Part 2…We were on the Big Island, and only stayed on half, possibly even a third of the island, and still put over 500 miles on our rental car in the week. Our first full day, we drove along the coast. It was as simple as driving a mile or so downhill from my parents’ house, suddenly, there it was…the big blue ocean.
The view at the end of the road, and the terrain across the street from the ocean cliffs. Nothing makes you feel small like ocean on one side and jungle on the other.
We drove a few miles down Government Road to some tide pools. Every stop we’d make along the road was a new beach and a totally different terrain. It was amazing how different each stop was, despite being on the same coast, only miles apart.
Checking out the tidal pools, some people were snorkeling.
Can you see the two crabs? We watched the crabs on the rocks, the fish in the pools and other creatures we couldn’t quite identify.
We stopped at a sheltered swimming area and dunked our feet in. At another beach, we watched surfers and the girls collected leaves the size of their heads.
We stopped at another park to enjoy the views. This one featured steep cliffs so the girls stayed in the car with grandma. We ventured out on the rocks to get some good photos of the waves crashing into the rocks and spouting out of the little caves.
At lunch, we stopped near Puna at Uncle Robert’s compound. We enjoyed our lunch only a few hundred feet from a lava flow that decimated the Royal Gardens Subdivision. Only one house was spared, “Uncle” Robert’s. Here’s a nice write up on Robert. Basically, in 1990, the lava started flowing again and started to overtake the subdivision of homes situated on the ocean. Robert and his family had to leave their home, he prayed and left a rosary on the wall outside as they drove off. The lava changed directions and flowed to the ocean creating a giant lava wall alongside his property. Once the road was carved out and Uncle Robert could return to living in his home, she opened some small stands out front selling food/shaved ice, etc. That grew. Now every Wednesday night (the day of the week the lava overtook the subdivision), Uncle Robert’s compound holds the only nighttime farmer’s market. It’s quite the party with music, food, dancing, and people enjoying the aloha spirit. We were there during a weekday, so it was pretty quiet, but the spirit lingers.
Lily plays in the black sand.
Numbers spray painted on the lava mark where homes once stood. After the lava cooled, former residents came with coconuts and placed them throughout the area. The palm trees sprout from the coconuts as they sit on top of the lava, they’re everywhere, bringing life back to the area.
We enjoyed a walk through a botanical garden, which had to be hurried along after the youngest in our crew wiped out on the sidewalk.
We stopped at the Pana`ewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens one afternoon. The playground was really the playground was the biggest hit of all.
We made a trip to see Rainbow Falls. I wasn’t expecting the famous waterfall to literally be a pull off in a neighborhood. I thought we’d be hiking through jungle to see it. Nope, drive through a neighborhood, park in a lot, walk a few feet…waterfall. We explored the park a bit and hiked a trail to a huge banyan tree. The girls climbed in and around it, just huge.
As we drove around the island, we always had to take two cars. The girls were set up in my parents’ car the entire time (not going to lie, that was nice and peaceful…for Loran and myself). Their car was full of singing, lots of singing and constant chatter. We followed them down the road, watching small hands poke through the window openings to ride the air currents, and sometimes a toy or two would make an appearance out the window. Luckily, we never had to stop and attempt any toy rescue and recoveries.
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