Snorkeling, Petroglyphs?, & Day Tripping

We are treating our visit here more like a staycation vs a vacation. That means we aren’t rushing around doing things and therefore not a lot to report on.

The warm ocean waters and the beaches are the thing that most people think about when contemplating Hawai’i. So, friends find it odd or confusing that neither of us are beach people and Serena doesn’t much like water activities at all. Jeff loves snorkeling and he’s gone out multiple times. Serena has gone twice.

Serena’s love is rock art and petroglyphs which abound on Hawai’i. Slanted morning or afternoon light is best for viewing petroglyphs so we got out early one day and arrived at Kaloko Honokohau National Historic Park right when they opened at 8:30 a.m. We have been here before so we were particularly looking for the petroglyphs we didn’t find that time. And, probably because they are on the shoreline and the tide was coming in, we didn’t find them again. But we did see several Honu (Hawaiian Green Sea Turtles) which is normal for this stretch of coastline. 

One of the days after Jeff’s morning snorkeling we took a drive north to Hawi. A 90 minute drive seemed totally reasonable though we realized that’s the same as from Santa Cruz to San Francisco. At home we probably wouldn’t make that drive in order to picnic on the grass and look at one small artist shop, one kitschy shop, and one craft gallery. But, we drove over Kohala Mountain and the roadside scenery here is quite a bit different than bay area highways so it seemed worth it. Hawi is never a hotbed of activity and definitely there are a few establishments that are closed (both temporary and permanent) but a fave turned-wood artist’s shop was open. 

There are two towns on Hawaii that we visit because of the art scene - Hawi and Holualoa. Holualoa has more art/galleries and especially more fine art. Hawi has some fine art and a lot of craft art. Hawi gets more visitor traffic from tourists on their way to the view of Pololu Valley at the end of the road. Holualoa rolls up their sidewalks (not really ‘cause they don’t have any) by mid-afternoon. Holualoa had a great restaurant that is permanently closed and Hawi has sometimes had good food but none of the restaurants seem to last so it’s always hit or miss (that’s why we brought a picnic). We haven’t yet been to Holualoa on this trip even though it is much closer to Kona. It will be interesting to see what’s open when we get there.\

We took the coastal route south from Hawi and cruised through the resort area of Waikoloa. This is where the timeshare is that we used to own. Most of the timeshare properties were closed and the gigantic Hilton property also was closed. There are residential condos and homes here too but most are not full-time occupied; there didn’t seem to be a lot of people around. But the mini shopping mall had plenty of cars in the parking lot and the beach was popular too. This was a Sunday so that probably explains the beach crowd. 

We also did a day trip to Hilo. The Wednesday Farmer’s Market is usually big and popular. Of course, with covid-safe distancing there were fewer booths though there was space for a few more. But the shopping crowd was also quite light. We had a couple of other shopping stops in Hilo. We took Saddle road from the Kona side of the island. Saddle has been a modern highway for several years now and it is awesome - only 90 minutes to Hilo driving the “saddle” between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea vs. twice as long if we had to drive around Mauna Loa. 

Jeff is taking a computer class remotely at Cabrillo so he has had homework to do. Serena got an opportunity to have students at CSUMB develop her art website and that is underway. She has to provide content so it could be said that she has been doing homework too.

We have had mostly sunny warm days but one day was mostly overcast and we had a soft steady rain from 4pm through the evening.

Honu at the shore in Kaloko Honokohau National Historic Park

We have to wait quite a while to catch a photo when the turtles breathe. Otherwise photos of turtles look like a very smooth oval rock in the water.

This is what amateur petroglyph hunting looks like. Is it a petroglyph? If yes, what is it?

But the “hunting” grounds are pretty wonderful. Shoreline at low tide at Kaloko Honokohau National Historic Site.

Turtle butt

Hawai’i State Fish - Humuhumunukunukuapua’a

It’s a trigger fish. This one wasn’t guarding a nesting site but when they are it’s best to keep your distance. The bite isn’t dangerous - rather like a bee sting. That is the voice of experience and Serena is still rather apprehensive when she sees one of these.

Parrot Fish

Another Parrot Fish

Lots of black fish and one Yellow Tang

Fish! We don’t have a reef fish ID card or book so that’s the best we can tell ya.

Kohala Mountain is the oldest (and only extinct) volcano on Hawaii. The north side is eroded (much like the Nepali Coast on Kauai) and without roads. Therefore you cannot drive around the entire island of Hawaii. Depending on the light/season/time of day the rainbow of colors on the south slopes show a bit more or a bit less. Today they were a little muted but still a beautiful mountain.

The scenery along the Kohala Mountain Road is unlike anywhere else on the island. It’s always green up here and 10 degrees cooler. This is open ranchland where the island’s beef cattle can be frequently seen. 

Ironwood trees line parts of the Kohala Mountain Road.