Hawaii Trip 2014 - Big Island Day 8

September 5, 2014 (Friday)

Heading to Hilo, we passed all sorts of different terrain – lave fields, desert (with cactus), tall trees and tropical areas. It was interesting to see trees having a permeant bend in them from the wind. There was a bit of maintenance along the drive – the area was hit a little harder by the hurricane, which hit a couple of weeks earlier, than other parts of the island.

Akaka Falls State Park

Akaka Falls State Park was our first stop. There was a $1/person fee to enter the trail if parking outside of the gate, or $5/car if parking at the park. There were two falls at the park, one of which was largely blocked by trees (Kahuna Falls). The Akaka Falls has a 442 foot drop and was lovely.

Back on the main road, we pulled off to the 4-mile scenic drive, which takes you past the tropical gardens. We did not visit the gardens, but there were a couple of nice overlooks that we visited.

While in the area we also visited Rainbow Falls, which had a nice viewing platform. It was not worth taking the trail, as the view was not as good. Just down the road from Rainbow Falls are were some boiling pots, which are basically a series of pools and Pe’epe’e Falls. About a mile up the road was another waterfall called Wai’ale Falls. Nice views are available at the roadside bridge, but there is a trail you can take to get closer to the falls.

Laupahoehoe Point Beach Park

Pineapples was our lunch destination. It was located in downtown Hilo. I had the pork sandwich, which was too saucy for me (and to think – I like things saucy!). Mike had fish and chips again – this time the fish was Ahi. I had the Onion soup – it was awesome (a bit spicier than most I’ve had).

Heading back to Kona, we visited Laupahoehoe Point Beach Park. The park has a monument which is dedicated to those who lost their lives during the “April Fool’s Day Tsunami” back in 1946. The park was very nice and definitely worth the stop if in the area.

Waipio Valley

Waipio Valley is also not far off the path. There was not a lot of parking available at the overlook, but we were able to nab a space. To get to the valley you MUST take a tour. The grade to get to the valley is super steep (25% average grade), possibly the steepest road in the world. Hawaii Islands tallest waterfall, Hiilawe Falls (1,300 ft) is located in the valley. The valley itself is about a mile across and over five-miles deep with cliffs exceeding 2000-feet in height. Some interesting facts include the valley was the final scene of the movie Waterworld (where the main characters find dry land) and Waipio Valley was the boyhood home of King Kamehameha I.

As we headed back to the road to get to Kona we stopped in a town called Honokaa to get some ice cream at Simply Natural. I had a scoop of coconut flavor and a scoop of passion fruit sorbet (it was yellow and tart).

Back in Kona, we wondered down the pier and snapped some sun set photos and had dinner at Splashers. Mike had Wahoo fish yet again and I had a burger.