Things I'll NEVER forget by Dieter Heuck

Owning my own board and learning to surf has been great! But I'll never ever forget.....

Cruising the Caribbean...



The Pyramids (Sakkara, Egypt)
The Pyramids were in the ancient times. They were tombs for the Egyptian Kings called Pharaohs. The great architect Imhotep came up with the way to build the Pyramids.


The Sphinx (Sakkara, Egypt):
The Sphinx was built by the ancient Egyptians some seven thousand years ago. It was created to guard the Pyramids.


The Zigguraat:
The Ziggurat is one of the first step pyramids that led to all others. It housed the Pharaoh's tombs.


Big Ben (London, England):
Big Ben is actually the BELL in the clocktower in London. It was made by the same people who made the Liberty Bell and Guess What? They're BOTH cracked!


Pompeii (Italy):
This ancient city was covered in volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. Many people died and were covered in the volcanic ash.




L'Arc de Triomphe (Paris, France)"
The Arc de Triomphe is a man made structure. It was a monument built after their victory in the French revolution.


The Painting of the Mona Lisa (Louvre, Paris, France):
The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci. They say that she looked sad because her daughter had just died so she was not in a good mood. If you look at the Mona Lisa long enough she seems to smile.



The Colusseum (Rome, Italy):
The Colusseum was a gladiator arena. In the intermission they would let people juggle and after that they would throw the entertainers in with the wild animals. The animals would tear them apart and the people cheered. They also would throw animals in with the gladiators.


Leaning Tower of Pisa (Pisa, Italy):
The Leaning Tower of Pisa was supposed to be the Tower of Pisa. It was built on unstable ground so when it was almost finished, it started to lean. After they braced it, the architect completed the tower and the last three floors are actually straight!




The Library of Ephesus (Ephesus, Turkey):
The Library of Ephesus was where lots of ancient books (scrolls) were stored. They were all lost after a fire.


Venice (Venice, Italy):
There are no roads, only canals and waterways in Venice. The ancient Venicians used the canals as a defence mechanism against their enemies.


The Eiffel Tower (Paris, France):
One of the greatest landmarks in the world. It was built for the 1889 World Expo.


Seeing My Favorite Pirate and The "Dutchmen"


Jet Skiing in the Bahamas


AND Spending Time with my little cousin Emellin (Willem):




I can't WAIT for my next adventure!

Mahalo Hawaii Ohana and Aloha

MAHALO Hawaii Family and ALOHA!

A Scene of Wild Beauty

Mark Twain called it, "A Scene of wild beauty."

Just as it was for Mark Twain, over a century ago, this was truly the experience of a lifetime!

Our tour included:
> A drive through Hilo along Banyan Drive
> A visit to Rainbow Falls
> Exploring Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park
> A visit to Jaggar Museum and Volcano House
> A walk through Thurston Lava Tube and across part of Kilauea Iki Crater
AND a visit to the macadamia nut factory (with sampling!)

Our adventure began with the stinging piercing shrill sound of the phone. It was the 4:00 a.m. wake up call from the good folks at the front desk. At 4:30 we were out on the street waiting for the bus to take us to the airport for a one-day excursion to the Big Island. Thoughts and comments from four sleepy Canadians at that time were far from Mark Twain's reported verse.

Our tour guide "Harry" we soon learned, proved to be one of Hawaii's treasures. Harry weaved the history, legends and facts of the tour into a facinating story. We soon forgot we were tired and listened, watched, and experienced the SCENE OF WILD BEAUTY.

Harry explained that the Hawaiian islands are located above a hot spot and plumes of magma rising from deep within the mantle have reached the surface erupting on the ocean floor creating a seamount. After several hundred thousand years and countless eruptions, the volcano rises above sea level to build a new island. The volcano continues to grow until the movement of the Pacific plate carries the island away from the hotspot. During the last 70 million years, the Pacific plate has acted as a conveyor belt, moving the islands northwest off the hotspot at a rate of about 4 inches a year. He explained that this is similar to the growth rate of a fingernail. The parks active volcanoes, Moana Loa and Kilauea, continue the island-
building process that formed the 3500 mile Hawaiian Island/Emperor Seamount Chain. They are not the last: To the southeast, Loihi Seamount, an active submarine volcano, is rising from the ocean floor to someday link with the Big Island.

The most compelling parts of the story were concerning the volcanoes. In Hawaii's Volcanoes National Park we walked on a moon-like surface: a vast area of "newly created" land spanning nearly 4000 acres. We were told if we wanted to pick up a piece of the dark BLACK stuff we had to be careful to return it to it's exact place of origin. Failure to do so, or to remove a piece of lava and take it home, we were told, would bring bad luck and hardship. This, we were assured, was reported on reputable shows like the Discovery Channel. Thus, we CAREFULLY observed the lava rock pieces not wanting to bring Pele's wrath down upon us. The material, or Pumice as it's called, is very porous and ressembles a luffah sponge or one of those rocks that you use to file your calloused feet! The air bubbles make this stone remarkably light. The patterns in the lava told the story of its flow and how the water and waves met the heat of the magma: you could SEE the movement.

We were surprised to see coconut trees growing out of dried coconuts splayed all over the lava. This is how these islands grew.

Each year Hawaii grows. It gains new land mass which becomes the property of the state. Amazing.

We didn't take the two-mile hike to see the hot lava flowing: our tour didn't have sufficient liability insurance for that part of the trip.
Only those who don't have respiratory problems were permitted to take the 20 minute hike in the crater due to the steam of sulphuric gases. It really stung the nostrils and gave you a gagging sensation. The sight of the steam was a constant reminder to the inevitable reality that it "will blow again."

During our tour of the Thurston Lava Tube, we learned about how this unique geological feature is formed. This particular tube runs continuously for 29 miles. The Thurston Tube is located in a tropical rainforest providing us the opportunity to experience its biological diversity.

We experienced rain, sunshine and quite chilly temperatures as we travelled from sea level to the 4000 feet at Kilauea's summit. All this prompted many questions from Erik and Dieter and our guide was equipped and ready with the answers.

Dieter jumped and the seismograph registered the activity at the Kiauea visitor's center. He will never forget the experience. Word he's added to his vocabulary include: lava; hotspot; magma; crater, caldera, plate tectonics and pacific plate.

After all this amazing information, the part of the trip I had been looking so forward to (the macadamia nut factory) seemed anti-climatic.

Mark Twain was right. It was an "experience of a lifetime."

Volcanoes We Saw Along the Way

Volcanoes are monuments to Earth's origin, evidence that its primordial forces are still at work. During a volcanic eruption, we are reminded that our planet is an ever-changing environment whose basic processes are beyond human control. As much as we have altered the face of the Earth to suit our needs, we can only stand in awe before the power of an eruption.

Here is some information on the volcanoes we have seen on our voyage

(In Order)
Mt. Etna: Sicily
Condition: Active
Weather: Rain w/snow on the summit
Height: 10,910 ft.
Length: 460 square miles
Type: Strato-volcano
Last eruption: November '07
Fact: Most Active and largest volcano in Europe

Mt. Vesuvius: Naples
Condition: Dormant (One of the most deadly volcanoes of all time)
Weather: Overcast w/snow on the summit
Height: 4,203 ft.
Length: 5 km.
Type: Strato-volcano
Last eruption: 1944
Fact: Covered all of Pompeii with volcanic ash and Herculanium in a mudslide

Diamond Head: Oahu
Condition: Extinct
Weather: Sunny
Height: 762 ft.
length: 3 km/2 km
Type: Volcanic cone
Last eruption: Over 1 million years ago
Fact: Diamond Head was used as a base in both World Wars

Koko Head: Oahu
Condition: Extinct
Weather: Partly cloudy (Also the day G-E-E went diving)
Height:1208 ft.
Length: 2 square km.
Type: Tuff cone
Last eruption: over 1 million years ago
Fact: Koko Head has three depressions or "old vents" and the largest is Hanauma bay (world renowned snorkling site)

Kilauea: The Big Island of Hawaii
Condition: Active
Height: 4091 ft.
Length: Unknown:
Type: Sheild volcano
Last eruption: Currently erupting
Fact: Kilauea is the most active volcano on the planet

Mauna Loa: The Big Island of Hawaii
Condition: Dormant (snow on summit)
Height: 13,677 ft.
Length: Approx. 7 km.
Type: sheild volcano
Last eruption: 1984
Fact: Mauna Loa is the world's largest volcano


By Erik Heuck

The two-toed Sloth

Today we headed over to the Zoo to check on some of our favourite mammals. Erik's favourite is the two-toed sloth. We watched the slowest mammal in the world eat his breakfast of apples, melons and oranges. As you can imagine, this process took a L O N G time! This creature is so slow that algae grows on it's fur, giving it a greenish tinge. Sloths live in treetops and mate and give birth "up there." They are nocturnal animals so they sleep in the day and eat at night. There are three toed sloths as well, but the Zoo only has the two toed species.

We also like the golden lion tamarin, which is a quick monkey-like creature that has a little face that looks like a miniature lion. This is the same animal that Nicole Kidman has in the Golden Compass.

The kids also liked the Kookaburra mostly because it's also known as the "laughing jackass."


We always need to go take another peek at the Sumatran Tigers. It's sad to think there are only 700 remaining in the wild and another 200 in captivity.

The weather can be unpredictable here in Hawaii so we experienced sunshine and showers at the same time today.

We are settling into a routine again, although we miss WEB. They're back in Saskatchewan trying to stay warm.

Scuba Koko Head

The "Three Amigos" (as they call themselves) went for their Scuba Dive at Turtle Canyon and The Barge near Koko Head. Adding to the excitement and adventure: a rough boat ride. They were glad they didn't have coconut pancakes for breakfast! The barge, sunk back in the 80's as an artificial reef, lays in 30 meters of water in Koko Bay (east of Diamond Head). It supports a variety of tropical fish and is also home to Hawiian Green Sea Turtles. The second dive was in a more shallow part of the bay called Turtle Canyon. Ironically, no turtles were seen there, but they did see eels, other tropicals, and a Spotted Eagleray. The three amigos, all sporting new dive watches, have added another adventure to their list and have begun plans for the next great one.

Diamond Head

It's renown silhouette is as synonymous with Waikiki as the Eiffel Tower is to Paris.

It is said that Hi'aka, sister of the fire goddess Pele, gave Le'ahi it's name because the summit resembles the forhead (lae) of the 'ahi (tuna) fish. Another translation is fire headland and refers to the navigational fires that were lit at the summit to assist canoes travelling along the shoreline. The heiau (temple) built on the summit was dedicated to the god of wind as protection against strong updrafts that could put out these navigational fires. Today the Diamond Head Light, built in 1917, provides a visual aid for navigation.

In the late 1700's, Western explorers and traders visited Le'ahi and mistook the calcite crystals in the rocks on the slope of the crater for diamonds. Thus the name Diamond Head.

The pronounced seaward summit, deeply eroded ridges, and saucer-shaped crater are evidence of Le'ahi's very dynamic geological history. The creation of O'ahu began around 2.5 to 3 million years ago with volcanic eruptions from 2 shield volcanoes. A period of extensive erosion followed, leaving the Ko'olau and Wai'anae Mountain Ranges as remnants of these very eroded volcanoes.

After about 2 million years of volcanic inactivity, the southeastern end of Ko'olau Range erupted. These eruptions occurred near the ocean where the magma was broken down into ash and fine particles by the water and steam. Blown into the air, these particles were cemented together into a rock called tuff which created tuff cones, such as Le'ahi.

Le'ahi is believed to have been created about 300,000 years ago during a single, brief eruption. The broad, saucer-shaped crater covers 350 acres with its width being greater than it's height. The southwestern rim is highest because winds were blowing ash in this direction during the eruption. Since the eruption, the slopes of the crater have been eroded and weathered by rain, wind and pounding of the sea. A coral reef now protects the seaward slopes of the crater.

Today, Diamond Head (Le'ahi) is the most recognized landmark in Hawai'i. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1968 as an excellent example of tuff cone.

The Diamond Head trail is a about a .7 mile hike one way that takes about a hour to climb and half the time to get back down. The trail climbs gently from the parking lot to a platform with a view of Koko Head. From here a set of 66 steps leads up to a tunnel, which in turn leads to another staircase 99 steps long.


Finally there is a spiral staircase in a four-level bunker which was built in the early 1900's and used in both world wars as a military observation post. At the third level the trail leads you to the last set of stairs (enough stairs to last us a couple of months). These ascend to the summit where you are treated to panoramic views of Waikiki and the coastline.

Hawaii's a little GREENER than usual this year!

Today we met Terri on Waikiki beach. Terri is the real estate agent who was working with the new owners of 3340 Gloucester Bay. She's one of many folks from Saskatchewan here in Hawaii.

Ever since Greg and Barb gave us those Roughrider Grey Cup Champ t-shirts, we've been meeting fellow Rider Priders here in Hawaii.

We met Erik's friend Mathew and his family while strolling down Kalakaua Avenue a few days ago. Erik was happy to have one of his school buddies to hang out with for a couple of days.