Hawaii - Day 6

Tuesday morning we were up and out of the condo early - before sunrise!  We were headed to the opposite side of the island to Hilo with a few stops on the way.  A woman I work with had told me that we had to stop for Malasadas on our trip.  When I mentioned this to Elizabeth she knew exactly where to go - Tex Drive-in.  Malasadas are essentially a doughnut but instead of the traditional round centerless ones we know, Malasadas are pillow shaped and covered in sugar.  The advice we were given is to think about how many you want and double it....so we opted for one plain and 4 with the following fillings: chocolate creme, lemon, raspberry, and guava (and that's just what Jay and I had!).  We ate the filled ones at the drive-in and saved our plain one for later.  They were pretty good, but really not much different than a regular doughnut.  

  John planned for us to stop at Umauma falls - he has hiked up to the falls before and said it is beautiful. After driving to the right spot we were sad to learn that you can no longer drive to the falls. A zip line tour business now charges $12 per person just to drive down a 1/4 mile road to see the falls....our other option was to pay $189 per person for the zip line tour.  Jay and I had talked about how fun a zip line trip would be, but we just weren't interested in the price tag.  We decided to skip it this time around and head off to an accessible waterfall.  We then ventured to Akaka Falls State Park with a very nice paved loop with great views.  It reminded me a little of Silver Falls State Park in Oregon, but with only one waterfall.  

  We made a few more stops along the way to see some popular surfing spots and parks before we made our way down to Hakalau Beach, the site of a former sugar mill that was destroyed by a tsunami in 1946.  Glass washes up in the shore and small pieces are easily found among the rocks.  A few surfers were out, giving us a show while we relaxed on the small beach.  

  Next stop - Rainbow falls and boiling pots.  John jumped in from a pretty high perch and Jay met him in the water for a swim/hike up the falls.  The rest of us stayed behind to enjoy the scenery and snap some photos.  When we wrapped up there we spent some time right in Hilo at Liliuokalani Gardens and Coconut Island before starting our trip back around the island.  We drive through Honokaa to Waipio Valley.  Jay has read about the amazing hiking through this valley and some day maybe we'll be lucky enough to return for some backpacking.  

  Before finishing the drive home we stopped at Huli Sue's BBQ in Waimea.  Lots of food and it was good!  With full bellies we headed back to Kona.  

Hawaii - Day 5

Journey to South Point!  Day 5 was one with much driving, but we saw some amazing things. We drove south and stopped along the way near City of Refuge.  John and Elizabeth did some negotiating to get a $20 break on two 2-person kayaks for us to use for the morning.  Jay and Mom were in one kayak and Elizabeth and I were in the other.  John and Karsyn made sure the beach got some attention while we headed out.  I don't have any pictures of our adventure but I'll snag some from my sister.  We kayaked to Captain Cook's monument.  Interestingly, the Hawaiians murdered Captain Cook but felt bad about it so they made a nice monument for him that has been visited by ships from all over the world.  The ways to get there are on foot with a lengthy hike or by kayak.  Once there we encountered some amazing snorkeling and Mom finally had a really great, easy experience with a wonderful underwater show to see.  

After getting our fill we paddled back (it sure seemed a lot longer on the way back!) and packed up.  We stopped up the road at a fruit orchard/coffee/macadamia nut place - they seemed to dabble in a number of things.  We wandered through their vast array of fruit trees and this is where we learned that the fruit Jay and I saw on our hike to the old fishing village is known as "Vomit Fruit"!  We sampled some exotic fruits, none of which I recall the names of, and then stopped at the next place on the road for some lunch and shaved ice.  

Full and happy we decided to push on, driving south to South Point.  The road from the highway is fairly long and when you get to the end you are met with beautiful cliffs where fishermen used to hoist small boats up and still toss fishing lines out.  A short walk from the cliffs is a lava field where you can meet the ocean at the very tip of the island.  Wonderful!

Since we had come this far Elizabeth had one more place to show us - a black sand beach where turtles love to lay.  Sea turtles are federally protected and everyone seems to take this pretty seriously.  Two turtles where on the beach when we arrived and another guy/gal was working on getting back out into the ocean but kept being brought back in by the tide.  A lily pond and palm trees rounded out our visit.  We then made the ~90 minute drive back for some home cooked grub!

Hawaii - Day 4

Sunday morning we got up with a plan - take Mom snorkeling!  Never before had my mom been in a snorkel situation and she was ready to go!  Our first stop of the day was at the same place Jay and I had been the day before - City of Refuge!  While we had taken the scenic route and historical tour, there happened to also be a great snorkeling spot just right down the road.  We were all geared up, though the waves were coming in and were thrashing us about a bit.  Not the best place for your first snorkeling experience, but Jay and I were able to log a bit in the water. All of the ladies in the group visited back on the beach for a while with Jay and John went back out for another 20 minutes or so before we packed up and headed down the road.  

Our next stop was Pebble Beach, a black pebble beach just south on the coast and down a pretty steep road.  This was a nice place to just sit and relax and enjoy the ocean - but the pebbles were hot after a while!  Jay snapped some nice pictures before we wrapped up our time there.  Since we had two cars and Karsyn needed a nap, Jay and I went off on our own and wound up back at the same snorkeling spot for our own jaunt together.  

We made it back to the condo to meet up for a drive down to Kahalu'u Beach Park, the first place Jay and I snorkeled on our trip.  This was to be a better experience for Mom to snorkel, but again we had the tide schedule wrong!  She was a good sport, though, and gave it a try while Karsyn and I played in the sand.  We stayed for the beautiful sunset, expecting to see the "Green Flash" as the sun disappeared behind the horizon, but no such luck.  Back to the casa for some grub and relaxation!

Hawaii - Day 3

Saturday morning we enjoyed another wonderful breakfast at the Hale Maluhia Inn.  Jay had some schoolwork to attend to before we headed off for the day so I took the opportunity to snap a few photos of where we stayed.

Chickens and turkeys roamed the property and these guys snuck behind our Tea house!

Without a real plan for the afternoon, we packed up the car and headed south.  Along the way we stopped at a coffee farm, at least that's what the sign said. What we really came to was a fancy show room with really expensive coffee and tchotchke.  Along the road next we stopped at the Painted Church.  

 We drove down to Puuhonua O Honaunau - The City of Refuge, a place rich with history.  We grabbed the park brochure and followed the numbered areas, reading along the way and really enjoying the area. When we finished with that we inquired about a hike we saw listed in the brochure, a 2 mile out and back walk to an old fishing village.  Sounds like a little trek for us!  Brochure in hand we headed out, being sure to catch all of the historical markers along the way.  

We later learned that the nickname of this squishy growth is "Vomit Fruit"!

A rock ramp fashioned for animals to travel on

A lava tube that used to be open, allowing passersby to walk through and jump into the ocean

A nice bench at the top of the ramp to enjoy the view

When we finished up at the park we headed back into the town of Kona, stopping for some groceries along the way, to check in to the condo we would be staying at for the remainder of our trip with my mom, sister, brother-in-law, and niece.  When the gang arrived we made them a welcome dinner and relaxed for the rest of the evening.