- Walking on a black sand beach is a suitable substitute for a cheap pedicure.
- Sea turtles are not always friendly
- Warming up next to a steam vent will make you smell like rotten eggs.
- "Do not drive rental car on this road" is merely a suggestion.
Kona Airport
The Kona airport is the most unusual airport I have ever seen. The entire airport is nothing but a series of huts - one for the gift shop, one for baggage claim, one for ticketing, etc. There are no gates or skyways - you walk directly from the plane down steps to the ground.
Initial Impressions
The first thing you notice when you leave the airport is the sparse landscape - nothing but lava rock as far as the eye can see. The monotony is quickly broken by a series of coral graffiti. Visitors and locals have gathered white coral stones from the beach and composed messages to leave their mark in the miles of black lava.
The Fairmont Orchid
With the exception of a room assignment hassle, a very nice home away from home.
Volcano National Park
(http://www.nps.gov/havo/home.htm)
We made two trips to Volcano National Park and unfortunately encountered overcast and rainy weather each day. The views and massive area of Kilauea are much more awe-inspiring than the photos portray.
Kilauea Summit - Halema'uma'u Overlook and steam vents
Pu'uloa Petroglyph Field (http://www.nps.gov/havo/history/archeology/puuloa.htm)
Snorkeling Trip
A chartered boat took us on a morning snorkeling trip to Kealakekua Bay near the Captain Cook monument. The scenery was gorgeous and the water was crystal clear. We saw hundreds of fish and even a family of dolphins with a very playful young one.
Akaka Falls
After days of looking at lava, the tropical side of the island was a very welcome sight.
South Point
The southern-most point of the United States.
Helicopter Tour
After going through the safety briefing and seating assignments, we found out that our volcano helicopter tour had been canceled due to the weather. Though disappointed, Stephen still had fun flaunting his stylish, yellow fanny-pack flotation device.
Punalu'u Black Sand Beach
After stopping to collect a few shells and some sand to add to my Hawaii collection, we found the first sea turtles of our trip at the black sand beach. The black sand in these photos looks much softer than it actually is. Walking barefoot on this beach was about as enjoyable as jogging barefoot on a gravel road.
Sea Turtles
My quest to find sea turtles on this trip was best fulfilled right at our resort. The turtles spent hours resting on the rocky shore and swam into the bay to feed on the reef. The day we left we decided to snorkel in the bay just off shore from the resort in hopes of seeing a turtle in the distance. Or, if we were lucky, having one swim close enough to touch it. This innocent snorkeling adventure turned into a close encounter of the turtle-kind.
After just a few minutes in the bay, I looked up to see Stephen frantically pointing behind me. I turned just in time to find a sea turtle swimming onto my back. Now, keep in mind, this is no small turtle. The shell on this turtle was about three feet long and its flipper feet are much stronger than one would think! I tried to swim away from the turtle, but no matter which way I turned he continued to swim up on top of me. I finally decided to just stop moving in hopes that the turtle would swim by. No such luck. I must have looked pretty tasty to that turtle because as soon as I stopped moving he promptly bit down on my arm. The turtle then swam away.
After getting past the initial shock of "a turtle just bit me" I went back to snorkeling. I assumed that was the last I would see of that evil turtle. I was wrong. As soon as I put my head back in the water I looked over to see the same turtle swimming full-force straight at me! After a quick game of cat and mouse, the turtle finally gave up and swam off to eat something more inline with his diet. We watch a few other turtles feed on the coral for about another hour. I managed to stay away from the head end of the turtles and avoided any further confrontations. Guess this just goes to prove that you should be careful of what you wish for. I wanted to swim with the turtles and I definitely got that chance... and more!
The Sunset
There are no sunsets quite as beautiful as those I've seen in Hawaii.
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