MATANDTIFF.COM

Today we took it easy. We went to breakfast then did some shopping (Christmas gifts, travel gifts, etc.). I enjoyed more Kona coffee and we went to the Kilauea lighthouse on the way back. We didn’t realize it is also a wildlife refuge and had lots of albatross. Many were nesting and many babies were here. Then we went back to the condo and went to Queen’s Bath again. There were TONS of sea turtles. We only took the underwater camera so we won’t find out if those pictures came out just yet! We snorkeled in Queen’s Bath and took the rest of a roll of film. It was lots of fun! The surf was much lighter today and wasn’t crashing up over the rocks nearly as often.

Dinner today was courtesy of the BBQ between buildings 5 & 6 again! Steak on our lanai overlooking Mount Waialeale. We could ALMOST see it tonight, which is the closest since we arrived due to all the clouds that constantly surround the peak. It isn’t the wettest place on Earth for no reason! We took some more pictures of the area and the mountains today as well!

Today we went on a kayaking trip up from Nawiliwili Bay by the Menehune Fish Pond. From there we hiked to ‘hidden valley falls’ which was fairly dry due to the Hawaiian drought. We then went to Kipu Falls, a locals place we found on our Honeymoon in January. We then went to Polihale State Park which is far away on the west side of the island. We went on some dirt roads that people must have been afraid of because we found the most amazing beach. Beautiful blue water, white sand, and miles of it. There were a total of 6 people on the beach including us!!! We saw a rainbow above the start of the Na Pali cliffs and the end of Waimea Canyon. We stayed here for sunset and it was simply amazing. On the way home we stopped at a little local place in Waimea for some BBQ Pork and BBQ Chicken sandwiches which were delicious!

Today we watched football and spent time at Queen’s Bath. It’s a local swimming spot where water pools off the north coast. It’s actually walking distance from our place in Hale Moi so we walked there today and spent some time. Here‘s a link to where we were all day. Here’s a couple pictures:

Today we took it easy. We started by going to the coconut festival where we watched the coconut creme pie eating contest. We did some browsing of coconut (and not) related wares and spent a little time here. Then we went to the south of the island to check out some of those beaches. It’s a bit of a drive to the south end, but we’ll be making it a couple more times as those beaches are far better suited for snorkeling and boogie boarding during this season!

I’ve uploaded more pictures from the trip including our short (but seemed long) hike along the Na Pali coast today. Head on over to the GALLERY for more!