Not even a huge rockslide on Holy Saturday, April 7, that closed Kamehameha Highway on the North Shore between St. Michael Parish, Waialua, and its Waimea Bay mission of Sts. Peter and Paul could interfere in Easter services.

Sacred Hearts Father Bertram Lock, administrator of St. Michael Parish, said the rockslide was “enough to cause havoc for transportation to get to the mission” but that people coming from Waimea to attend the Easter Vigil at St. Michael found ways to get there.

And Father Lock, who lives at St. Michael’s, made it to the Waimea mission for Easter morning Masses.

On a good day, the normal drive along the North Shore between the two churches takes about 15 minutes. The alternate route — the other way around along the windward coast, through the Koolau tunnels, and through central Oahu — can add a good hour and half to the commute.

Nevertheless, Father Lock said there wasn’t a noticeable drop in attendance for the Easter Vigil.

The next day, Easter Sunday, Father Lock left Waialua at 5 a.m. to get to Sts. Peter and Paul in time for the 7:30 a.m. Mass. He arrived at the mission at about 6:40 a.m., after a quick McDonald’s breakfast stop in Laie.

“It was a very pleasant drive. I called it the scenic route,” said the priest, adding that church members were surprised he showed up. They had been prepared to hold prayer services without him.

But Mass couldn’t be canceled.

“Not on Easter Sunday,” Father Lock said. “I came over on my magic carpet with four wheels and air conditioning.”

Both the 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Masses in Waimea were well-attended, he said, with about 120 people showing up to each.

After the Masses and some other commitments, Father Lock drove the long way back to Waialua, arriving by 2 p.m. in time for a well-deserved afternoon rest.