Hawaii: Big Island (February 2023)
Our first major trip after Tammie’s retirement was to the Big Island of Hawaii. This was our third trip to Hawaii. In 2003, we went to Maui and Oahu for our 25th wedding anniversary. We also stopped in Maui on our way back from a visit to Guam in 2006. On our 2003 trip we visited Haleakala National Park. Our plan for this trip was to start our visit on the rainy east side of the Big Island and visit Volcano National Park and then move to the sunny west side of the island.
Our trip began on February 22 with a flight out of Dallas to Denver. We arrived in Denver to a snowstorm. We boarded the plane then sat for over 6 hours on the runway. Eventually, the runway was cleared, and then we got de-iced several times. We then started on our 7 1/2 hour trip to the Kona airport. Once there, we rented a car and drove 1 1/2 hour from Kona to our hotel in Hilo, Hilton Grand Naniloa, late at night.
Snowy Denver International Airport
Day 1
Our first full day began with an exploration of the hotel grounds which were beautiful. Unfortunately, the day started cool (mid 60 degrees) and rain was intermittent. We walked a couple of hundred feet to Lili’uokalani Gardens. This is a Japanese style garden with pedestrian bridges and wonderful landscaping. We then got in our car and drove just a few minutes into Hilo to the Rainbow Falls. This is an 80 foot drop falls that is right off the road, so it is easy to get to. Next, we donned our rain ponchos and stopped at Kaumana Caves State Park. This park offers a quick diversion into a lava tube. We descended on a metal ladder into a skylight in a lava tube that was created in 1881 from a lava flow from Mauna Loa. You can only explore a few feet because most of it is on private property. We then drove a few more miles to Richardson Beach Park. This park is located just south of Hilo. It is a black and green sand beach. I was assured in the sunshine you can see the green tint to the sand. But on this rainy day, I can assure you it looked black to me. Before the day ended we walked off the grounds of our motel across a footbridge to Coconut Island. This small island is in Hilo Bay just offshore from Lili'uokalani Park and Gardens. The island includes a large grassy field, picnic areas, restroom facilities, and a few tiny sandy beaches. We were told that a popular recreational activity is to jump off the tower into the waters of Hilo Bay. It was a little too cold and rainy for us to attempt that.
Day 2
This day was about exploring Volcanoes National Park and Mauna Loa. It was about an hour drive from our hotel to Volcanoes National Park Visitor Center. Mauna Loa is the world’s largest active volcano. It had a major eruption in November of 2022 just 3 1/2 months before we arrived. However, the lava had crusted over, and the weather was cloudy and rainy. When we looked into the cone all that we saw was grey and steam. But there was steam everywhere. We went on several hikes, took a ranger led tour, and explored some lava tubes. During the ranger led hike, we walked on a paved road that was no longer used because lava had flowed across it. It was a very stark landscape.
We drove back to the hotel for dinner and returned to Mauna Loa at night to hike back up to the cone and see the lava at night. It was an eerie feeling to hike up the volcano in the dark of night with flashlights surrounded by a hundred other hikers. When we reached the observation place, we were only able to see a few dots of light where the lava broke through the crust. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get any usable night-time photographs. Hiking the volcano at night was a once in a lifetime experience.
Day 3
This was our final day on the rainy side of the island. Luckily there was no rain this day because we were taking a helicopter tour of Mauna Loa. We dressed in our Hawaiian shirts gifted to us by the School of Education faculty when my wife retired. We got some wonderful views of the Big Island and Mauna Loa. It was worth the expense, and we got front row seats on the helicopter.
After the helicopter tour, we drove to Punaluu (Black Sand) Beach. The highlight here was seeing several nesting sea turtles. The rangers kept everyone far away to keep from disturbing the turtles.
Day 4
Day 4 was a travel day as we left the rainy Hilo side of the Big Island and drove to Kona on the sunny west side. At least that is what I was promised. On the way, we did a lot of sightseeing and hiking. Our first stop was about 1/2 hour north of Hilo as we traveled along the north shore on the Hawaii Belt Road. The Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden was an excellent stop for us. We were able to see thousands of tropical plants and trees along with wonderful water views.
Our next stop, Akaka Falls was another 1/2 hour north. This is the largest (442 feet) and most well-known falls on the Big Island. There is a short hike down to the observation point. As you walk you get glimpses of the falls.
As we continued north and west, we stopped at a fresh pineapple stand and, at two beach side parks, and walked along the coast. At one place we were hiking and saw a traditional Hawaiian wedding taking place.
We continued until we came to the Waipio Valley Overlook. It is a great picture location. After several hours of travel, we arrived at our resort location, Hilton Kings Land. We made good use of the fitness center and outdoor hot tubs while we were there.
Day 5
On this day we decided to drive around the area and explore. We found a couple of oceanside parks that we explored. The weather was warm, but the wind was blowing very hard. The trade winds were blowing between 20-30 mph steadily and gust up to 50 mph. Later in the day we visited a national historic park, Puuhonua o Honaunau (Place of Refuge). The stone work at the site is preserved and restored but the houses are reconstructed.
Day 6
This was our final full day on the Big Island. Our day started with an outrigger canoe tour to the Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay. It was just the two of us and our tour guides. Tammie had a great time snorkeling and I enjoyed taking pictures of her and the monument. We also had a manta ray swim alongside and under our outrigger canoe.
Later in the day we made our way to Lapakahi State Historical Park. Lapakahi preserves the remnants of an ancient Hawaiian fishing village. This site is nestled along the rugged Kohala coastline and allows you to step back in time and explore the remnants of an ancient Hawaiian fishing village.
To finish our day we took a tour of Greenwell Farms Coffee Plantation. The Big Island is well known for its Kona coffee. Kona coffee is grown on the slopes of Mauna Loa in the Kona district of the Big Island. It is known for its smooth, balanced, and slightly nutty flavor. We were given a couple of samples to taste and then led through the orchard to see the coffee plants in various stages. There are several coffee tours you can take. This one was fantastic because it was free. We were in a group of about 12 people. Of course, after the tour they hope you will buy some very expensive coffee.
On the day we left Hawaii, we stopped at a beach on the way to the airport. We left in the afternoon, flew through the night, and arrived the next morning around 5:00 am in Dallas. We drove 2 hours to Tammie’s mother’s house, then we crashed for several hours. It was a great but exhausting trip.
