hotel again before it started raining, and later on, hailing (golf balls in size).