So you want to know what makes a Hawaiian island? Great, you're in the right place. While every island has its own story, and we'll touch on that, only one is a living example of a Hawaiian Island in the works - the Big Island. It's the perfect specific to examine and use as an example. That said, let's take a look at the geology of the only island you can still see physically growing by day.

The 'Hot Spot'

So what exactly is this 'hot spot' you hear so much about, and how does it form these beautiful islands? The answer to this question is fairly simple. The Hawaiian Islands are situated near the middle of the "Pacific Plate" on top of a 'hot spot.' This Pacific Plate is almost always moving northwestward at a rate of several centimeters per year, about the same rate as your fingernails grow. This constant northwestward movement of the Pacific Plate over a local volcanic "hot spot," or plume, has produced a series of islands, one after another in assembly line fashion. The result is a chain of volcanic islands (Hawaiian archipelago) that consists of eight major islands and 124 islets stretching from the Big Island of Hawai'i along a northwest line for 1,500 miles toward Japan and the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. In total, the islands spread across an area of 6,459 square miles. The link above shows one perspective of this chain of islands. This link shows another view of the Hawaii archipelago.

Hawaii's cultural environment is the result of layer upon layer of various cultural groups. The culture of Hawai'i is arguably one of the strongest remaining in the world, and certainly within the United States. The culture and practices of the Hawaiian people remains very evident on the islands, even though the Hawaiian race itself has become diminished and "diluted" over the years - few pure blood Hawaiians remain in the general population.

Remnants of New English culture remain, though not nearly to the degree of early Asian immigrants who came to work in the sugar cane fields in the early 20th century. Additionally, Polynesian influence in the islands is strong as one might expect. Today Hawaii is a truly a melting pot of many cultures, beliefs, and heritage.

The arts are of high interest in the islands, either in the form of music, photography, hula dance, or art. Galleries for art and photography are prominent throughout the islands, music has worked its way around the globe and into several major movies (thanks to the late Israel Kamakawiwo'ole - Brother IZ), and the hula is world renown. Appreciation of classical, modern, and experimental art forms is evident in attendance figures at galleries, concerts, legitimate theater performances, and museums. Many ethnic groups preserve the traditions of their ancestors by combining or modifying music and dance forms.

While it's always going to be close to impossible to predict the weather months or even weeks ahead of your vacation, you can look at past weather and climatic variables to determine what is likely to occur. Below we'll go over some of the most common concerns about Hawai'i weather. If nothing else, you'll have a general idea of what to expect. As always, be sure to check local weather through the TV stations during your stay for day to day updates. Avoid the Weather Channel's web site, they'll say it's going to rain every day. It's not.

General Weather Patterns: The best thing about Hawai'i's weather is that it is very localized. You may be driving along the island and be in a rain storm one minute and in bright sun the next. This variety of weather allows you to fully experience Hawai'i and its sun-drenched beaches, misty rainbow-filled valleys, pristine waterfalls, cool highlands, and lush mountains. The chart seen to the right here shows the distribution of precipitation annually on the islands; click the chart to enlarge it.

Hawaii, like all the other major Hawaiian islands, is affected by the trade winds. These winds blow NE to ENE and are typically more prevalent in the winter months. These trade winds bring cool air to the islands from the north, often resulting in precipitation along mauka and windward areas. At times, these winds can die down and practically reverse so that a south wind blows over the islands, resulting in very hot and muggy conditions. These winds are called Kona winds.

One mistake a lot of people make when they visit Hawai'i is assuming there is a wet and/or dry season like back home, but it's not quite that simple. Granted, there are two distinct times of year and weather patterns due to the trade winds, but there is no defined "rainy season." The general point to be made is, you can't just say it's rainy in the winter and dry in the summer. We've seen it bone dry in the winter, and had flooding in the summer; each enough times to derail most short-term trends. Still, we can look at the long term trends and get a general idea of what to expect. Let's take a look.

The following is a brief history of the islands of Hawaii. Specifically this text is pulled directly from our Hawaii - Mile by Mile Guidebook. We hope it helps provide our guests with a better understanding of the islands and the people that live upon them.

Birds & Seeds

Thousand of miles from the nearest continent the volcanic mountains stood somber and alone in the Pacific, void of nearly all life. Lifeless they would remain if not for the birds, the currents, and the wind. Seeds were carried by the tides that washed across the shores. Storms brought more seeds with their howling winds and rains. The birds, like the small golden plover, brought the rest.

Eventually the Hawaiian islands would be covered with extensive forest habitats, shrubbery, and grasslands. Soil and precipitation differences around the islands would cater to all kinds of plant-life. In time, the foreign species would become unique to all the world, found only in Hawai'i. Today, we call them endemic Hawaiian species like the Nene (Hawaiian goose) and silversword (which is a relative of the sunflower believe it or not). You will find them no where else on the planet. These species had thousands, if not millions, of years to develop into unique flora and fauna. And for thousands and thousands of years they were undisturbed by the ways of humans. Today, many of these species are not so lucky. The 'Akiapola'au (photo seen above) is just one example of a species that is fading fast. Most experts predict that their numbers have dwindled to between 1,000-1,500. They can be found only on the Big Island. We were very lucky to see one as recently as 2006.

Thousand of miles from the nearest continent the volcanic mountains of Hawai'i stood somber and alone in the Pacific, void of nearly all life. Lifeless they would remain if not for the birds, the currents, and the wind. Seeds were carried by the tides that washed across the shores. Storms brought more seeds with their howling winds and rains. The birds, like the small golden plover, brought the rest. Birds would fly from as far as 3,000 miles away, non-stop.

Eventually the Hawaiian islands would be covered with extensive forest habitats, shrubbery, and grasslands. Soil and precipitation differences around the islands would cater to all kinds of plant-life. In time, the foreign species would become unique to all the world, found only in Hawai'i.

Today, we call them endemic Hawaiian species like the Nene (Hawaiian goose) and silversword (which is actually a relative of the sunflower). You will find them no where else on the planet. These species had thousands, if not millions, of years to develop into unique flora and fauna.

For thousands and thousands of years they were undisturbed by the ways of humans. Today, many of these species are not so lucky. The 'Akiapola'au (a rare bird found on the Big Island of Hawai'i) is just one example of a species that is fading fast. Most experts predict that their numbers have dwindled to between 1,000-1,500. We were very fortunate to see one as recently as 2006, so perhaps hope still remains for this incredible bird.

This unusual plant, unique to Haleakala on Maui and Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawaii, has thoroughly adapted to the harsh environment of its home. What's even more fascinating is that each volcanic mountain has it's own unique type of silversword. The Haleakala species is unique to all the world on Maui and is considered by many to be the most beautiful.

The bloom stalk of the silversword is a true sight to behold, often several feet tall with a hundred or more purple flowers. What makes the blooming of a silversword even more special is that the plants live from 15 to more than 50 years but bloom only once and die. If you see one in bloom, take a moment to realize how unique that opportunity really is.

Hawai'i is English speaking, though it is the only state with two official languages, English and Hawaiian. The Hawaiian language is a dialect of the Polynesian tongue, other variations of which are spoken by Samoans, Tahitians, Marquesans, Tuamotuans and Maoris.

Although Hawaiian, formerly a major means of communication, is all but extinct, it remains in place names, street names, songs, and the local residents liberally sprinkle their speech with words and phrases from the traditional language. A "pidgin" English has also formed throughout the state in varying degrees of richness, while some of the older immigrants from Japan and China continue to speak their native tongues.

The Hawaiian alphabet has only 12 letters: A, E, I, O, U, H, K, L, M, N, P, and W.

Vowel pronunciation:
A as in father, E as in vein, I as "ee" in peep, O as on own, and U as "oo" in boo.

Consonant pronunciation:
H as in hale, K as in Kate, L as in laid, M as in moon, N as in noon, P as in peak, and W as in always.

Rules of the Language:
Every word must end in a vowel. Every consonant must be followed by at least one vowel. Every syllable must end in a vowel.