Kona sunset - Hawaii

Kona Sunset

In the small coastal town of Kailua-Kona, on the western shore of the Big Island of Hawai'i, a new ritual has developed at sunset.

Kailua-Kona sits at the foot of Hualalai, one of the five volcanoes that make up the Big Island. Travelling mauka (inland) from the town means travelling uphill on the side of this huge, dormant volcano.

Being a coastal town on the west means that the sun sets over the ocean. Kailua-Kona enjoys some of the most spectacular sunsets you can see anywhere. Clouds often form on the higher, cooler slopes of Hualalai, where the coffee growers have found the perfect climate, and the trade winds blowing from the north east push the clouds out over the ocean.

The most spectacular sunsets are seen when the sun glows red near the horizon and throws its light onto the undersides of the clouds. A vast,moving light show develops and then gradually subsides as the sun falls below the horizon.

As sunset approaches, the bustling town begins to quiet down, the traffic slows and some cars pull into the side of Ali'i Drive. Shop keepers close their shops and come outside. Pedestrians pause and sit on the sea wall or the beach. Everyone gazes out to sea and, for a few minutes, watches the heavenly display. As the sun disappears, some people cheer or applaud, while others just sit in rapt silence. Then, as darkness settles over the town, the cars and pedestrians move off, the shop keepers open their shops and the stown picks up its pace again, renewed by this natural wonder.