Snow Way! It’s Snowing in Hawaii

[aleshanee]

one thing to consider for anyone seriously considering driving a vehicle or riding a motorcycle up to mauna kea is that the elevation there is over 13,700 feet.... ...normally aspirated gas motors don;t work well that high.. . most will lose between 40 to 50% of their horsepower above elevations of 9000 feet.... that alone can cause problems with handling even for off road vehicles....

when we went up there a few years ago it was with friends who live on the big island and who go up there all the time.... they have a 4 door - 4x4 truck with a turbocharged engine that automatically changes the fuel mixture and engine settings when the oxygen level and elevation changes.... . i have no idea how it works - and my thoughts and attention were on other things anyway as we travelled up the roads to the summit.. (the awesome view was one - equalizing the pressure changes in my ears was another)..... ..but if the motor had any problems i didn;t notice it....

the one thing i did notice was getting out of that comfortable heated cab and feeling the cold grab me like icy claws.... ....plus then a while later i realized breathing was a little harder - not really a problem for me personally - and we didn;t stay long. ... but someone with respiratory or cardiac issues could have serious problems very quickly up there....

Leave the Goldwing stateside and see if you can borrow RWS's Ducati!

i am not sure she would go for that - even if someone was willing to pay the shipping costs to get it from this island over to that one..... .. i also have no idea how it would handle up there... ..this current one she owns has only been ridden on this island - and it has no problem going over the pali pass - (1200 feet)... even with me on the back of it.....her husband has one that is the same model just a different color.... ..he would be the one most likely to try something like riding a motorcycle up to mauna kea.... ...

 

[abcaines]

You have to be careful how fast you take a turn on something like this because it will tip over! I would much rather have a Can-Am or Polaris Slingshot with two tires up front and one on the rear. Much more "sporting" out on the twisty mountain roads! The rear tire would break loose and put you in a spin instead of rolling over.

There are a couple different Spyder models; some more sporty, some more cruiser... I saw someone on a sporty model making a left in an intersection where I was sitting. He took off like a shot and his right wheel was not touching the pavement.

 

[Baptist Renegade]

one thing to consider for anyone seriously considering driving a vehicle or riding a motorcycle up to mauna kea is that the elevation there is over 13,700 feet.... ...normally aspirated gas motors don;t work well that high.. . most will lose between 40 to 50% of their horsepower above elevations of 9000 feet.... that alone can cause problems with handling even for off road vehicles....

when we went up there a few years ago it was with friends who live on the big island and who go up there all the time.... they have a 4 door - 4x4 truck with a turbocharged engine that automatically changes the fuel mixture and engine settings when the oxygen level and elevation changes.... . i have no idea how it works - and my thoughts and attention were on other things anyway as we travelled up the roads to the summit.. (the awesome view was one - equalizing the pressure changes in my ears was another)..... ..but if the motor had any problems i didn;t notice it....

the one thing i did notice was getting out of that comfortable heated cab and feeling the cold grab me like icy claws.... ....plus then a while later i realized breathing was a little harder - not really a problem for me personally - and we didn;t stay long. ... but someone with respiratory or cardiac issues could have serious problems very quickly up there....



i am not sure she would go for that - even if someone was willing to pay the shipping costs to get it from this island over to that one..... .. i also have no idea how it would handle up there... ..this current one she owns has only been ridden on this island - and it has no problem going over the pali pass - (1200 feet)... even with me on the back of it.....her husband has one that is the same model just a different color.... ..he would be the one most likely to try something like riding a motorcycle up to mauna kea.... ...

Don't ya'll have "ROROs" (Roll-Off, Roll-On Ferry Services) over there? This is how we get from one island to the other in the Philippines and travel about with your own vehicle. Pike's Peak in Colorado is 14,115' in elevation and you are able to drive a car up there but most take the tramway. My wife and I were in Colorado a few months ago and had planned to go up to Pike's Peak but decided against it due to her recent open-heart surgery. I believe that fuel injected vehicles automatically adjust for altitude. Starting point is around 6000' elevation so you would probably want to have a couple days to acclimate to the elevation before attempting such an excursion.

The Highest elevation I have ever driven was at the Eisenhower Tunnel at the Continental Divide on I-70. I was driving an 18-wheeler with a turbocharged diesel engine. I wanted to go back up there but we only got to Georgetown and had a great time touring the mining towns but I digress...

 

[voicecrying]

Don't ya'll have "ROROs" (Roll-Off, Roll-On Ferry Services) over there? This is how we get from one island to the other in the Philippines and travel about with your own vehicle. Pike's Peak in Colorado is 14,115' in elevation and you are able to drive a car up there but most take the tramway. My wife and I were in Colorado a few months ago and had planned to go up to Pike's Peak but decided against it due to her recent open-heart surgery. I believe that fuel injected vehicles automatically adjust for altitude. Starting point is around 6000' elevation so you would probably want to have a couple days to acclimate to the elevation before attempting such an excursion.

The Highest elevation I have ever driven was at the Eisenhower Tunnel at the Continental Divide on I-70. I was driving an 18-wheeler with a turbocharged diesel engine. I wanted to go back up there but we only got to Georgetown and had a great time touring the mining towns but I digress...

I drove to the top of Pike's Peak back in 2018. I had taken the tram up in 1989. I don't remember being lightheaded at all in '89 but I was in '18. Driving up was quicker than the tram, so maybe the slower tram allowed me to get acclimated - either that or it's the difference between being 21 and 50.

 

[Dr. Huk-N-Duck]

I’m the epitome of a flatlander. I think the highest elevation I’ve ever been at is a little over 8,000 feet on a trip out west years ago. That’s the reason Mauna Kea appeals to me. I’ve lived by the ocean my entire life, so while of course I’d visit the beach in Hawaii, I’m more interested in non-ocean activities.

 

[Baptist Renegade]

I drove to the top of Pike's Peak back in 2018. I had taken the tram up in 1989. I don't remember being lightheaded at all in '89 but I was in '18. Driving up was quicker than the tram, so maybe the slower tram allowed me to get acclimated - either that or it's the difference between being 21 and 50.

I'm guessing the latter! It would certainly affect me at 60. As we were driving up I-70 from Denver (and going to higher and higher elevations), we stopped at a few shops along the way and many were selling Oxygen cannisters which I guess helps with altitude sickness

 

[aleshanee]

I drove to the top of Pike's Peak back in 2018. I had taken the tram up in 1989. I don't remember being lightheaded at all in '89 but I was in '18. Driving up was quicker than the tram, so maybe the slower tram allowed me to get acclimated - either that or it's the difference between being 21 and 50.

it could depend on age..... also level of physical fitness at the time... . it could also depend on whether you are on any medication.. or certain medications - i;ve been on a shoebox full of them since i was a teenager.... ...there are dozens of different things that can factor in to whether you would feel the effects of high altitude or not - including the weather or relative humidity on any given day..... ....it;s why people who are even experieinced mountaineers don;t take it for granted any time they go on an expedition... ...people with compromised health are more at risk for high altitude sicknesses like cerebral edema or high alttitude pulmonary edema - but both or either one can happen to anyone at any time when going to an extreme altitude.... . ..and while supplental oxygen is a vital emergency treatment for both, the only definitive treatment is to get the individual suffering from the early signs of any high altitude emergency back down to a safe altitude.... ..it;s not just how much oxygen is in the air but also the air pressure at which the oxygen is delivered.... .

 

[aleshanee]

Don't ya'll have "ROROs" (Roll-Off, Roll-On Ferry Services) over there? This is how we get from one island to the other in the Philippines and travel about with your own vehicle. Pike's Peak in Colorado is 14,115' in elevation and you are able to drive a car up there but most take the tramway. My wife and I were in Colorado a few months ago and had planned to go up to Pike's Peak but decided against it due to her recent open-heart surgery. I believe that fuel injected vehicles automatically adjust for altitude. Starting point is around 6000' elevation so you would probably want to have a couple days to acclimate to the elevation before attempting such an excursion.

The Highest elevation I have ever driven was at the Eisenhower Tunnel at the Continental Divide on I-70. I was driving an 18-wheeler with a turbocharged diesel engine. I wanted to go back up there but we only got to Georgetown and had a great time touring the mining towns but I digress...

we had one several years ago.... the super ferry.... and the state spent millions to have it built and also build the docks and supporting structures it needed.... .. but environmental groups began opposing it immediately - with the help of surfers and kayakers from maui and kauai who paddled out to try and block the ferry any time it went into their harbors..... ...the environmentalists filed lawsuits against the state claiming the proper environmental impact studies had not been done but the people on maui and kauai made it clear they just didn;t want people from oahu coming over and driving around on their islands..... ..

so.... the state pulled the ferry out of service..... then the company that built it and operated it sued the state for damages.... .. the state lost both suits.... the ferry got taken away and ended up in another state and the docks all got dismantled.. ..... . but hawaii had to pay the full cost of building it and operating it for the contract period anyway...... which means we paid in full for a roll on roll off high speed ferry service we don;t even have.....

needless to say this did not endear the people of maui or kauai to the people of oahu... especially since it is money collected from the honolulu tax base that pays for the emergency services on those islands... as well as some other special top grade services they would never be able to afford on their own....... but unfortunately a lot of people on oahu don;t even know that ... they just wonder why the taxes and costs for such things have been astronomically high for decades but the city and county of oahu has been operating with shortages of personnel and equipment the entire time.....

yeah... i guess you could say it;s a sore subject.... . and not one that will ever get fixed as long as democrats and progressives continue to run the state.....

 

[abcaines]

I don't know exactly how

I'm guessing the latter! It would certainly affect me at 60. As we were driving up I-70 from Denver (and going to higher and higher elevations), we stopped at a few shops along the way and many were selling Oxygen cannisters which I guess helps with altitude sickness
View attachment 4972

Good gracious. I don't want to know how much they'd stick you for one of these.

 

[aleshanee]

I'm guessing the latter! It would certainly affect me at 60. As we were driving up I-70 from Denver (and going to higher and higher elevations), we stopped at a few shops along the way and many were selling Oxygen cannisters which I guess helps with altitude sickness
View attachment 4972

they will help for a little while with dizziness associated with hypoxia ....... .but they won;t adress the issue of lower air pressure at elevation... .... mild elevation sickness involving dizziness when a person is at elevation for a limited amount of time is not a serious concern as long as they don;t stay up there too long..... ... but when the exposure is prolonged and person shows signs of cerebral edema or the onset of pulmonary edema, what they need is oxygen delivered with positive pressure - pressure greater than or equal to sea level air pressure.... ... ..... with the early signs of elevation sickness that treatment even with normal sea level air and only 21% oxygen would be effective..... .such as what a scuba tank with regulator would deliver having been charged with atmospheric air at sea level... .... but if the situation becomes worse then it;s best to have a person on 100% oxygen delivered by positive pressure and a device that can deliver positive end expiratory pressure.... but by that time we;re talking the need for emergency medical services and a visit to the emergency room..... .... ..it doesn;t happen often at places like mauna kea where visitors don;t usually stay more than a few hours.... and it probably doesn;t happen at all at mountain passes like the one you mentioned where people simply drive up and over and spend very little time at elevation..... but it;s something to be aware of and to look out for... ...lots of people walk around with comprimised health issues and don;t even know it... having an emergency at high elevation is not the way they should want to find out....

 

[abcaines]

My knowledge of delivering oxygen to someone suffering sickness is limited to my time in the F-14 squadron. I had a shipmate tell me he'd turn on the oxygen in the cockpit and huff it for a hangover cure.

 

[aleshanee]

My knowledge of delivering oxygen to someone suffering sickness is limited to my time in the F-14 squadron. I had a shipmate tell me he'd turn on the oxygen in the cockpit and huff it for a hangover cure.

a large bore iv line.... 25 gms of dextrose/50 - followed by a liter of normal saline rapid infusion was supposed to help too.... ... i don;t know anything about that personally and hangovers were not covered in pre-med... ... but i heard medics at some of the firestations talking about it... .specifically the ones who liked to go out partying at night and forgot they had to work the next morning.... they were usually tring to get one of the other medics to start the iv line on them and bust out the D50....

 

[abcaines]

a large bore iv line.... 25 gms of dextrose/50 - followed by a liter of normal saline rapid infusion was supposed to help too.... ... i don;t know anything about that personally and hangovers were not covered in pre-med... ... but i heard medics at some of the firestations talking about it... .specifically the ones who liked to go out partying at night and forgot they had to work the next morning.... they were usually tring to get one of the other medics to start the iv line on them and bust out the D50....

Wow... That definitely supports the notion that the best cure for a hangover is not to get drunk in the first place.

 

[aleshanee]

this would be an awesome place to spend a cold snowy day..... except for the rat....
..this would be the only time i would actually want a cat in house - provided he could
hunt down those things and catch them.... rather than run from them.... ..