And now, today’s moment of zen.

24 actress Elisha Cuthbert was snapped frolicking in the waters off of Maui’s Wailea resort area on Monday with her boyfriend Dion Phaneuf.

Phaneuf—whose bare-chested-ness we’ve included here, you know, for gender balance—is a defenseman for the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames. Cuthbert was taking a perhaps much-needed break following a no doubt taxing photo session for the cover of this month’s Maxim Magazine.

There were slightly saucier photos than these—if you’re curious, either let your imagination run wild or visit our friends at Google search.

But while we're on the subject of photos … Ever take a photo of a celebrity hanging out in Hawaii? How about a Hawaii shot perfect for our HawaiiMagazine.com Photo of the Week contest?

Send either to us along with a story of your photo. We’ll post the best ones on our site, and give you all the credit for it.

 
   

I’ve never experienced a Hawaii beach quite like Polihua, on the island of Lanai.

One-and-a-half miles of white sand. Completely devoid of people.

The latter has a lot to do with the 11 miles of unpaved road—half of it accessible only to four-wheel-drive vehicles—one must negotiate down Lanai’s dry, rocky, steep and scrub-brush filled north shore to get to Polihua.

Once we guided our Jeep through a final canopy of kiawe trees hugging Polihua, skittered across the warm sand and dipped our feet in the cool Pacific waters, though? Check out the video below for a 360 degree view of what we experienced.

I’ll be writing about my tour of Lanai’s beaches in a future issue of HAWAII Magazine.

   

One of the cooler things about my job is escaping the office on Oahu every couple of months, flying to one of the neighbor islands and getting to call what I do there work.

I’m on the island of Lanai this weekend, taking in some scenery, activities and food. You’ll see everything I collect while I'm here in future HawaiiMagazine.com Web posts and HAWAII Magazine articles.

For now, though, some photographic evidence of what I was up to on Friday.

Vog from Kilauea enveloped most of Hawaii on Friday, obscuring views of Oahu and Molokai on the morning flight to Lanai. The effect it had on the view of the manicured gardens at the Four Seasons Lodge at Koele when I checked in, however, was wonderfully dramatic.

A view of the island's only town, Lanai City, from a bluff above the Lodge at Koele. With just over 3,000 residents, a handful of businesses and comprised mainly of homes, it's not your classic definition of a "city." But you'll meet some of the friendliest people in Hawaii here.

I rented a Jeep 4x4  to explore the island's beaches for a future HAWAII Magazine feature. With only 30 miles of paved road on the island, Jeeps are pretty much the only rental available. Fortunately, they're the best way to see Lanai (other than on horseback, which I'm also doing a bit of this weekend for a HAWAII feature). This is a beach road on the island's north shore.

Polihua Beach, on Lanai's north side, is your reward after a lengthy and extremely bumpy drive down a single-lane Jeep trail. Stretching more than two miles, it's Lanai's longest white sand beach. It's also one of the island's most remote. On a typical late afternoon visit, you'll find about as many people exploring its breathtaking grandeur as you do in this photo.

My dinner after a long day of "work"—a meat lover's pizza at Pele's Other Garden in Lanai City. It's always a joy visiting owners Mark and Barbara Zigmond, and sampling their terrific homemade Italian entrees, pizzas, deli sandwiches and desserts. Great people. Must-have-food on Lanai. Check out Mark's must-read "My Corner of Paradise" feature in our Jan./Feb. 2008 issue.

 

Molokai Ranch closed earlier this month, forcibly relocating Aloha Music Camp.

For the last five years, the Hawaiian music, dance and culture camp convened each summer at Molokai Ranch’s isolated Kaupoa Beach Village.

This year’s camp—scheduled for June 22-28—will move to the Big Island’s considerably less remote Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort.

The camp suffered an even more irreplaceable loss last week with the death of much-loved kupuna Auntie Winona Beamer. The noted Hawaiian entertainer and cultural touchstone (in middle photo), along with members of the Beamer ohana—including her son, Grammy-nominated slack-key musician Keola Beamer—hosted the camp each year.

“The camp really is about her life, in a lot of ways,” says camp administrator Mark Kailana Nelson. “Her whole life was dedicated to having Hawaiian culture reach out and be taught and cherished and understood. And that’s why we’re continuing it.”

Nelson and Keola Beamer founded Aloha Music Camp on the Big Island in 2001, before moving it to the beachside lodging owned by Molokai Ranch.

“Molokai was just the most perfect place imaginable. There was a very Hawaiian presence,” says Nelson. “The village was on a secluded beach. The people on Molokai had such aloha. Our hearts really go out to them. So many of them lost their livelihoods.”

The camp is moving to a conventional Hawaii resort—perhaps longer on amenities, but hardly as isolated, or as surrounded by nature.

Nelson argues the camp itself transcends its setting.  “It’s not about the location. It’s the people. It’s the aloha. It’s the ohana. We’ve been fortunate enough to create that experience in two different locations now. That’s what we’re going to do at the Keauhou as well.”

But Molokai will be missed.

It’s a special place,” says Nelson. “The utter silence. The sound of the ocean, the birds, the wind through the trees. Listening to Keola sing ‘Honolulu City Lights’ with the Honolulu city lights right across the channel was chicken skin.

““The first time he did that, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.”

Aloha Music Camp still has space at its June gathering. For more information or to register, click here.
 
Check out a YouTube video of Aloha Music Camp life on Molokai here.

 

The last few days—while eyes have been on the shifting plume of steam and toxic gas at the 4,000-foot summit of Kilauea volcano—the fire goddess Pele has been creating the world’s newest beach an hour’s drive away.
 
On Wednesday, I headed from my home near the summit to the end of Highway 130 to watch the spectacle of lava flowing into the sea.
 
The parking area is overseen by Hawaii County workers, who have got to be the world’s friendliest civil servants. From there I could see three huge plumes of steam gushing into the air. It’s a 10-minute walk with a stream of other lava seekers to the taped-off viewing area.
 
A few hundred yards away, the spectacle is there before you: the ocean roiling as molten lava oozes in, huge plumes of white steam furiously unfolding and pushing up to the sky. After dark, fingers of red-orange lava glow against the black rock.
 
Just beyond the viewing area, some visitors leave ho'okupu (offerings)—flower lei and other gifts wrapped in ti leaves. These are to honor Pele.

Also just beyond where I stood was Pele's newest creation—a tiny apron of black sand growing beside a rivulet of molten lava. As the lava meets the ocean, it sends up a plume of steam peppered with tiny flecks of flash-cooled lava rock. Then the ocean current pushes these little shards of rock back up on shore to create new little beaches like this one.
 
It’s beautiful, but definitely not suitable for swimming just yet.
 
The viewing area at the end of Highway 130 is open daily from 2 p.m. Cars may park until 8 p.m., and the area is cleared around 9 p.m.  

 

Wish you were here?

Can’t blame you.

Here’s almost the next best thing. We’ve collected links to a handful of Webcams around the state offering live views of our beaches and—well, pretty much just our beaches.

Want to see the sun set over Hanalei Bay on Kauai? Click the Sheraton Princeville’s beach-roving camera below.

Got friends staying in Waikiki? Tell 'em to stand in front of the Duke Kahanamoku statue fronting Kuhio Beach and then give you a call, while you click the “Waikiki Beach” cam.

It’s almost sunset here as I’m posting this. Click now and you won’t miss it.


Kuhio Beach, Oahu: A view of the folks wading in the surf off Waikiki.

Click here.


Waikiki Beach, Oahu: More a view of the Duke Kahanamoku statue than a beach view, but, oh well.

Click here.


Waikiki Beach from the sky, Oahu: Point a camera at the top of the 31-story Sheraton Waikiki towards Diamond Head or the surf below, mix a mai tai, enjoy.

Click here.


Sunset Beach and North Shore of Oahu surf spots: Check the wave action at some of the best surf spots.

Click here.


Hanalei Bay, Kauai: The sunsets are terrific from this Webcam at the Sheraton Princeville Resort.

Click here.


Kaanapali Beach, Maui: The weather and ocean action on one of West Maui’s best beaches, fronting the Sheraton Kaanapali Resort.

Click here.


Hilo Bay, Big Island: A so-so view of the bayfront. At least you’ll be able to tell if it’s a sunny or rainy day in Hilo town.

Click here.


The South Kohala Coast, Big Island: From the rooftop of the Mauna Lani  Resort.

Click here.
 

Have a favorite Hawaii Webcam we missed? Leave us a comment below.
 

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day.

And the last time we checked, Hawaii was still one of the most romantic spots on Earth. So … if you’re with us in the Islands this week, consider this list we put together of places ideal for spooning with your loved one tomorrow.

1.    Hanalei Bay by moonlight. A song has been written about the Hanalei moon, but even if you don’t know the tune, you’ll feel its harmony. Even tomorrow night's quarter moon will suffice.

2.    Lanikai at sunrise. There is nothing more beautiful than watching the sunrise over the Mokulua Islands, with your bare feet in the sand.

3.    Kona Coast at sunset. Even better with a chilled glass of something nice in one hand, and your partner nearby.

4.    A nighttime cruise off Waikiki. It may look crowded from the sidewalk, but from the water, the lights of Waikiki are like diamonds.

5.    A picnic along the shore, just past Hana. It’s the closest you’ll come to your desert island fantasy.

Need a soundtrack for your day of romance? Return to Hawaiimagazine.com tomorrow for our staff-approved list of the eight most romantic songs ever to come out of Hawaii.

Trust us, it’s mix-CD nirvana.

Post-Valentine’s Day, HAWAII Magazine’s March/April cover story “Romance Hawaiian Style” promises sun-kissed stories of romantic adventure, extravagance and simplicity from our Islands. Look for it on newsstands later this month.

  

The Halona Blowhole is closing for renovations this spring.

Actually, there’ll be no renovation to the Halona Blowhole itself—it’s a natural phenomenon. Changes are being made to its scenic lookout.

For those of you who don’t know, the Halona Blowhole is a popular tourist attraction on Oahu’s south shore, near world-famous snorkeling spot Hanauma Bay.

The blowhole is an oceanside underground lava tube that spouts seawater more than 30 feet into the air—when wave conditions are right.

Conditions aren’t right right now. The scenic lookout will close for at least three months as early as April.

The city will replace cracked walls and install a fence to keep the overly curious from getting too close. The lower observation deck, which is already closed, will be demolished for safety reasons.

The million-dollar renovation plans also include a wheelchair ramp.

Fun fact: Right next to the blowhole is Halona Cove, where scenes for From Here to Eternity were filmed.

UPDATE, 3/19/08: The Halona Blowhole will be closing on April 14. Work is expected to be completed by September.

Here’s a YouTube clip of the blowhole doing its thing.

 

It’s winter outside our office window in downtown Honolulu--overcast skies, palm trees rustling in the chilly tradewinds. Must be as cold as 72 degrees.

What would I rather be doing on such a winter’s day in Honolulu, if I weren’t working? Five alternatives:

1.    Reading on the beach at Lanikai. Not swimming—the ocean’s a bit frosty this time of year. But sitting on the sand, finishing some long-ignored books with a view of the Mokulua Islands.

2.    Hiking into the Koolaus. My preference? The Waahila Ridge Trail above Honolulu, which begins with views of Manoa Valley, moves past the thick winter-green foliage of Kaau Crater, and ends with a more than two-thousand-foot-up view of Oahu’s windward coastline and the ocean beyond.

3.    Watching humpback whales breach off of Makapuu Point. The humpbacks return to Hawaiian waters from Alaska between December and March to breed and calve. This is one of the best places on Oahu to catch them leaping and frolicking.

4.    Having a mai tai at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel’s Mai Tai Bar. The best mai tai on Waikiki’s Kuhio Beach, with the best view—of gentle surf just footsteps away and Diamond Head. I should be blogging from there right now. Wonder if they have wi-fi.

5.    Driving around the island … stopping at the North Shore and Haleiwa town. The north shore of Oahu’s famously large winter swells are a bit unreliable this year. But ending an afternoon of surf watching with a monster Matsumoto’s shave ice—packed with ice cream, azuki beans and topped with a “snowcap” of sweet condensed milk—rules even in winter.

Any other winter-in-Honolulu suggestions from your own experiences?

 

Well, this is interesting.

Governor Linda Lingle is proposing that the state purchase the Turtle Bay hotel and condominium.

The governor announced the idea of buying the 850-acre North Shore of Oahu property in her sixth state of the state address this morning. Lingle said, “It would be naïve for anyone to think this land acquisition will be easy.” She’s right. Financing the purchase will take some fiscal creativity.

The resort’s owner Kuilima Resort Co., an affiliate of Los Angeles, Calif.-based global investment firm Oaktree Capital Management LLC, wants to build a mixture of hotels and condominiums along undeveloped Turtle Bay beach land. The plan would add 3,500 units to the currently 500-room resort. Protests from the north shore community and lawsuits have stalled the project.

“I believe this is a once-in-a-generation chance to preserve both a lifestyle for thousands of residents and a part of Hawaii that millions the world over have come to love and identify a the real Hawaii,” said Lingle in her address. “The purchase of this important property will create an opportunity for the community to shape a vision for this part of the North Shore.”

As a supporter of keeping Oahu’s North Shore as free of development as possible, I like Lingle’s bold idea. As a Hawaii taxpayer, however, I’m interested in how much we’re going to have to fork over for this.

Your opinion?