Hawaii
The trip that started it all.
July 2015
Table of Contents
But First, A Little Ramble...
If you read my Bio, you will understand why this is called “the trip that started it all”. While I’ve had many adventures before, they were always led by my parents.
This vacation was the first that I planned myself, bringing my mom along for the ride.
Now, when she talks about this trip, she always recollects the ease she felt just asking what she should wear and what time we were leaving in the morning. She was up for whatever the day would bring. And although Hawaii is a part of the U.S., it doesn’t quite feel that way. So this is also the trip that started my interest in learning about different cultures through travel as well.
It all started when a friend of my mom’s mentioned that she had a condo on the Big Island that my mom was welcome to use if she ever made it to Hawaii. Reader beware, when I heard about this opportunity, I bought our plane tickets that night.
Then it was just 9 months of patiently waiting for the school year to end as I saved up money for the rest of the trip.
Traveling and Our First Green Sea Turtle
I didn’t sleep the night before our flight, I was too excited and running through my itinerary and packing lists making sure I had everything accounted for. After 10 hours of travel, we finally saw the island breaking through the clouds out the plane window.
Even though we were dragging after our travel day, we still made the drive on a bumpy dirt road to get to a lava flow beach and found our first of many sea turtles sunning himself on the rocks.
Kilauea Volcano National Park, Two Step, and Polynesian Dance
This trip was prior to my obsession with the National Park system. Kilauea was probably my second National Park I visited, after the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado.
I'll never forget entering the park and hearing the ranger at the entrance station greet us and then wave us off with an "aloha". Of course, most people know that word is used for both 'hello' and 'goodbye', but to hear it for the first time was really fun.
This was prior to the big eruptions of 2018 and on, so our active magma/lava experience was limited to the distant glow of an open crater visible at night.
But the rest of the park proved to be worth the hype. We hiked across a crater still oozing steam and cracking under the continued tectonic activity. Lots of beautiful flowering plants were growing in the openings, adding splashes of color to the mostly grey scene.
We walked through an extinct lava tube that was much bigger than expected and found a spot to see petroglyphs that were centuries old.
I learned that native Hawaiians leave the umbilical cord of their infants in crevices or pits like those found here to bind the newborn to the land and connect them to their ancestors. The practice continues to this day.
Next, we snorkeled at Two Step, officially my favorite place on the planet even writing 8 years later. (It is one of the places I want my ashes scattered when my time comes.) It was my first exposure to watching life under the waves and would later inspire me to get scuba certified to take that experience to the next level. (Read my Costa Rica article to learn about that experience and get some gear recommendations.)
Two Step is home to a gorgeous reef and hundreds of colorful fish in a variety of species. There were also lots of sea turtles swimming along and we even could hear the clicking of dolphins underwater.
I became obsessed with black durgeon, fascinated by the way they move by slowly rippling two of their dorsal fins rather than the classic side-to-side tail fin movement of most other fish. I thought the fish were black for about half of our trip until I finally got close enough to realize they are actually a rainbow of colors that appear black from far away. (Please forgive my photo quality on underwater scenes here. I did not yet have my GoPro Hero and captured these images with a Waterproof Disposable Camera. Remember those?!)
Later that evening, we attended a Polynesian dance display. The rhythms were hypnotic and the talent of the dancers was mindblowing. We even saw fire dancers light their tongues and soles of their feet on fire mid-dance.
Two Step (again), Pu'uhonua O Honauna, Jake's BBQ Stand, and Snorkling with Manta Rays
At Two Step, I was lured by the clicks and whistles of the dolphins out into water that was much too deep for my comfort level. I may have had the Jaws music playing in my head.
Sometimes, it's looking up at a vast night sky that makes me feel small. In this case, it was staring down into a blue that just kept getting darker and darker with no bottom in sight.
I did get to see the dolphins jumping and spinning in the air, but no underwater encounters.
Then we explored Pu’uhonua O Honauna (Place of Refuge) where Hawaiian chiefs and people seeking sanctuary lived.
Jakes BBQ stand was a welcome place to cool off and refuel before we continued with the rest of our evening To this day, it’s home to the best lemonade I have ever had, and a host of begging geckoes who want some of your BBQ.
That evening, we went on a guided trip to snorkel with manta rays. They come to artificially lit areas for an easy meal, following the plankton that are attracted to the lights. There is a certain hotel right on the coast that lights up the surrounding water and the guide company uses spot lights attached to surf boards to lure the gentle giants in close.
They swooped and spun and dove right in front of us. I could even see straight down into one as it swam by, mouth open for filtering out the plankton.
It was a really amazing experience.
There were divers down below us and it was tempting to think they would get the better experience, but this is the only case that I have seen snorkling work out better than diving. The plankton that the manta rays were after stayed in the most brightly light areas, closer to the surface and to us.
Kiholo Queen's Bath and Kiholo State Park Preserve
The following day, we strolled along a beach and took a quick dip into the FREEZING brackish water of Queen’s Bath Hole. It’s an old lava tube with two collapsed holes in the top. So you can swim through the cave like structure to the other opening and feel like a real underwater cave explorer. Attempt at your own risk.
We saw several more sea turtles along the beach and had to run off a few people who were trying to have their toddler stand on top of one’s shell for a photo.
Green sea turtles are an endangered species.
Their protected status means you are not supposed to touch them and in fact supposed to give them a wide berth so that they can continue their normal activities without feeling disturbed by human interference. There are signs all over the place to remind tourists of the expectations but these people clearly were illiterate, ignorant, or just didn’t care. I’m not sure which of the three options is worse.
Waipi'o Valley and a Local's Secret Waterfall
On day six, we hiked down to Waipi’o Valley.
There, we met a friendly local named Alan who gave us a ride in his kayak across a lagoon and left us with some directions to a beautiful secluded waterfall and swimming hole.
The directions were: "you'll see a 'no trespassing' sign, just keep going, you'll be charged by territorial dogs, just keep going, there will be really thick mud that will suck off your shoes and lots of fallen trees to cross over, just keep going. Oh and the mosquitoes are really bad!"
Even though there was a gorgeous destination, the hike in through the lush forest and beautiful flowers was so worth it in and of itself.
Two Step (again) and Hawaiian Culture Classes
Another stop at Two Step the next day, just in case the dolphins wanted to come in closer. No luck.
Then some Hawaiian culture classes to learn how to make a lei, play the ukulele, and dance the hula.
We had a much needed relaxing evening back at the condo. We knew the next day would be jam packed. So we took a small stroll to the beach for sunset and watched the manta ray tour boats all lit up and bobbing on the waves.
Lava Tube, Rainbow Falls, The Mother of All Banyan Trees, Akaka Falls, Richardson Ocean Park and Lava Tree National Monument
On our second to last day, I went solo into a tighter lava tube (my mom is claustrophobic and waited patiently outside) to see roots dangling from the surface above and lichen on the walls that glistened like silver and gold.
We stopped by Rainbow Falls for a quick photo, but were much more interested in visiting the great Banyan tree forest nearby.
We were amazed by the tenacity of this species to slither over rocks as they grow or send down dozens of tendrils that then become support structures for the ever expanding tree.
It was like nature’s first playground encouraging us to climb and crawl.
Then we walked through the jungle to Akaka Falls, one of the tallest falls in the U.S.
The diversity of plant life along the way was a photographer's dream.
As I am typing this up from the comfort of my home, I am amazed that we squeezed all of this into one day. But all of these locations were very close to each other. So next we headed to Richardson Ocean Park to try out a different snorkel spot besides Two Step. It was also very nice, but I did like Two Step better. Mom got a cool picture of me tailing a sea turtle around the reef, trying to keep a respectful distance.
I soaked up some sun on the shore to dry off and was enjoying it so much, that I let a little too much time pass by. According to my hour by hour itinerary, we were supposed to be on our way to our final stop for the day, but I wanted just a little bit more time pretending to be a lazy lizard, soaking up that solar energy.
I had finally allowed "Island Time" to take over my Type A planning.
Then, right before sunset, we managed a quick walk through Lava Tree National Monument, where trees were engulfed in an old lava flow. Their casts were now being used for a new generation of forests to grow on.
There were a couple of down trees with their root systems still intact sticking up in the air. It was interesting to see how shallow the soil actually is on much of the island. The trees don’t have much to root into before hitting the much harder lava layers underneath.
Surfing Lessons, Two Step (with dolphins!) and Jakes BBQ Stand (again)
Our last day arrived before we were ready, but it turned out to be the very best day of the trip and one of the top days of my entire life!
First, we had surf lessons which went surprisingly well. We rode little 2 or 3 foot waves and got to watch some turtles swim by while we were waiting for our turn. I think my snow boarding experience definitely helped and I was able to ride it in all the way to shore.
Then we stopped by Two Step for one last snorkel and had two amazing wildlife encounters. First was a sea turtle who swam along while I followed. I was able to watch him for a long time and then he suddenly headed towards the surface and broke through to take a breath before descending again. I don’t know why that seemed so magical to me, I know that sea turtles breathe air. But I’ve never been able to watch one take a breath before, knowing that one breath will sustain that creature for hours underwater.
The longest recorded dive on a single breath from a green sea turtle was over 5 hours!
Then I heard the whistles and the clicks again. We headed out towards the deeper water and were rewarded with a whole dolphin show. They jumped and twirled and dove all around us. It was crazy to see their fins breaking the surface heading right for us, and then ducking below the water with our goggles to try to see them swim past, but they were suddenly gone! They gifted us with just a few close encounters underwater and that was more than enough to make my day.
Breathless and exhausted from excitement and treading water for so long, I shared a boogie board that my mom had brought out with her (smart lady!) to make it back to shore. We had one last stop at Jake’s for BBQ and lemonade and a good laugh at a snarky sign out back. (Practice Safe Lunch)
Then it was mahalo and aloha Hawaii, until next time.
Additional Reading
- Wild West Road Trip Pt. 4- Coming soon! Subscribe to get the updates when new content is released!
- CO to PA- the Scenic Route- Coming soon! Subscribe to get the updates when new content is released!
- Mom’s Bucket List: Seeing the Redwoods- Coming soon! Subscribe to get the updates when new content is released!
Links provided will take you to Amazon to purchase. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Anything linked here is something that I actually own and used on this adventure, unless otherwise noted.