Morning on the front screened porch is a great place to greet the day with Kona coffee and papayas.
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Sunlight streams in |
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Comfy seating |
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Our friends Sheila and Charles from California are flying in to join us for several days. We are meeting them at the
Harbor House after they get free of the airport. I love the ambiance of sitting next to the large open windows looking out over the harbor. Plus, their schooners of beer served in large icy goblets are hard to turn away, especially while waiting.
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Views of the harbor from our table |
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Peter with a schooner |
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After spending a restful evening at the house with Charles and Sheila, we decide to head northward the next day. Our first stop is
Lapakahi State Historical Park, which is an archeological site at a pre-contact (before 1778) fishing village. When we first visited this site over 10 years ago, the archeologists then thought this village was only home to a few hundred people at most. However, in the intervening years, their excavations have uncovered a much more extensive complex of housing, temples, and agricultural fields. Currently, they think this complex supported a population of around 10,000 people. In fact, the archeologists are now revising their estimates of pre-contact populations of the Big Island overall from around 100,000 to 150,000 upwards to even as high as 500,000 people. Considering the current population of the Big Island is now around 200,000, this means the island used to support over twice as many people than there are living here now.
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Windy day at Lapakahi State Park |
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Inside rebuilt hale |
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Outside of a large hale |
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Sheila and Charles along the walking paths at Lapakahi |
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We next drive up to
Hawi, which is old plantation town once serving the housing and commercial needs of workers at the
Kohala Sugar Plantation. Today the sugar plantation is long gone due to competition from cheaper sugar beet production in the mainland's Midwest. However, this quaint town remains a housing and commercial center for residents and tourists.
We stop for lunch at the classic
Bamboo Restaurant and Bar. The decor is funky Hawaiian and the food is excellent. We especially like our liliquoi (
Passion fruit) cocktails including a liliquoi Margarita (Sheila), a liliquoi Martini (Charles), a liliquoi Daiquiri over the rocks (Peter), and a liliquoi blended Daiquiri (me). Slurp! Guess you could say we went loco for liliquoi.
We resist the urge to order more drinks and instead drive to the end of the road at the
Pololu Valley Lookout. The rain clouds catch up with us here forcing us to decide against the hike down into the valley as the steep trail becomes treacherous when wet and slippery.
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Sheila toasting our good fortune |
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Peter with Daiquiri |
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View from Pololu Valley Lookout |
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We next take Kohala Mountain Road through Waimea to Hwy 19 towards the windward side of the island to meet mutual friends who have recently moved to the Hilo area, where they are building their dream home. Along the way, we pass magnificent views toward Kailua Kona.
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Kohala Mountain Rd |
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View towards Kailua Kona |
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Memorial to those who drowned in the tsunami |
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A school house once stood at this Beach Park. On April 1, 1946 the "April Fools Day Tsunami" raced out from an earthquake in the Aleutian Islands and completely inundated the school. While even more people were killed in Hilo, here twenty students and four teachers lost their lives.
One young teacher was washed out to sea and managed to hang onto some flotsam for hours before she was rescued. The happy ending to this otherwise tragic story is this teacher married the man who rescued her (as told in Perils of Paradise). |
With a little trial and error we find Dennis and Mona's building site north of Hilo. It sits high on a hill overlooking the ocean. Although they haven't moved in quite yet, the house is almost ready. Dennis was a tile contractor in California. Both he and Mona have planned this move for many years. Before moving, they stuffed a container full of building supplies and had it shipped to their building site. We joke that they could turn the now almost empty container into an extra guest house where we can stay in the future.
While in the area, of course we have to stop at the sprawling
Hilo Farmers' Market.
In the evening we go to dinner at the
Lava Lava Beach Club, where
local live music is featured. The Lava Lava Beach Club sits on the
Anaeho'omalu Bay (known mostly as "A Bay") close to the
Waikoloa Beach Resort.
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Beach at A Bay |
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A Bay is also home to the
Waikoloa Canoe Club, which our friends Al and Julie belong to. In fact, Julie appears on their website as part of a winning women's team. In the past, she has told us hair raising tales of rowing the
Moloka'i Strait during one canoe race. The Moloka'i Strait is infamous for its treacherous currents, wind, and wave conditions.
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Our table is ready |
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Back at the house, it's time to climb over the lava for a good view of tonight's sunset.
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Peter, Charles, Sheila and a Canadian winter refugee |
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The next day, Sheila and Charles leave to visit friends in Keauhou while we stay in Puako. One evening we meet Paul and Liza, who live in South Kona, at
Don's Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Kona Resort to celebrate Peter's birthday with pupu's and drinks.
Brother Noland provides the entertainment and the place is packed. We are lucky to score both a good parking place a table with a view.
We then move the party to Paul and Liza's for a traditional St. Patty's day dinner topped off with one of Liza's fabulous glutton free birthday cakes along with Paul's guitar playing.
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Paul, Liza, me & Peter |
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Great BD cake! |
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Paul strums his guitar for us |
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A few days later. we meet for snorkeling at
69 Beach (aka Waialea Bay), which is close to Puako.
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Paul & Peter entering the water at 69 Beach |
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He, who has the biggest flippers, swims fastest |
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Paul & Liza |
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Sand turtle at 69 Beach |
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On a Sunday, we meet at the
Coffee Shack for brunch sweets and of course Kona coffee. Talk about a strong sugar/caffeine rush. Needing to work off our extra energy, we drive down to
Pu'uhonua O Honaunau (Place of Refuge). Ancient Hawaiian culture was governed by strict rules and prohibitions -
kapu. Death was the penalty for breaking a kapu and the only way to survive was to reach Pu'uhonua by the grace of the Gods before getting caught.
Today Place of Refuge is a National Historical Park which is well worth visiting on any trip to the Big Island.
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Main building Pu'uhonua |
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Traditional residential home |
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Towering Tiki |
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Cooking utensils |
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Liza points out fish nests in a large pond |
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Males build nests to lure females |
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Gourd farming |
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On one of our last evenings together, we watch the sunset over Puako reef.
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Paul explains the reef's structure to Peter |
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Posing for photos |
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Flamingo colored clouds |
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Hawaii's call goes out across the oceans to both residents and visitors |
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Glad to see you still enjoy the island. Looks like a really fun stay. Puako certainly is a great place to stay. Aloha pumehana! Mike
ReplyDeleteAloha Mike...
ReplyDeleteWho knew we would still be returning, even after selling the house in Kailua? Just goes to show "Never say never."
Aloha - Marti
PS We are planning to return next March again.