Weather-ing Hawaii

Oahu almost always has her head in the clouds. The humidity is high, but if the Trade Winds are blowing the island self-air-conditions. I have ceiling fans in my home and use them almost daily. Most of the businesses are air conditioned. Some of them too much so for my taste. I carry a jacket for going inside!

You'll find the general attire here is shirts and t-shirts. Flip-flops -- the locals call them "slippers" -- are the most common footwear. Hawaiian shirts are everyday wear for the locals. It isn't just a tourist thing.

Waianae

When you visit Hawaii you'll want your clothes to be light weight and breathable. A wind breaker might not be a bad idea, but on Oahu you'll never have to bundle up against the cold.

Manoa

Expect rain. It rains somewhere on the island almost every single day. The rain is usually warm and gentle, but I've been in a couple of "gully washers". The windward side of the island gets much more rain than the leeward side. Umbrellas are sold here year 'round in just about every store.

Kaneohe

No matter what the weather one can pretty much bet that there will be people on the beaches and in the water.

Wet Diversity

As I've said, I adore Hawaii.



Here one can stand in the sunshine and the rain at the same time. I took this photo the other day at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. You can see the rain falling and the sun shining on the green leaves and the building beyond.



I took this picture from our lanai just before sunset on January 1st. You can actually see the rays of sunshine competing with the rain. I stepped outside and held out my hands. Rain fell into my right hand. My left hand remained dry. I was standing half in and half out of the rain shower. That is not an uncommon phenomena here in the Rainbow State — where liquid sunshine falls almost every day of the year.

The rain is warm and soft. Even so, we carry umbrellas with us every where we go. In a state with an almost constant humidity level of 80% or higher, once one’s clothing gets wet it tends to stay wet all day — and in air conditioned buildings that can get a bit uncomfortable.

Oh, and that sunset photo?


Did I mention that I adore Hawaii?

Hawaiian Rain

Oahu often has her head in the clouds, which cling to her cliffs and slowly dissolve, dropping rain into the valleys below.

This is the view from Nu'uanu Pali (pali means cliff) looking northwest. The sun was shining bright on me and the town of Kaneohe as I took this picture but one ridge over it was raining on Ahuimanu. It is not unusual here to be in one place while watching a whole different weather phenomenom in another.

However, the rain is usually soft and warm, and it seldom lasts long. Then after the rain passes the air smells fresh, earthy and flower sweet. Some places on Oahu get 125 inches of rain per year while others get no more then 25 inches of rain per year. Those spots receiving only 25 inches of rain per year are considered "dry".

On an average day the temperature stays right around 80 degrees Fahrenheit while the humidity varies from between 70 to 100%. On some days it doesn't seem to matter which side of the shoreline I stand on because no matter where I go, I'm still under water. However, having just moved here from Las Vegas, Nevada, it will likely be a very long time before I complain about the rain.