Hawaii high point

Pants and jackets? This would appear to be an odd day in Hawaii.

Invisible cows?!? Cool. But I never did see one… hmmm.

On the ascent to Mauna Kea.. at 13,796 feet above sea level, it’s the highest point in Hawaii.

Hug me! It’s cold up here above the clouds. (Here we are at about 10,000 feet). Scientists say this volcanic mountain is akin to Mars…

Snow-topped Mauna Loa “long mountain” is in the background. It’s 13,679 feet in elevation. Along with Mauna Kea, it’s one of five volcanoes that form the “Big Island” of Hawaii.

Mauna Kea means “white mountain” and sure enough there’s snow up there. Hard to believe Hawaii has snow, but at this elevation, it’s relatively common in the “winter.” (Our tour provided arctic parkas and gloves). People bring skis, snowboards, sleds and even boogie boards up the mountain to get some fun play time. And it’s not uncommon to see pickup trucks with beds full of snow going down the mountain to surprise kids with snow at the beach.

After a quick ascent, our guide warned us to take it slow. Altitude sickness is common. We did experience some light headedness and shortness of breath. There is 40% less oxygen up there!! We definitely felt a little strange.

There are 13 observatories atop Mauna Kea, which is one of the world’s best sites for astronomical observation. Alas, the professionals are busy up there and you can’t just go take a peak. Luckily, our tour company brings along a $5,000 Celestron telescope.

Beautiful sunset..! Then we waited for the sky to darken, and for the milky way to emerge. Wow. Shooting stars, and through the telescope we viewed the nebula of Orion’s sword, four of Jupiter’s moons, binary stars and galaxies far, far away. Stunning.