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Water Ways Ray Pendleton |
Hawaii boaters should
count their blessingsWith Thanksgiving just two days behind us, I hope Hawaii's boaters will join me in counting all our special blessings.
At this time of year, it only takes a quick review of most national boating magazines to notice numerous stories on the proper steps for storing boats for the winter, or even the best techniques for ice fishing.
It's the season when most of the usual recreational activities for mainland boaters go on hold for at least four months.
For island anglers and sailors, on the other hand, the fall and winter months are just when (thankfully) daylight hours on the water get a bit shorter, not when our boating activities must cease.
For instance, my friend David Kenney is unquestionably thankful he hasn't had to put his boat away for the winter. On the last two Mondays he's caught 400-plus-pound Pacific blue marlins.
From the Big Island, Jim Rizzuto's Kona Fish Chronicles also show that Kenney's fish are not isolated incidents. Rizzuto's book lists 10 marlin more than 500 pounds that were weighed in during January and February of last year alone.
Hawaii's many fishing holes are open all year -- and so are its sailing venues.
Just drop by Ala Wai Harbor on a Friday evening and you will see dozens of boats heading out for their pau hana race offshore of Waikiki.
Or take a look at Kaneohe Bay almost any weekend. Whether for a day sail or racing, those protected waters are a sailor's delight.
Sure, the larger international regattas will wait until the summer's more consistent tradewinds return, but our local sailors know that winter usually won't threaten them with anything worse than Kona winds and a warm rain.
And as is so often pointed out by boaters offshore, without the rain, we wouldn't be able to enjoy seeing our islands' green mountains framed by the broad sweep of a rainbow.
Of course, the main reason Hawaii is such a boater's paradise is what Realtors always say about prime property: location, location, location.
Situated some 2,400 miles from the nearest continental land mass, our state is in, arguably, the most ideal location on the globe.
We are near the equator, but not too near, so the air and water that surround us are warm, but not too warm, and never really cold.
Shorts and T-shirts rather than foul weather gear, are the customary, year-round dress for boaters in Hawaii.
We are also situated in an area of the ocean affected by the atmospheric phenomenon called the Pacific High, which usually drifts about some hundreds of miles to the north and east of us.
That high pressure's clockwise-spinning air column produces predictable tradewinds that sailors here have depended on for centuries for transportation and more recently, for recreation.
Those same trades maintain our comfort level, both in regard to our air temperature and air pollution. That's not volcanic fog from the Big Island we see on a still day in Honolulu, that's good old-fashioned, vehicle-produced smog.
So, even though Hawaii's boater's can see that our boating facilities under state management leave much to be desired, there can be no denying the fact that we are blessed with the perfect raw potential.
For that, we must be eternally grateful.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Ray Pendleton is a free-lance writer based in Honolulu.
His column runs Saturdays in the Star-Bulletin.
He can be reached by e-mail at raypendleton@mac.com.
