Hawaii Rain
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Ah Hawaii. Summertime temperatures all year long. Gentle breezes to waft away humidity. Sunny days and soft tropical evenings. Record rainfall.

Record rain ­ in Hawaii? Yes, fabled though it may be as a climatic Eden, Hawaii in fact is the site of the rainiest place on earth ­ Mt. Waialeale, with an average of 460 inches per year. But that's not all. Hawaii also has the second rainiest city in the United States ­ Hilo, on the northeast corner of the Big Island, which receives an average of about 129 inches of precip a year, just a tad under Yakutat, Alaskašs 134.96.

Which is not to say that all those pretty pictures of sunny beaches are just a travel agent's fabrication. Location is everything when it comes to rainfall ­ and on Hawaii location means which side of the mountains you're on and how high up. Hilo, on the east or windward side, receives frequent showers that blow in on moist easterlies known trade winds. Since the mountain slopes pretty much wring the clouds dry, the west or leeward side of the island is quite arid. A pelican flying over the Big Island could flap in 40 miles from rain forest with 300 inches of rain a year to desert with less than 10.

Of course Hawaii's record rainfall does have its virtues - spectacular rainbows, lush jungle, and a million shades of green. Just one word of advice if you're planning a trip to the windward side of any of the islands - bring an umbrella.