Hiking with Hawaiian Christmas trees

Jarrod and I recently hiked the Aiea Loop trail. While it wasn't my favorite hike on Oahu, it was very enjoyable and the view of H-3 (a highway that spans the Ko'olau mountain range and connects the east and west sides of the island) was stunning. There weren't a ton of flowers to look at on this hike, but we did see plenty of what we generally refer to as "those weird Hawaiian pine trees." They're actually called Norfolk pines (after their native land of Norfolk Island in the Pacific Ocean) and there's actually a farm on Oahu that sells them as Christmas trees!

Electric Beach

Jarrod and I went snorkeling at a new spot on Monday called Electric Beach. It's on the west side of Oahu and named such because it's right across the street from a power plant. The power plant was two huge pipes that spit hot air or water (not sure which) out into the ocean and the fishies love it. Getting out to the open ocean was a bit rough as we had to basically get clobbered in the face by huge, very salty waves first. And then it was about a quarter-mile swim out to the pipes. There weren't as many neat fish as Hanauma Bay, but we did see a few new ones. Spinner dolphins and sea turtles frequent this area, but unfortunately we didn't see either. We did encounter a school of neat little squid, though, which was a first for us. Next up for snorkeling: Shark's Cove on the North Shore and Chinaman's Hat on the east side.