1871 Trail

We tried another hike last Friday. When we were at Pu'uhonua o Honaunau the week before we saw a trail head labeled Trail of 1871. So we came back and took it. At first it was hot and muggy, and not too interesting, walking through a dirt trail with nothing but lava and occasional brush to look at. Then we made our way to the beach and blazed our own trail over all the lava rocks. It was much cooler there and we loved seeing all the different lava formations, and lava colors! Due to the lava flow into the ocean, there are beautiful cliffs and caves all along the coast. The water was crystal clear, and looking down even from a height of 20 feet up or so, we could see yellow tang swimming below! There were several spots that we debating whether or not it would be a safe place to cliff dive! At the end of our walk, we came to what looked to be a tomb? We imagined a beautiful Hawaiin princess being buried there, with a view over the ocean was that breathtaking! A yellow Plumeria tree was planted over it. It seemed to be the perfect resting place. When we got back to the park I asked the Rangers about it. Turns out it was just an old concrete water cistern! Bummer! We liked our story much better! :)

One of the caves carved out by the sea.

We had to be at least 20 feet up above the water here.

The lava tubes had been closed off to the public. I read that these tubes wind there way to the sea, and at the end of the tube, you are at a cliff overlooking the ocean!

There were many different colors in the lava.

Final resting place of a beloved Hawaiin Prnicess, or water tank? Which story do you like better?

Day of Waterfalls: part 4

Our last stop of the day was Boiling Pots and Pe'e Pe'e Falls. (pronounced pay eh pay) More info here. It was towards the end of the day, and we had yet to swim in a waterfall! When we got there, some others were swimming there, so we thought, lets try it! Then we thought, well maybe the Dad's should try it first and make sure it was safe. They hiked down to the water falls and pools and jumped in. They said it was like a wall they were swimming against, the current was so strong! They almost gave up and came back but found an area of the pools where it was swimmable and headed on up to the falls. They said it was awesome! And they also said good thing we didn't let the kid jump in! It was TOUGH swimming! Here is the video of them.

We decided to take the Saddle Road back home. It's called that because it goes right in between 2 volcanoes, Mona Kea and Mona Loa. More info here. We spent 11 hours that day exploring some of the most beautiful places I've seen! It was a great day!

Day of Waterfalls: part 3

Our next stop was Rainbow Falls. It's an 80 foot water fall. More info here. What was fun about this water fall, is that we saw a trail leading to the left of the falls, so we took it. It was WET and MUDDY and SLIPPERY and JUNGLY. But when we got to the end, we were on top of the falls! There were lots of little areas to swim, (if you dared) and lots of places to crawl around. Josh and I climbed to the very tip of the falls, and looked over. It was pretty freaky watching water fall 80 feet below you, but pretty cool too!

A huge banyan tree at the beginning of the trail. It was hot, muggy and kind of yucky under there!

That water to the left in this picture is the top of the falls!

The jungly trail

Day of Waterfalls: part 2

What is your ideal place for a picnic? How about a park, where a stream meets the ocean? We ate lunch at Kolekole park. There is a small water fall that feeds into a stream, which then feeds into the ocean. It was the perfect place for a picnic! There were birds of paradise growing all up the banks of the hills, as far as you could see! More info on Kolekole here.

Our day of waterfalls: Part 1

Akaka Falls

We took a trip to Hilo the other day. We thought we'd see as many waterfalls as we could. What an amazing part of the Big Island! It rains here more than anywhere else in the US (yes, even more than Forks! :) ) and it is lush, and green and incredibly pretty!

We started with Akaka and Kahuna Falls. Read more about it here.

On the way we stopped and got some fresh coconut from a local farmer. He let the kids pick a coconut, then cut it down so we could drink the water. Then he opened it up and cut up the fresh coconut meat for us. It was so cool!

Kiholo Bay

We took another exploring adventure to Kiholo Bay. It starts down a bumpy dirt road to the beach. We saw herds of wild goat out on the lava rock! We got pretty far, but without 4 wheel drive we had to stop. We all got out and continued on foot. After going through trees, you hit a gravel path. Along the coast we walked, and saw a lava tube filled with water, called the Queen's Bath. We also saw some beautiful private homes, including a house made of Bali Wood owned by Paul Mitchell, and an huge mansion owned by the guy who invented the pace maker, and a home that looked more like a tent! It was completely open, complete with a dishwasher and sink! When we got to the end of the bay, we found a fresh water lagoon, with a chute made from the ocean to the lagoon. We counted 11 turtles heading into the lagoon for the night! It was so fun to explore the area, and see some really amazing sights! You can read more about Kiholo Bay here.

These pictures are all out of order, but here is our afternoon:

Waiting for more turtles to swim through the chute to the lagoon

We counted 11 turtles!

A tiny shack right on the coast--it had a porch that looked like the kitchen, and a back room for a bedroom!

The home of the guy that invented the pace maker

At "turtle point"

The Bali Home. All imported wood from Bali, owned by Paul Mitchell

The Queens Bath

When we walked back, this was surrounded by local kids, doing cannonballs into it! :)

Beginning our adventure

What a group!