Kona, Big Island, Thurs. April 6

 Thursday, April 6

We enjoy coffee on the lanai and Greg feeds the little birds some granola. 

 It is overcast and drizzly this morning, but we've been told that weather is quite changeable here and when it rains, it usually only lasts a little while.  We hope that's the case as we have reserved a snorkeling trip this morning!

We arrive at Sea Quest quite early, so check in and then walk to the Outrigger Kona Resort and have a light breakfast at their coffee shop.  Delicious warm banana bread. We notice some interesting birds along the way - a spotted dove and this red-headed cousin to the cardinal.

 Our boat is a rigid hull raft which holds 14 people, including the pilot Dusty and captain Steve.  We sit on the sides of the raft, which is fairly comfortable.  8 of the folks are a family group from Michigan, 2 others from San Francisco.  It is still kind of overcast, but no rain and temp in the 70's. We travel 8 miles to the snorkeling site, with a few stops. We are headed to Kealakekua Bay, near a monument to Captain Cook.  The monument is maintained by Britain and a bit controversial with native Hawaiians.  Cook was one of the first Europeans to visit the islands in 1778. He was warmly welcomed and traded nails and other goods. Apparently he overstayed, however, and ended up being killed there in a skirmish with the natives. His crew killed quite a few natives as well.

This bay is noted for snorkeling and we soon discover why.  Lots of coral, sea urchins and dozens of types of colorful fish!  I overhear someone comment that it is like swimming in an aquarium, and heartily agree!  Greg and I have disposable underwater cameras and click away. We are told not to stand to avoid harming the coral, and are given a noodle to help with flotation. I'll add some photos here if any turn out well - had to send them for processing.  We spend an hour in the water and then enjoy a snack of delicious fresh fruit and cookies

Addendum:  The underwater pictures turned out so-so, at best.  Here are a few:

On the return trip, we hug the coast and stop at several sea caves and coves.  The water is so amazingly clear and blue!  Most of the caves are carved out of lava, some of which has a definite red cast due to high iron content.  We spot a few crabs and a young sea turtle. 

We head back to the hotel to shower and remove all of that sunscreen!  Then we drive to nearby Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park, site of another early temple and the Aimakapa Fishpond.  Fishponds are natural ponds (or constructed ones) located behind a beach or sandbar and connected to the ocean by a channel.  They were often used to provide fish to local chiefs or kahunas. Today they also act as nursery habitats for native species and there are hundreds.

 On the nearby beach we see quite a few sea turtles!  (They remain in the water so we couldn't really get a good photo.) This metal sculpture was near the visitor's center. 

Yes, there is a turtle in this picture below....really!

We touch base back at the hotel and decide to explore a bit of town.  Greg liked this statue at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church. Pretty unusual, I think.

We walk to local farmer's market, where we purchase a Christmas ornament for our "travel tree". Lots of mangoes and bananas - they have a lot of types of bananas, some of which are purple and some of which are very small - and vegetables and flowers.

Several of the fruits, like this rambutan below, are familiar from Thailand.

 Like most of the Hawaiian coast, the town is in a Tsunami Evacuation Area.

Around 4:00 we stop at Foster's Kitchen, an upstairs restaurant along the main road. We have a seafood pesto puff pastry for an appetizer, then split a burger and fries. 

We go back to the hotel for sunset, which is much quieter tonight.  There are quite a few chairs and benches and we snag a comfortable couch. We have seen rowers practicing every night. 

Tonight there are two local guys with guitars providing the entertainment, so we enjoy the music and relax.  

HAWAII - OUR 50TH STATE APR 2023

HAWAII - OUR 50th STATE*; April 4-15th, 2023

*Not only is Hawaii our 50th state, it is also the 50th state that Greg and I have visited!

Tuesday, April 4, 2023

Our neighbors Danny and Donna kindly take us to the airport for our 9:50AM departure to Honolulu. Long 8 hour flight on United.  Full flight!  Beth watches 3 movies - Bookclub, Where the Crawdads Sing , and an oldie - Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean. Greg mostly reads.

We arrive in Honolulu and have about an hour wait for our 45 minute flight to Kona on The Big Island on Hawaiian Airlines.  The Big Island's name is really Hawaii, but it gets confusing since it is the same name as the whole state.

 5 hour time difference, so it is early afternoon here!  We catch a shuttle to the car rental and drive away in a nice black Toyota Civic Sport.  

Our hotel, The Royal Kona Resort, is only 15 minutes away, along Ali'i Drive facing the Pacific.  Lots of beautiful flowers!  Here's the view from our room.

Lots of gorgeous flowers, including hibiscus and the fragrant plumeria, both of which have lots of variations in color.

After check-in we relax a bit and decide to stay at the resort for an early dinner tonight, at Don's Mai Tai Bar & Restaurant, where we get a prime table along the waterfront!  We have our MaiTai drink (invented in Hawaii back in the '50's), then fish and chips and street tacos.  Greg tries one of the myriad of local brews.  We are entertained by a beautiful sunset!   

Our room is on the 4th floor with balcony (lanai) overlooking the grounds and the ocean, including the site of tonight's luau.  As we plan to go to bed early to make up some of the jet lag, the luau goes on till 7:30 or so.  Very loud in our room, even with the balcony door closed.  Thank goodness it ends early because it takes place every night except Thursday! The room is clean and comfortable, if a little dated; bed comfy.

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

We are up early after a fitful night's sleep.  Today we plan to explore north of Kona.  First stop is a scenic overlook where we notice quite a few wild goats.  They are plentiful in Hawaii, we learn.  It is quite breezy and in the low 70's, with blue skies and sunshine (an oft repeated description of our days here, with some clouds always in sight).

Next stop is Waikoloa Beach on Anaehaomalu Bay.  It is near a resort but we discover that beaches are pretty much accessible to the public, even on resort property.  We walk, explore lots of tide pools among lava rocks, and some golden sand. We notice lots of cats and hear later that they help control rodents. Beautiful grounds. The beach area is small and there are only a few people here this early.

We stop at the nearby Island Deli for breakfast pastries and coffee and juice, then continue north to Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site.  The visitor's center explains some of the history of the area and we see the remains of a heiau (temple) associated with King Kamehameha I who was the first to unite the Hawaiian Islands. All walls and buildings were built with lava rock.

This is a  replica of  a kind of altar which held offerings to the gods. Human sacrifices were not unknown, but this holds only a few dried leis and other flowers.

Next stop is Lapakani State Historical Park where we hike a few trails to the remains of a small village and healing center. 

 We note a game called Napa'ani which used a large stone as the "board" and black lava pebbles and white pieces of coral as game pieces.  

There are depressions in the lava rock where seawater was dried to produce salt.

There is a lighthouse in the distance, but the trail does not go that far.  

Very windy here and some rough waves.

We continue along the coast and at about the top of the island, we stop in the small town of  Hawi for some ice cream at a shop called Tropical Dream.  They feature Hawaiian made ice cream, so Beth tries Macadamian Nut, while Greg opts for Acai Sorbet.  Tasty!  We later learn that they have shops all over the islands.  A little farther along we find this statue of King Kamehameha I, who united the islands. (He was raised near here.)

 

This is also the official swim start and run finish of the world Ironman championship.

Next stop is Keokea Beach County Park which features a rocky cove and picnic area.

The road ends at Pololu Valley Lookout. 

 After reading the signs about the trail which is a 29-54 degree grade and somewhat muddy, 

we opt to just enjoy the lookout.   It was originally a mule trail to connect villages but the last residents left in the 1940's.  Kohala Mountain is the oldest of the 5 volcanic mountains that make up The Big Island.  There are some locals here collecting donations to "save Pololu".  When I ask them what they are saving it from, they say "development".  It is a beautiful area, covered in greenery and flowers. Lots of bougainvillea, in many colors!

We begin to head back west and then south from here, taking Kohala Mountain Road.  We travel through windswept mountains and then into more open ranch land with cows, horses and even a dairy farm. They have their own version of the cowboy, called paniolo.  Everything is a shade of green.  

Then we are back to hwy 19 and the coast and south.  We stop at a Target store and buy two beach towels and find a card reader which will work with our cameras and the laptop. (This was the only thing we discovered that we'd left at home.) Hurrah for Target, because there are no computer stores on this island.

We go back to the hotel where we have parking (paid) and decide to walk into the town area for dinner. Ali'i drive is totally commercialized, with a few churches, an old palace and a few other things tucked in amongst palm trees and some huge banyan trees. 

We end up at Big Kahuna Beach Grill where we enjoy some sandwiches and libations!  Prices are crazy here - about 50% higher than home, I'd guess. 

Back to the hotel where we sit and watch another gorgeous sunset.  A cruise ship has been in port and it sails off into the sunset. 

 The luau goes on but doesn't seem as annoying as last night, as possibly we aren't quite as tired.

We discover quite a few little birds visiting the lanai, as a neighbor has been feeding them.