Big Island: A Trip of a Lifetime

Big Island Trip - March 18-21 2017 (spring break trip)

Daniel drawing on the Black Sand at Pololu Valley

school picture under Kamehameha Statue, Kohala

The long awaited trip has come. Usually it is only Erik, Aprille, and I doing these type of things. However, this trip we had 5 out of the 10 OAG's and Michelle and Jana count as OAG too. So its like 7 of 12 OAG's. We talked about taking a trip for years. This would be the first trip that at least 50% of the OAG's could make it. 

We started the conversation in January at Darren's house. Aprille was talking about cheap airfares and we decided on an island. The seed was planted. Now it was just the planning. Erik and Aprille took care of Day 1 and 2. Michelle and I took care of Day 3. Aprille created a google docs spreadsheet detailing our trip which probably only took her 1 hour to make. For me it would take me 3 days. Millennials are able to do things faster.

Joining the OAG trip was Erik, Darren, Aprille and I. Jana and Michelle were coming too! We asked Daniel, Bernice, and Janice, but only Daniel would come along this time. 

We wanted to see Mauna Kea and the Volcano. Based on those ideas we created a trip revolving around Mauna Kea and the Volcano. We had to get our plane tickets which was key. From there we knew that everyone was committed. After that we divided the jobs. Erik was going to reserve his Aunty's timeshare on day 1 and 2. Michelle and I was going to reserve the Volcano apartment on day 3. Darren and Jana was going to reserve the car. With all the main things covered, we came up with an itinerary. It looked like a great trip was going to unfold.

Kiholo Wet Caves - March 18, 2017

After a stock up of supplies from Walmart, we hit the ground running. Instead of going to the timeshare to drop off our stuff, we started with the Kiholo Wet Caves. It was a smart decision as it was near the airport and a short hike. 

Darren and Jana got the rental van. Darren drove us on Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway (19) to the Kiholo State Park Preserve. We went down a gravel road and pulled over on the side of the road. Luckily Erik and Aprille had their gps tracks from last time. We got ready and started walking down a path that veered off the main road. What amazed me where these kiawe trees. There were 1000s of them and these looked like healthy kiawe trees. I bet I could make great BBQ with these branches. 

lots of kiawe trees at the trailhead

We got to a lava bridge where Michelle wanted to take a picture. Further up is the wet cave entrance. A sign was posted telling interested adventurers to stay out. The consequence for going in was a $1,000 fine. I was like holy crap that's a lot of money. The cave seems to be popular with local residents and tourist so DLNR not wanting liability posted a sign. This is where I think Hawaii government is stupid. They should partner up with the tourism authority. The tourism authority should use their resources and capitalize on the popular spots by charging ridiculous prices for tourist and giving a discount for Kama'aina. Cave goers should report to a designated location pay, sign a waiver, and watch a video on malama. Someone should man the area collecting the tickets and watching for crowd control. I only say this because everyone knows where everything is. Because of social media people are going to find out and do their thing.  

Michelle on the stable rock bridge

entrance with warning sign

We entered the cave and had to go through a tight spot. These lava tubes seemed to be fragile and every time there is an opening, it appears that the ceiling had collapsed. This is where the liability part comes in. We only hiked in for about 8 minutes before we seen the water. Now I'm not going to lie, I would pay a pretty penny to access this area. It is one of the most interesting sites I've ever encountered. The water was on the left, crystal clear. You could see right through it, it really did look like glass. The walkway to the right was smooth like a babies bottom. The lava tube in itself was big. It was like one of those Indiana Jones movies where they have to go through the cave to get somewhere. 

photo 1 of clear water

photo 2 of clear water

photo 3 of clear water and Darren and Erik in the back

The water appeared really deep. We set up shop, got out camera gear. We took a lot of pictures. Erik wanted to jump in, but only if someone else jumped in. After a while I got antsy, Darren did too. Us three jumped in. It was a shock. The water was so frickin' cold. Your body goes into shock. After a few attempts in the water. I got out, it was too damn cold. Erik and Darren went into the back part of the cave. 

After about 1 hour of hanging out, we left quiet as hell, not wanting to make any noise. We got back to the car and headed further down the road to the beach. 

Queen's Bath - March 18, 2017

After the Kiholo Wet Caves, we drove down the gravel road to Queen's Bath. At the entrance was the biggest porta potty in the world. It could fit a family of 4 in there. Not sure why a family of 4 would go in, but it gave the opportunity. 

extra large porta potty

We walked on a charcoal colored sand beach. After about 5 minutes of walking, we got to our destination called Queen's Bath (a.k.a. Keanalele). This appeared to be like the mermaid cave in Nanakuli, although this one is 3x better. Erik entered first. I don't know why our group takes so  long to enter something. It like we have to get warmed up first. When I see tourist at sites they just charge it, but for some reason local people wait for a long time before getting into the mix of things. One example was at Queen's Bath in Kauai October 2016, where this group of 10 Filipino locals from Oahu took like 1 hour to get in. They were there before we got there and Malia and I were jumping in for about 1 hour before they got in. More digressing. I followed Erik. Everyone else took pictures of the pool reflection which was $$$. 

charcoal colored sand beach

The water was cold. As I entered I was struck by how amazing this place was. It was only a cave with two openings one on either side, but you could swim to either side and for some reason that made it awesome. A guy hanging out in the area watching his kids said they someone went further into the cave for about 1 mile. 

Eventually everyone got in. Erik and I told them that it was so worth it, which it was. In hindsight, not going into the pool would be a mistake. After everyone got out, we took a group picture with our reflection in the pool. 

inside bathtub (pc Daniel)

group picture reflection (p.c. Daniel)

Aprille fixed her hammock near the pool. Erik and I took some long exposures at the beach. It was a cool experience. Lots of tourist and locals were making their way down to the pool. Kona has been one of the largest growing cities in Hawaii since 2000, although I have no evidence to back that up. Hawaii island cities do have 8 out of the 10 fastest growing cities in Hawaii since 2000, not just in Kona. 

long exposure with Erik's f-stop filter

After enjoying the area for about 1 hour, we packed up and left. Next on the agenda was to get settled at the timeshare in Waikaloa, a place I've only heard of once before. It was on that PBS commercial every time before Sesame Street or maybe it was Wailuku, I can't remember. 

Mauna Kea - March 18, 2017

Group Photo (pc Jana)

Still on day one folks!!! There was no doubt that the highlight of the trip was going to be Mauna Kea. I knew it was going to be the crème de la crème of the trip. For one, to the state the obvious, its Mauna Kea, the highest mountain in the world from the ocean floor. Two, Erik's cousin Grant was going to take us around, which is such a privilege that it cannot be understated. Three, we will have the opportunity to get access to the facilities which is such a privilege to get free reign its almost wrong and yet so right, well its not fair to others. That's how I view it.

We met Grant at the Canada-France-Hawaii Headquarters in Waimea. There is also one in Hilo. Grant is Erik's cousin. I think Erik's mom's sisters son. He was the one who was going to show us the facilities. We entered a room with a lot of monitoring screens, each one showed a different area of the Mauna Kea Observatory. Grant said that all the monitoring is done at the headquarters and only maintenance is done on the summit. I guess the majority of the public assumed that there was an astronomer at the telescope looking at stars and recording data. I can see that Daniel was giddy so was everyone else. This type of system is way more cost effective and efficient. What we learned was that big bucks goes into these projects. It is a massive undertaking that requires some of the smartest people in the world trying to solve some really complex problems. I had an a-ha moment where I thought to myself this is where the A+ students in high school came to work after going to college, again the crème de la crème. That moment was short lived as we had to problem solve our own issue of taking Grant to the summit. Our van only held 7, with Grant would be 8 people. Darren and I shared a seat. That was easy!!!

headquarters in Waimea

Erik drove as he had to endure the 2 hour drive towards Mauna Kea. We joked around that he has road rage, maybe its not good to joke about that. It was a long drive and Erik did good. Grant had to check in at headquarters so he could sign out the 4x4 SUV. As we waited in the cafe. He told us we could get drinks, fruit, and ice cream complimentary of the cafeteria. I was like WTF??? This was amazing to an already amazing experience. I scooped about 2 cups of Kona Coffee ice cream. I love Kona Coffee ice cream, they also had ube. That ice cream was so amazing and free. This experience was top notch. I felt so privilege to get this experience. Again, not fair. 

Kona coffee at the cafeteria

After Grant checked out the vehicle, he drove us up to the top of Mauna Kea. It was socked in for most of the 30 minute drive towards the summit. However, conditions became perfect at the summit. Its like those movies of Everest where there is a blizzard and bad conditions, then when they get to the summit, its perfect. 

Darren & Jana on Mauna Kea

When we got out, it was FREEZING! I'm  still not going to lie, it is a bucket list item. Visiting Mauna Kea was not on my bucket list, but it is definitely a place where people need to visit at least once in their lifetime, no doubt. It is an experience like no other. If you look at the picture below, you see a crystal clear sky, snow, perfect conditions, an amazing view, etc, etc. 

Amazing view

Grant took us into the facility, excitement took over. The guy at the headquarters started his shift at 5:30pm. His job is to input and collect data and monitor the telescope. Low and behold it was 5:30pm. Grant communicated to headquarters to open the dome and move the telescope around. It was crazy! (Daniel's amazing time lapse) We couldn't help ourselves and took so much pictures. Grant was probably what are these guys doing? Crazy fuckas! We walked around for about 1 hour. What a coincidence? Sun down was at 6:40pm. We went outside the observation deck which can't be accessed by the general public. Usually the public gets to take pictures outside of the dome. 

telescope

inside dome

Just when the sun went down

We took so much pictures that it was overload. I got one of Michelle eating the sun. After our asses were frozen, it was back into the break room. Grant was making pizza. The thing about this place is that the food doesn't spoil. Something about the altitude makes it where things don't spoil. The pizza we ate was amazing. It was a thin crust pepperoni pizza, but it tasted so good. 

cruising in the control center

great pizza

As night fell, we waited for the stars to come out. It was freezing, I'd say in the 30s or even high 20s. There were jackets to put on which helped out a lot. We took night shots. I was freezing!!! With the chill factor, it definitely was in the low 30s if not colder. We all tried to take night shots. Can't wait to see everyone's work. 

Super night shot

Mauna Kea Telescope

We stayed a bit longer till about 9pm, but since Grant is doing this just for us and not getting paid, we didn't want to keep him the entire night. Grant took us back to the van and Erik drove us back to headquarters in Waimea. We talked with the guy there for a little while.

No doubt, the highlight of our trip. You can't beat what we got to experience, it was like no other. We owe Grant so much, yet he has probably done this for so many people already. I think we just want to thank him for what he has done. We could have went just one day and this would have been an experience of a lifetime. 

Pololu Valley - March 19, 2017

With White Road a no go, we changed over to Plan B which was to hike Pololu Valley. I had a feeling that this would be better than expected. I was right, not sure how everyone else felt, but Pololu was $$$. 

We took a short trip to the Kamehameha Statue which was near Pololu Valley. We arrived at the trailhead, maybe about 9:30 or 10:00am, I didn't make a note of it. Pololu Valley is as north as it gets on the Big Island. It is literally the end of the road. 

It was getting hot. The walk down was easy. I was very impressed with what the valley had to offer. Other than the smooth and very fine black sand, the valley has steep walls. Ironwoods separated the deep valley and the black sand beach. The valley from left to right looked only about 1/2 mile long, but it packed an amazing punch.

first glimpse

Pololu Valley (pc Aprille)

It took us about 1 hour to get down, but one could get down quickly. We just took our time. The picture at the bottom is priceless and almost surreal. The experience is unreal and almost not fair. 

Black sand beach

Pic of shoreline

Pololu is a state trail and really popular. People started to flock to the bottom. Aprille took out her inner tube and floated on the black sand as the waves crashed in. Michelle and I took a nice picture of the shoreline. Erik was exploring the ironwoods.

Inside Pololu Valley AMAZING!!!

After enjoying the black sand, Michelle and I went to the ironwoods where a rope swing was hanging about 30 feet from a branch. The rest of the OAG's joined. We took our turn swinging and enjoying the valley. Not sure if people can camp here, but it would be one of the best places to camp in Hawaii. 

Pololu (pc. Erik)

Going back up was very hot. But we got up fast, maybe 45 minutes or so. I would go back to Pololu Valley again.

Hualailai Lava Tube - March 19, 2017

I don't really know the name of this Lava Tube, however internet write ups say that this is the Hualailai Lava Tube. Makes sense, so I have to go with it until someone else corrects me. 

This was off Highway 19, Queen Ka'ahuamanu Highway. Queen Ka'ahumanu was King Kamehameha's favorite wife. I think he had 6 wives.  

I digress. After the Pu'ukohola Heiau, our next stop was the Lava Tube. The Lava Tube was just off the highway. Lots of people where there making it obvious. It was really hot already. I think everyone was exhausted from Pololu and our big lunch at Cafe Pesto. Michelle and I had 2 big ass scoops of ice cream after Cafe Pesto and we were sick to our stomachs. My favorite ice cream is coffee and this was the best coffee ice cream I've ever had, but it was too much. 

Big Ass Ice Cream scoops (PC Aprille)

Us 4 eating ice cream after hot heiau trek (PC Aprille)

We entered the lava tube. It was huge!!! A while ago, the ceiling collapse leaving a huge pile of ruble we had to negotiate. It wasn't too dangerous, however if someone was at the top and fell in, that would be a serious problem. We took pictures and pictures.  The lava tube was cool, not my cup of tea, still an amazing site and one needs to appreciate the gems the state has to offer. 

inside the lava tube

ceiling collapse

outside of lava tube (pc Aprille)

Cool post processing pic called Hulk Smash (pc Aprille)

Puʻukoholā Heiau - March 19, 2017

There was no secret that this would be my favorite part of the trip. Other than the visit to Mauna Kea, Puʻukoholā Heiau was a must for me. After teaching my students about Kamehameha and his unification of the Hawaiian Islands, one must realize that this place was an important event in Hawaiian history. It was here where Kamehameha went toe to toe with Chief Keōua killing him, thus taking over the Big Island. From there Kamehameha went on to defeat Chief Kahekili and control the Hawaiian Islands. Kamehameha in my eyes is one of the greatest war generals in history, up there with the likes of Napoleon, Genghis Kahn, Caesar, Hitler, George Washington, etc.  

 

It was hot and probably everyone did not want to go here especially after the heat coming out of Pololu Valley. Oh well, this a massive heiau built in 1791 by Kamehameha. It is considered one of the largest in Hawaii. According to the brochure, its 224 ft by 100 ft. The war heiau was built to honor Kū, the war god.

Mailekini Heiau

near the ocean

Below the heiau is another heiau called Mailekini Heiau built for agricultural or war purposes. Below that heiau is Hale o Kapuni dedicated to shark gods. 

This was the biggest heiau I seen in my life, even on the highway it appeared so big. 

ilima bush growing near heiau

I think everyone was tired already from Pololu, so we left. Next time I wanna do the entire hike which goes to the ocean. This place has a lot of mana for sure. 

Punalu'u Black Sand Beach - March 20, 2017

On the way to Volcanos was the Punalu'u Black Sand Beach, probably the most facemous Black Sand Beach in the state of Hawaii. This place got so busy that I couldn't recognize it. This place is known for their Honus (Hawaiian Sea Turtle), whom chill on the beach. 

(p.c. Aprille)

We headed here after our great lunch at the Punalu'u Bakery. I still think that bakery is one of the best in Hawaii. It is actually an experience, similar to Ted's but on a grander scale. 

Punalu'u Bakery (p.c. Aprille)

I parked the van and we got out. For some reason we scattered. Aprille, Erik, Michelle and I went towards the pond first. At the pond was a lot of lily pads. Daniel, Darren, and Jana headed makai towards the Honu. Again we took a lot of pictures. Aprille, Erik, Michelle and I ended up at these ruins. Michelle looked it up it was restaurant destroyed by a tsunami. 

lily pads

ruins

South Point (Ka Lae) - March 20, 2017

Michelle and I went here about 13 years ago. I remember that the waves were BIG and there were these cool trees bent parallel to the ground because of the constant wind. 

a picture I took back in 2004, the trees are bent left

Now days, tourist still visit South Point, factually listed as the southern most part of the U.S. It is believed that the first Hawaiians landed here in 400 A.D. Very historic knowing that Hawaiians landed here first. The Hawaiian name is Ka Lae, I didn't know that. Its all on the Hawaii Tourism website. 

To get to South Point from the highway took like 25 minutes. Everyone seemed to be amazed by the farming and cattle. Tourist flock here and the parking was full. When we got out, we saw this hole where the waves were pounding. Daniel took an awesome picture with his 360. His camera actually takes a 360 view. 

Cool picture Daniel took with his 360 camera

Divers built some diving boards near the point where people can jump into the deep ocean. South point is also known for its fishing. A couple of local people were fishing. Erik and I took a trail trying to take some nice pictures. 

After about 1/2 hour relaxing at South Point we left and headed for lunch.

Jaggar Museum - March 20, 2017

After our long Lava hike, it was really late. I'd say around midnight or after. We made the long drive up Chain of Craters Road to Jaggar Museum. The ranger told us that the lake in Helemau'mau Crater was at its highest point in years. She also told us that we wouldn't want to miss it. 

Tired and all, we went to Jaggar Museum. Good thing was that the view point was right behind the museum, bad things was that it was frickin' cold. Aprille, Erik, Daniel, and Darren braved the cold and took about 45 minutes to 1 hour of night shots. I was really tired and went out on 2 occasions. First occasion, I took video with my cell phone which didn't turn out too well. The second occasion, I brought my camera, but with the wide angle lens, it wasn't happening. I soaked in the bubbling of the lava with my eyes and went back to the car to stay warm. 

Just seeing the lava bubble in the lake was top notch. The camera couldn't do it any justice. Erik took video, so that was key because you can see the details in the lake. When he post his video, I'll put the link here. Still photography wouldn't have the details because the lava was bubbling so fast. Aprille, Daniel, & Darren got a good shot of the lake with the stars in the background. 

Lava Lake Helemau'mau (pc Daniel)

Again, staying at Volcanos was key to us seeing what we needed to see. We didn't have to rush because our apartment was only down the road. 

Lava Hike - March 20, 2017

I'm not sure what to call this hike, so I'll call it the Lava Hike. Everyday the volcanologist who work at the Volcanos Visitors Center map out a route to the spot where the lava is spilling. Sometimes the hike is 8 miles, sometimes 11 miles, it all depends.

After going to the Black Sand Beach, it was a 30 minute drive to Volcano's National Park. On the way there, we did not smell any sulfur and that is a good thing. The wind was blowing hard today moving the vog away from the volcano. Entry fee to the park was $20 per private vehicle. We checked into the Kilauea Military Camp and found our rooms. During the planning process, this was a great idea. Instead of hiking at night and driving back to Waikaloa, we just had to drive up the road to the Military Camp. 

After getting settled, we drove to the Visitors Center to check where the hike was for today. I had Daniel and Erik come with me as I talked with the ranger. A second and third pair of ears is big help since I'm only concerned about if we can do the hike in a reasonable amount of time. The ranger said there were two ways to get to the trailhead 1) is down Chain of Craters 2) was on Highway 130. Chain of Craters would be a 11 mile hike and Highway 130 would be an 8 mile hike. After discussion, we chose the Chain of Craters route because of time. 

The drive down Chain of Craters was scenic, seeing the lava fields was impressive. It took a little more than 30 minutes down the windy road to the trailhead. We started the hike at about 5:50pm on a paved dirt road with the beautiful red glow of the lava in the distance. The sun went down rather quickly because of the massive peak of Mauna Loa blocking the sunlight. Aprille took some good shots. It got dark and we put our headlamps out. Tourist were coming back without light and that was a bad move on their part. After about 4 miles and 1 hour of hiking, the terrain changes and we had to walk over sharp lava rock. It was somewhat similar to the terrain of Makapu'u on Oahu. One thing good about the lava rock was the traction, there was some good traction. I was with Daniel and Michelle most of the way there. 

trailhead

It took us about 1 hour on the lava rock to get to the lookout spot. We set up shop and started taking pictures. Lava was going into the ocean, but not spewing into the ocean. The big difference is you can't see the red flow, instead we saw a lot of smoke. Erik who is getting really good at planning, although his bag must weighed a ton brought out what he calls his bazooka lens he borrowed from the camera shop. His lens was able to capture important details, details that couldn't be captured with a wide angle lens. 

Lava field

Lava at night

Star picture

Instead, we had to be more creative with our picture taking. We took pictures of the stars with the red glow. That kinda was cool. 

On the way back, Aprille had to take a group night shot photo. We were so tired already and ready to go back. But seeing how the picture turned out, it was so worth it. 

Group photo about 1 mile from trailhead (pc Aprille)

Thurston Lava Tube (Nahuku) - March 21, 2017

One of the most popular places to visit in Volcanos National Park is the Thurston Lava Tube. Its a big lava tube and somewhat long. The hike through it is only 10 minutes. It is lit up by lights making it pretty cool looking and what the Go Hawaii Website calls 'prehistoric'.

The Thurston Lava Tube was founded by Lorrin Thurston. In Hawaiian history, Lorrin Thurston was the one in charge of the Hawaiian League (a.k.a. Committee of Safety). He was the person leading the overthrow of Queen Liliuokalani. Pretty much it came down to greed. The Hawaiian League was made of wealthy sugar plantation owners. If Hawaii were to get annexed by the United States, they would get a sugar tax break, therefore more money for them. So sad that an entire nation would come down to dollars. 

Lorrin Thurston (Photo: Hawaii State Archives)

I digress. The ranger told us that Nahuku would give us native plants and birds. That was more of an interest than the lava tube itself. Lots of Ohia, Hapu'u ferns and ʻŌhā surrounded the area. I don't know my plants, so I couldn't identify much. Here is a website that helped me out a little Thurston Lava Tube Plants. In the area were dozens of ʻapapane. They get around. Erik tried to take some pictures with his bazooka lens. 

ʻŌhā 

Michelle in lit up lava tube

The place was loaded with tourist. It is a short hike and lit up making it easy and popular. 

Kipukapuaulu Trail - March 21, 2017

This hike was the final hike on the trip. It was a hike I thought everyone would want to go, maybe I was right or wrong. Regardless, it was one of the more interesting hikes in the Volcanos area. It was short which was good especially at the tail end of the trip. 

Daniel was able to navigate the van and find the place. It is actually located outside Volcanos National Park. The trail is a 1.2 mile loop that takes us into the volcanic forest. Choke and I mean choke native plants are abundant here. In the brochure I read, it said Kipukapuaulu has more native species per acre than any other place in Volcanos (brochure here: Kipukapuaulu Brochure)  There were lots of mamake. With mamake comes the Kamehameha Butterfly which Aprille said she saw near the beginning of the trail. The forest houses these really tall ohia trees which many native honeycreepers feed on. We saw apapane, elepaio, and amahiki. Erik tried to take pictures with his bazooka lens, but it was hard. The trees were tall, lighting not so good creating a disadvantage. 

The forest also holds this rare plant called the hau kuahiwi. I'm not sure why I'm so into rare plants, maybe it is because a lot of native plants are endemic. I should actually learn the basic plants first and then expand my knowledge. But seeing rare plants provides interest and that gets a person going to study what is out there. 

Hau Kuahiwi

There was only 1 known hau kuahiwi left in the 1930s and it only grew in kipukapuaulu. A botany professor Joseph Rock saved the plant before it died and collected its seeds. He planted the seeds in kipukapuaulu. There are about 11 trees left in existence, however I only seen 2 and they were both sad looking. Their leaves were rotten. 

Hau Kuahiwi ready to flower 

We went through the trail very slowly trying to capture bird shots, plant shots, and anything we could think of. This trail has ignited my passion for plant knowledge. My goal is to learn what plants are edible and use them in my cooking. I would also like to forage for food on the trails and bring it back so I could cook food with the native and non native plants. 

Kalij (Hawaiian Pheasant brought in 1962, introduced)

Info pulled form Instant Hawaii webpage

I would love to come back here again to stay longer. The trail is loaded for good stuff. 

Apirlle's Big Island Video