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| Rainbow Falls (sans rainbow) |
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| The "Elusive Monkeys" of Rainbow Falls |
Today we are heading back into Hilo to check out the beautiful Rainbow Falls where as legend has it the ancient spirit of Maui cut a ditch into the ground in an effort to catch Tuna'roa or the eel king. The result was that the rainwaters washed down the mountains and flushed out Tuna'roa to the sea where he was chopped into bits and scattered among the ocean. On certain days you are able to see a double rainbow, although we did not see it. When we are leaving, we see two tour bus drivers who offer us some suggestions on how to get to a beach where we have heard sea turtles like to come up on shore at high tide to warm themselves. Since it is Sunday, all of the nearby beaches are packed to the gills and we are unable to find anywhere to park. Hudson has forgotten his bathing suit anyway, so we head back to our neck of the woods to search out other swimming/snorkeling opportunities. Before we reach Kapoho (where our house is located) we stop in the town of Pahoa.
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| Pahoa Flora |
It is a rustic little jewel much like an old western town or outpost. We find, you guessed it, a surf shop and poked around for a few minutes before hitting the road. While underway to our house, we come upon Lava Tree State Park.
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| Lava Tree State Park
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This is a place where ancient lava flows have created huge obelisks out of the tree trunks. The trees essentially worked as molds for the lava and as the lava continued to flow, the trees molds were left standing as sentries over the forest floor. Although interesting, we are pretty tired and hungry and so we head out. We return to our house, have a bite to eat and head out to the local Hot Ponds, AKA the King's bathtub. These are essentially tidal pools that are heated from the residual heat of the lava far below the earth's surface. It is not too crowded and the kids and Paulie jump in and float around. I opt to sunbathe on the lava rocks. They shower off in the very cold pump that is located within the park and we get back in the car to finally try to see the lava fields. The drive is really beautiful along the rocky coast on one side and the windswept fields and forests on the other. The road is narrow and a bit like a roller coaster ride. As you go up and over one bump in the road you cannot see what is on the other side until you crest the hill, making it a bit precarious. Once we arrive at Kalapana (the end of the road - literally! The road is closed due to the lava that flowed over it and marched out over a black sand beach on its way adding real estate to the island of Hawai'i) As it turns out, the lava flows are not visible from this place at the moment, however, we are able to walk out onto the lava fields to a fabulous beach where spectators are building little stone towers out of the rocks. We join in with Hudson and Sam each building a perfectly wonderful structure.
We return home in the dark to a big surprise. All of the electricity is off in our entire neighborhood. Cool and spooky as our darkened house is somewhat illuminated by the full moon shining through the windows. Luckily, Santa Clause had the foresight to give of us a "headlight" that we can strap to our heads and leave us hands-free to read, cook dinner, etc. We had washed a load of laundry before leaving and end up having to hang it all out to dry so we can pack up tomorrow and head back to Honolulu. We end up having a great night playing Charades and eating chocolate fondue that we were able to cook on the gas stove. Candlelight and a gentle breeze complete the day and evening in a most wonderful way.
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