Ch 20: Hawai'i

"The best surfer out there is the one having the most fun"

                                                                                           Duke Kahanamoku

Surfboards, flowers, palm trees, warm weather and more is all can be found on both places. The similar characteristic between Catalina Island and the Hawaiian Islands make us lucky to have a piece of heaven so close to us. The Hawaiian islands enjoy a tropical climate with consistent warm temperatures around the year because it is located south of the tropic of cancer. Similarly, Catalina Island also has warm and moderate weather due to its subtropical climate (the island is located between the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn).

Both Islands are considered surfing destination. Surfing is one of the main water activities on Catalina Island. Here is a 2 minute YouTube video taped back in 2011 when high Santa Ana winds created perfect surfing conditions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wLo5YRc7NQ.
Many beaches on Hawaii islands are considered the perfect spots for both experienced and novice surfers. In our chapter 20 quiz we had a question about "da hui", if you are interested in learning more about it.. here is NYTimes documentary discussing da hui and more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqqS8lYYSdk

Hawaii Kai, Hawaiian Surf Adventurehttp://www.smartdestinations.com/blog/7-fun-tours-in-honolulu/

Surf Safely!

Ch 19: California

"It is in the shelter of each other that the people live."

                                                                                   Irish proverb

There are lots of similarity between California's overall geography and Catalina Island due to the fact that Santa Catalina island is only 22 miles off the Southern California mainland. However, there is one major difference the one can spot the minute he/she steps on the island that there are no homeless people on the island. I tried to look up if there is any information online about the homeless in Avalon, CA but I couldn't find any helpful resources, so I am making my assumption based on my personal observations during my stay on the island.
I believe the main reason why you can not find homeless wandering around the city's street is that the homeless can not afford getting to the island. Adding to that, most of the people who can afford to reside in the city of Avalon are generally from the upper class. Moreover, I couldn't find any shelters on Catalina and the closest homeless shelter is located in San Pedro (http://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/cgi-bin/id/city.cgi?city=Avalon&state=CA).

In Los Angeles we can observe the opposite, most of the city's streets contain lots of homeless people. One of the reasons that encouraged them to sleep in LA's streets is the year round moderate weather and the lack of major hurricanes and storms. Furthermore, the fact that California is considered a rich state, lot of charity organizations and shelters are available to provide services to the needy population.

Ch 17: Pacific Northwest

“Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it.” 

                                                                                Mark Twain

The region's reputation weather wise is gray. When I hear Seattle, I imagine the cloud covering the sky at all time and heavy rain pouring 24/7. But climate is changing and the uneven pattern of rainfall and snowing causes instability and make the Pacific Northwest weather harder to predict. Generally, the Pacific Northwest has a wet, cool climate. However, inland's weather can be drier with more severe winters and warmer summers.

Seattle - Rain City
Photo taken by christian.bobadilla (http://hdrcreme.com/photos/20972-Seattle-Rain-City)

Fortunately, Catalina island is not in the Pacific Northwest region. It's location in California give it Mediterranean climate throughout the year. Warm and sunny days and cool evening breezes. The average temperature is 75 degrees during summer and 65 degrees during the winter. The fact that sun shines an average of 260 days a year is what make Catalina the perfect island destination.

Here is a comprehensive average weather report from weatherspark.com : Average Weather For Avalon/Santa Catalina Island, California, USA 

Ch 16: Intermontane

"The use of solar energy has not been opened up because the oil industry does not own the sun."

                                                                                             Ralph Nader

We learned in Chapter 16 that the most neglected source of energy in the intermontane region is the renewable energy. In fact, if we examine the energy consumption in the area in 2005, we find that alternative energy counts for only 1% of the total energy consumed. Sustainability can be easily achieved in the intermontane states due to the fact that green sources of energy such as the solar power is abundant in some states such as Arizona. The government can also provide the needed support by setting up laws and regulations on the use of fossil fuels.
Similarly, Catalina Island also have an abundant sustainable resources of energy which are not exploited as it should be; and its energy is still highly dependent on diesel. Currently, there are some effort to convert to more cleaner method to generate power on the island in order to eliminate the emission of green house gases on Catalina.

Solar panels like this can be used in both areas to
generate clean electric power instead of fossil fuels
 "California solar photovoltaic project"

If you are interested in the topic of green energy on Catalina Island, I included a link to a 43 minute YouTube broadcast interview with Pedram Pourmand, from the marketing strategy and planning dept. - Southern California Edison. Select Here For the Interview

Ch 15: The Rocky Mountains

“Mining is the art of exploiting mineral deposits at a profit. An unprofitable mine is fit only for the sepulcher of a dead mule.” 

                                                                                        T.A. Rickard

Both the American and Canadian Rocky Mountains have history with mining due to the mineral resources abundance in this mountainous zone. The Colorado Mineral Belt is rich with ore minerals deposits and it extends from the north-east to the south-west through the Rocky Mountains. Some of the many minerals that can be found there are gold, silver, lead and zinc.

Colorado Mineral Belt
Credit: http://www.colorado.edu/

In Catalina Island there was a brief period of mining activity which lasted from the late 1800s to beginning of the 1900s. Many miners in the early years of the mining period came to the island to extract gold and silver from the canyons of northern Catalina. The mining operations looked promising at the beginning but it was doomed to fail specially when the prices of ore fell in 1927.  Another mining attempt resumed in Catalina to extract zinc, silver and lead from the island's mountains but it didn't generate enough profit and it halted couple of years later.

Catalina's Miners
Credit: http://www.thecatalinaislander.com/article/