Mountains/Photography

The Mountain Ridges on Oahu Island, Hawaii

A Photo Story

Honolulu traffic during rush hour gives the infamous Los Angeles congestion a run for its money. But once we left the city behind, it was mountains, mountains all the way.

Cliffs reared up on either side as we drove. Some rock faces were bare. Others were thickly forested, with woody vines that brushed at the roof and doors of our vehicle.

I started a poem about the mountains. But my words felt tiny compared to their looming mass. So I decided to stick to pictures.

Here are some of my photos:

Tree nudging mountain.

Heavenly beings. At 12,000 feet, this peak stands high enough to commune with the clouds.

According to our GyPSy guide, early explorers thought the ridge below looked like a rabbit.

Rabbit?

I think it looks like a dinosaur emerging from the sea. Snout extreme right. One-third of the way, that recess looks like an eye.

What do you think?

Do you see impressions of lava flows in the picture below? Or am I being fanciful?

The Hawaiian archipelago and mountains were created approximately 40 to 70 million years ago by volcanic eruptions under the Pacific ocean bed. The furrows in this ridge got my imagination working overtime. I saw molten streams moving down already-cooled slopes, carving out pathways as they flowed.

Do you see that?

The Nu’aanu Pali lookout in Oahu is one of the windiest spots in Hawaii.

The lookout overlooks the cliffs of the Koolau Mountain Range. The gap between the cliffs acts as a wind tunnel through which the The Trade Winds gust right in.

We walked up to the overlook. My windcheater inflated like a balloon — and this was a normal day on these cliffs. On a stormy day, I might have taken off.

Still, even with my feet planted firmly on the ground, my mood was as uplifted as the mountains.

Thanks for reading! 🌼🌄

Thanks, Dr. Preeti Singh, for publishing this piece. Two stories I would recommend: Loved this gardening story by Josephine Crispin:

And Valorie Lasley gives some great tips about how to become an active listener:

Here’s an amazing mountain story by Elder Taoist:

The inspiration for my mountain story came from Dr. Preeti Singh’s prompt:

And here are some of my other stories: 🌼📚