Hawai’i Island / Big Island

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Trip start
August 29, 2024
Hawai’i Island / Big Island Traveler
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MKK to HNL
August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
I flew from Molokai to Honolulu the day before my flight from HNL to Hilo and stayed in a hotel near the airport. Sitting out the back in the parking lot, this Manx (or maybe it just lost part of its tail) cat strolled by. Near the firepit that was lit in the courtyard in the evening was this black cat. Early next morning, both of them were sitting outside the door to the little convenience store in the courtyard, willing someone inside to come out and feed them! The hotel is right by one of the stations of the soon-to-be-completed light rail link from downtown Honolulu to the airport. It was a great place to stay--free shuttle to and from airport, small swimming pool, clean rooms and helpful staff. A very popular Chinese takeout / sit down restaurant was accessible from the courtyard. It's not part of the hotel and has its main entrance on the street outside but it was very busy serving construction workers, office workers, even a sheriff!Read more
Traveler Fishpond on the south shore of Molokai.
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Traveler Another view of Molokai from the Mokulele 9-seater Cessna that flies between the islands.
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Traveler Evening begins to fall. Behind me, there's a chainlink fence with a park and tennis courts near a beach.
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HNL to Hilo
August 30, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
When I arrived in Hilo, I met up with my peeps who had already arrived from Australia. They'd rented a condo in the Lagoon Center, which overlooks many State and County offices. We were on the 7th floor, facing west, with a view of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea--only they were shy and hid behind clouds! The building backed onto a State Recreational Area, popular with fishermen and ducks.Read more
Traveler The condo complex had a swimming pool, which was also available for use by the nonprofits who rented offices on the first two floors. Most of the condos are occupied by retired couples, judging by folks I saw coming and going.
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Traveler Looking towards Mauna Loa, the largest volcano on Earth by land area, and Mauna Kea, the tallest volcano on Earth from sea floor to summit.
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Traveler Mauna = mountain; Loa = long; Kea = white (for the snow that falls there in winter).
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Laupahoehoe
August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
First stop on our Saturday road trip.
Traveler The day started out fogged in, but we headed north and it cleared up on the way.
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Traveler In the foyer of the condo building, one of the resident couples had created an exhibition of Japanese porcelain they'd collected from op shops in Wisconsin. On the opposite wall of the foyer was a collection of duck decoys, also from Wisconsin.
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Traveler Lush rain forest on the way north.
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Honoka'a
August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
Second stop on Saturday.
Traveler I was kinda surprised that not many of the shops were open, but maybe that was because it was a long weekend. They're mostly art galleries, antique stores and ones like this selling mystical / hippy stuff.
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Traveler Thankfully, the fudge store / cafe was open so we could get some sweet treats and coffee to keep us going!
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Traveler The young barista told us that they had originally shared the building they're in with someone who collected Marilyn Monroe memorabilia. They gifted their collection to the cafe and, ever since, people have sent them things to add to the display. These photos are from the estate of a newspaper photographer who often photographed MM.
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Waipi'o
August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
The end of the road! There is a road down to the valley floor, where a few hardy Native Hawaiian souls live, but it's not open to non-residents because -- even at the best of times -- it requires a 4WD and it's very dangerous. Just as we arrived at the lookout parking lot, two ATVs roared up from that road, which had been damaged by the recent hurricane.Read more
Traveler This used to be what's known as a "royal center" with houses and a temple down near the shore, and kalo farming in the valley base, with bananas, etc. higher up the back end of the valley.
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Traveler Wow!
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Waimea
August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Fourth stop on Saturday.
Traveler This statue is at the entrance to the Parker Ranch Center, an outdoor shopping mall in Waimea, where we stopped for lunch in a Hawaiian BBQ takeout. The plaque in the next photo explains who it is and what it is about.
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Traveler Purdy is a well-known name here on Molokai, too, because of their macadamia nut farm.
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Traveler I demanded to go here to get some top-of-the-line beef steaks for dinner!
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Kona
September 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Our Sunday drive to Kailua-Kona was a bit of a disaster, as jetlag from the long flight from Sydney really kicked in. We tried to go down to Captain Cook / Kealakekua Beach so Jeff could see the place where Cook died, as he'd been to see where he was born in Whitby while living in England, but it was too stressful because of recent hurricane damage. So we went to Kona and stopped at the first restaurant we came to.Read more
Traveler Kailua-Kona is the world capital of marlin fishing charters.
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Traveler Mahimahi is my favorite fish here in Hawai'i. I had no idea it was so colorful! It's also called the common dolphinfish. It has a firm texture and the taste is mild and sweet.
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Traveler We had a so-so lunch in this 1920s restaurant at table in the open area looking out to the bay.
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TravelerGreat decor , love the retro vibe again !
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Queen Lili'uokalani Gardens, Hilo
September 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
Monday was the Labor Day Holiday, but it was also the anniversary of Queen Lili'uokalani's birth, so I thought of it as Queen's Birthday instead! (Can't get used to the idea of King's Birthday, I must admit.) We stayed close to home after our tiring adventures the day before.Read more
Traveler The Japanese-themed garden Queen Lili'uokalani had built on Hilo Bay is prone to flooding during King Tides. There'd been one the night before and several folk (including these boys and their Gran) were fishing for bounty that had been washed into the ponds. These boys caught an eel.
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Traveler Backstepping a little, this photo is of the sun coming up behind the condo building. At last, a sunny day!
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Traveler View of Mauna Kea without her veil of clouds, though there is a strip of cloud down at ground level.
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Alae and Rainbow Falls
September 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
We then headed north with the intention of calling on some friends of friends who have a cacao farm and chocolate factory not far out of Hilo. Along the way, we stopped at this overlook of Hilo Bay with yet another interpretive sign about the tsunami. We did eventually find the cacao farm up a steep dirt road, but it was closed for the season and no one was around. So then we went to Rainbow Falls, on the Wailuku River and headed back home the way we came.Read more
Traveler Hilo Bay from the Alae lookout. In whaling times, this would have been full of whaling vessels!
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Traveler Rainbow Falls. Maui's mother is said to have lived in a cave there and fought a fierce battle with a mo'o--water dragon.
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Traveler This, and the following pictures, are of the lovely flowers and foliage in the outside waiting area of the burger bar where we got our takeout dinner. It's walking distance from the condo complex, and is a highly rated restaurant and bar.
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TravelerBeautiful flowers.
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UH Hilo
September 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
Tuesday was Hope's birthday, so they went back to Kailua-Kona and lazed on a resort beach and had a romantic dinner. First, they dropped me off at UH Hilo so I could use the computer lab to do some homework. I could have gone with them, but I didn't want to be a gooseberry or become a sunburnt raspberry. LOLRead more
Traveler Creepy!
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Traveler😂
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Lyman Museum
September 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
On Wednesday, my peeps set out to hike lava tubes and do other energetic things, so I went to a small museum, which I'd offered to write an article about for the magazine. The Lyman Museum was created in the 1980s by the descendants of missionaries who came to Hawai'i in the 1820s and never left.Read more
Traveler There's two exhibition halls, the one on the ground floor being about the natural history of the Hawaiian islands. You enter through the magma in Earth's core.
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Traveler One of the environments--shoreline and sea.
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Traveler Interesting!
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Kilauea
September 5, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
Thursday was our last full day on the Big Island and we went to Volcanoes National Park so J&H could impart the knowledge they'd received from a Park Ranger tour to a Kilauea summit overlook the day before. It was a nice easy hike and another beautiful sunny day.Read more
Traveler The great expanse of Mauna Loa seen from the Kilauea summit area.
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Traveler Mauna Kea way off in the distance, with the controversial observatories on its summit shining in the sun. Apparently, it's rare for both those mountains to be cloud-free at the same time.
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Traveler O'hia lehua is one of the first plants that grows on fresh lava and is emblematic of Pele, the goddess of fiery volcanoes.
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Farewell to Hilo
September 6, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
On our last morning, I slept in a bit and missed the beginning of the sunrise, but it was still pretty when I went out back.
Traveler Doing my best to look like a silly old goose because I left my walking stick behind in the condo and Hope had to rescue it; then I left it in the rental vehicle and Jeff had to rescue it! LOL
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Traveler Cuppa Joe from the highly rated drive through coffee place not far from where we lived. J&H brought it back for me after their early morning walk.
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Traveler I liked the kids' artwork at the Hilo airport.
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Trip end
September 6, 2024