During a month+stay with family in Hawaii, I have been mostly faithful to my running program. For mid-distance runs, 6 – 10 miles, I have found the only nearby area without extreme hills to be a industrial stretch called the Kamehameha Road. The downside was the lack of any scenery beyond auto repair, big box stores and industrial sites. Or so I thought.

During the first couple of runs, a phrase from the Eagles’ Life in the Fast Line, “been up and down this highway haven’t seen a *&#@$ thing” was running through my mind. Then, after the third run or so, I began to feel at home with the road.

Turning at the corner at the Forty-Niner, a wonderful walk-up breakfast spot with shaded picnic tables out back, there is the aroma of local cooking permeating the air. Expect a line at the pickup window for good reason. The food is delicious.

On early morning runs, I would see and nod to the same people at bus stops, Builders and DIY’s would be lined up to pick up materials at the Home Depot every day. And always another line of people standing and waiting for Best Buy to open.

In the midst of it all, the Sumida Farm has been producing fresh water watercress since the 1920’s, long before this stretch of land became the busy highway it is.

I run past two of the 21 stops of the yet-to-be finalized new rail system. I hear announcements as they run test cars to ready for passengers, supposedly in a month or two.

The line will run along the west side of the island from Kapolei to downtown Honolulu, hopefully alleviating a good portion of the traffic that keeps the H1 crawling along most mornings (photo taken at 10 am) and afternoons.

When running as far as I could go without being on a true highway, past all that busy activity on the road, I found this meditation center tucked away.

On my return from the meditation center, I saw a couple police cars blocking a traffic lane where that lane and the walkway I had run was closed by a tree limb. I managed to maneuver past the cars and onto the sidewalk on the other side of the limb. Sometime between my run out and the run back, a huge branch from a monkeypod tree had come crashing down.

Perhaps my stop at the meditation center saved me from crossing the walkway as that branch came down. Who knows.

On that meditative thought, I headed home for a shower.

And then, after many runs down this highway, I found the trail……Up next.

Have you had any close calls recently, monkey-pod tree related or otherwise?