You don't have JavaScript enabled in your browser. This web site makes use of JavaScript. Please enable JavaScript.

English Top Page > Splash talks story
Splash's Kauai talk. There are some pictures too.

Tsunami

Nov-15-2006 Wed
e03_01This morning a small tsunami struck Kauai. The maximum change in water level seems to have been about 4 to 5 feet at Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor. There was no major damage or injuries caused by the tsunami.

I had read about the tsunami in the news this morning. I have lived here for many years and have gone through two tsunami warnings. I was a little disappointed to read about the tsunami that I had missed. I did go down to Nawiliwili to check on my boat and to see if anything had happened.
e03_03At 11:00 am when I arrived at Nawiliwili I was surprised to see that the tsunami was not over. The water was still coming in and going out with a period of about 10 min and a height of about two feet. There were many tales of excitement from the boaters who were around for the biggest waves. Fortunately this was a small tsunami and there was a lot of excitement and little destruction.
e03_02If you do not know a tsunami was formerly known as a tidal wave. Scientists did not like that name because they felt that it would be confused with the tides, which are waves with long periods. The tides are caused by the effects of the Moon and the Sun. They are very predictable and follow a repeating pattern. Tsunamis are also known as seismic sea waves. They are created by seismic events in the ocean. They are about as predictable as lottery numbers. Seismic sea wave is probably a little tough on the general public so they decided to call them a tsunami. This is Japanese for a tidal wave. It really means a harbor wave. They are the destructive waves that can destroy harbors. They do come in much like a tide but with much shorter periods. Today's was about 10 min. between crests.
e03_04The earthquake causing it was near the Kuril Islands North of Japan at 1:14 am HST. The largest waves hit Nawiliwili at about 8:35 am. There had been a Tsunami advisory but it had been canceled at about 5:30 am. It was canceled because small waves had been reported from Hokkaido (about a foot) and Alaska (about 8 inches).

The height of tsunami waves can vary greatly from place to place. With neighboring areas sometimes experiencing great differences in wave height. Sometimes distant areas will experience bigger waves than nearby areas. In 1960 there was a very strong earthquake off of Chile. Waves were estimated at about 80 feet at Chile. This set off many warnings in Hawaii which had several destructive tsunamis in its recent past. When this wave reached Tahiti it was reported to have only been a few feet. Many people hearing this went back to their homes in Hilo. When the waves did reach Hawaii they were up to 35 feet in Hilo many people were killed.

A trip around Kauai and Niihau with Shun

Aug-4-2006 Fri

21_01Our friend Shun from Mo Hawaii web site wrote this guide book.  The title is Go Kauai and see Niihau.  Of course he had to come to Kauai and see Niihau to get material for the book.

21_02It is a Japanese Guide Book so it has to mention food.  A good meal is always a good start to an adventure.

21_03Just a few more pictures of food.

21_04Blue Dolphin Charters Niihau tour.  The Dolphins were great but the weather did not let us go across to Niihau this day.

21_05Kii landing on Niihau.  The lunch was better with Blue Dolphin, but  this is Niihau.

21_06I went snorkeling until I could get a good picture for Shun's book.  As a bonus I got to eat lobster for dinner.

21_07The Forbidden sands of Niihau.

21_08 A young monk seal at Kii Landing.

Octopus

Feb-17-2006 Fri

news_19_01Have you ever seen an octopus. I'm guessing probably not. Even for people who are in the water a lot they can be hard to hind. They like to hide and are masters of camouflage.

This particular octopus got a tour of our boat. Most of the time it was in a bucket. We did have to take it out to bring it back down to the bottom where it belongs. If you just throw them back the fish can make a quick lunch of them.

news_19_02They are very good at holding on some times they can be difficult to remove. especially if they are tattooed on your back.

news_19_03Where did it go? I can't seem to find it.

news_19_04I think that it might be a little happier crawling back into it's hole. They usually live in hole often coming out at night to feed. They are often out in the daytime too. In the day they don't go very far from hiding spots.

news_19_05Besides fitting into almost any size hole imaginable. The octopus is able to change its color from reddish brown to white. Often it is a mottled color in between. They can also change their texture from bumpy in this picture to smooth as in the upper picture.

Why are they so secretive? I think that the main reason is that they have soft bodies and taste good.