After our big outing on Friday (covered in the previous blog) we decided to leave the car parked on Saturday and simply enjoy the Maunea Kea area. As usual we were up well before sunrise, enjoying our coffee and tea on the balcony while stargazing.
For the third time in our travel adventures we were notified that there was a chance that a tsunami might be heading our way. It happened once before while we were in Hawaii and one other time while we were in New Zealand. In all three cases the initial warning didn't come from local authorities, it came from Beth's sister, Debbie. On the two prior occasions we did temporarily move to higher ground. This time we were already on higher ground, so we didn't move inland. Thankfully, in all three cases a tsunami never materialized and we’re always grateful for the heads up! We enjoyed another hike on the Ala Kahakai trail, along with some time in the hot tub, pool and ocean. Beth also stimulated her brain a bit by reading while I alternated between staring out at the blue water of the Pacific Ocean and the back of my eyelids. Time sure flies when you're having fun, and before long it was time for what has become our nightly ritual....... watching sunset from the beach, while marveling at how little material is now required to make a ladies swimsuit.
Trying not to get in a rut, we changed up our routine a bit Sunday. Instead of a vigorous morning hike on the Ala Kahakai trail we opted for the slightly less taxing hot tub, followed by a cool, morning ocean swim. Thanks to the getting an early jump on the day, we were out of the water before 9:00, giving us plenty of time to enjoy breakfast. Early afternoon we set off for a three hour tour (just like the five passengers on the Minnow) that would take us up Highway 270 to the small towns of Hawi, Kapaau and then on to the Pololu' Valley Lookout.
Hawi is a small, very scenic community of around 1,000 residents. It is probably best known as the turnaround point for the bicycle portion of the Ironman Triathlon. Hawi has a couple of small shops and restaurants. We had eaten at the Bamboo Restaurant on a previous visit and enjoyed it. We weren't ready for a meal, but we did enjoy a frozen coffee treat from the very busy Kohala Coffee Mill.
Caffeinated and sugared up we continued on a few miles to the equally small and scenic community of Kapaau. It was near Kapaau that Kamehameha I, the founder and first ruler of Hawaii was born. There is a nice statue of Kamehameha across the street from the public library.
The statue had quite an adventure before reaching Kapaau. It was commissioned in 1879 by the Hawaiian Kingdom to honor the first leader. It was designed in Rome and then sent to Paris to be cast in bronze. From Paris it was transported to Germany, placed on a ship and on its way to Honolulu, which was going to be where it was located. Unfortunately, the ship caught fire and sank near the Falkland Islands. Believing the statue was lost forever a second statue was created, which did make it to Honolulu. Years later the first statue was recovered, restored and needing a good place to be displayed, ended up in Kapaau. Quite a journey!
From Kapaau, Highway 270 continues a couple of more miles, dead ending at the Pololu' Valley Lookout. The valley is a deep cut in the side of the Kohala Mountain. The Pololu' stream runs through this cut on its way to the ocean, passing a black sand beach as it nears the end of the journey. From the lookout there is a steep, one mile trail that can be hiked to reach the valley floor and black sand beach. We hiked it on a previous visit, but we were younger then, so this time we chose to simply admire the valley from the lookout.
We've now left the Big Island and are in Maui, our final island stop on this adventure. A week ago we had no idea that we would be coming to Maui, but here we are! We won't be adding a fourth island to this adventure. There's grandkids to visit back in California........oh yeah, Sarah and Joey too!
and..........
