Hapuna Beach
Hawaii
(The Big Island):
March 6-16
Days 9-10, Wind
Hapuna Beach
The next morning we decided to book a night
snorkel with
mantas for our last night in Hawaii and, with that in mind, headed to
downtown
Kailua where we knew we could book one with one of the tour kiosks. I
tried to
call the company I’d jotted down on my cheat sheet on the way, but they
were
booked; the agent also told me that with the high surf warning, the
boat was
unlikely to go out anyway. I also called Napolo Stables to confirm that
I
wanted to join the afternoon ride she’d mentioned when the previous
trip was
canceled, but apparently the wind prohibits riding as well, and it was
canceled
again.
We parked along our usual stretch of road above
the Islander
Inn and walked through its jungled paths down to Ali’i Drive, thinking
it was a
good shortcut to know—a much better alternative that walking down a
connecting
street. We booked a manta tour (after arbitrarily picking a company
that does
not advertise dolphin swims), managed to repeatedly refuse a
ridiculously good
price ($23 for the two of us I think) in exchange for going to a time
share
presentation, and walked back to the Daylight Mind café for
mochas and
madeleines. Sitting in the sunshine with our drinks, we both called our
parents
and had a lovely, leisurely morning.
By then it was late in the morning and we decided
to spend
the afternoon on a beach. Looking through the cheat sheet, I thought we
should
try Kaloko-Honokohau National Park and Beach, the sign for which was
not far
out of Kailua and had intrigued me. We drove through a lave field and
to a
small visitor’s center, quite far above the shoreline. We looked at a
map of
the area in question, which turned out to be the bay in which the
harbor was
located—the same sandy beaches that had intrigued me on our whale
watching
tri
p. The ranger told us that the best access to the
beach was from the
harbor
parking lot rather than the visitor’s center, but 
that
there was little
surf on
those beaches because of a barrier reef. In the interest of more
exciting water
time, we headed further north, first checking out Waialea Bay beach
with its
pretty promenade of trees, but that turned out to be calm as well so we
returned to Hapuna Beach.
Picturesque on any day, Hapuna was spectacular under the deep blue sky and the clear air. From the water, the white beach against the gentle slope of the mountain behind with its deep green pasture against the bright blue sky was perfect. It was almost worth buttoning up my phone in its case to photograph from the water, but I wasn’t quite motivated enough to do that. Surprisingly, the surf, though fun, wasn’t quite as dramatic as it had been earlier in the week despite the wind we kept hearing about. I for one enjoyed the waves much more this time, with more experience and confidence diving through them. I did get kicked around a few times, even going head over heels once, but it was more fun than not. During one break on the beach, sand started blowing over my towel and before I knew it, a wind gust was swirling around the beach. Half way down toward the hotel, an enormous twister of sand spun over the beachgoers and umbrellas went flying. One skidded past us from the opposite direction and I decided against a dramatic photo in favor of lying on top of our gear should the twister move our way. Later on, another huge gust came in and more umbrellas went flying, some taking great flights high in the air. While Chris was in the water he saw a second twister spin up farther down the beach. Someone managed to land their kite on top of me at one point, but I think that was unrelated to the wind.
All in all, we had a lovely beach afternoon. We
headed out around 5:00 in time
to have some dinner before the manta snorkel, but that tour was
canceled due to
wind as we drove. We returned to Ultimate Burger for one more
impeccable
double-decker, picking up another bottle of wine on the way home.
 Driveway to our rental |
 Rental parking spot |
 Huge tree in Kailua |
 Very old church |
 Driving north |
 I love you, Ultimate Burger |
The next morning was our last day on the island—a
full day,
as our flight didn’t leave until 10:45 that night. We finished packing
and
reluctantly left our idyllic rental behind at 8:15. Our first stop was
back to
downtown Kailua to return our rented snorkel gear and get a refund for
the
manta tour. We thought we’d try the beaches near the harbor so we drove
to
Honokohau Harbor and parked near the path down to the beach. We ended
up
somewhere in the middle of the bay on a reef and decided to walk north
to a
fish pond that was just inland of a narrow strip of sand. That area had
only
low brush cover on the back of the beach, so we didn’t expect to want
to stay,
but I did want to see the fish pond. It turned out to be a very large
pond of
murky water inhabited by a group of ducks on one side and a lone coot
near me,
not especially interesting though I’m sure it has historic importance.
The
ocean there did not look enticing, or like it was a good place to
snorkel (I
was hoping to take a few more underwater photos) so we walked back
along the
beach past a longhouse to the southern point near the harbor where a
heiau sat
next to a squarish fish trap in the water—basically a walled in pond
with
access to the ocean. People were snorkeling there, but the water looked
shallow
and not very clear and we we
ren’t
supposed to lounge around that part
of the
beach because of its cultural significance, so we agreed to move
elsewhere.
Before we left the beach entirely, though, we found a nice spot in the
shade of
a tree nearby and had a can of orange san pelegrino.
Somewhat refreshed, we checked the time and
realized that it
was late in the morning and decided we should run errands and possibly
eat
before settling on a more remote and enticing beach. Mostly I wanted to
purchase coffee and macadamia nuts for folks back home, so I drove back
to
Captain Cook and beyond thinking that I’d stop by one of the many
places that
advertised coffee and/or nuts. One stop turned out to be more of a
café than a
shop and nothing else seemed to be open. I drove up the road a little
farther
and finally went to plan B: the supermarket. Naturally it had a whole
shelf of
Kona coffee, a few dozen brands, and I came away with an armful. We
drove down
to the Chinese restaurant for lunch and then decided to try Manini
Beach again,
which had a note that suggested it was a good place to hang out.
Manini Beach was at the end of the very long and
very scenic
Napoopoo Road, which I would recommend anyone to drive. It drops from
the
highway at 1,000 feet down to the coast while winding through
incredibly
picturesque country featuring giant lilac-colored trees and a paradise
of small
farms and houses. At the end we found Manini Beach easily enough, but
it wasn’t
exactly the beach we were looking for. It was a lovely little
park—grassy with
picnic tables and shade trees, but the beach was all rocky with the
exception
of a very small, twisty passage into Kealakekua Bay. Even if we’d
wanted to
compete with the kids to enter the water, it wasn’t a place we could
hang out
and play.
We strolled through the park and down to the beach, following the pile of coral and lava rock out to the southern point. There the rocks were a mess of sharp, jaggedness against which the swells surged and flooded and shot up into the air. It was neat, but not really what we were looking for.
At
that point I gave up on finding a desirable
beach close
to town and reconciled myself to one final long drive north to the
south Kohala
coast. Before that, though, we had to wind our way back up the very
long
Napoopoo Road, after which I turned south for one more quick stop. I
refused to
leave the island without trying fresh coconut water and we’d passed a
stand
there many times without stopping. The proprietor was friendly and gave
us
details on all the fruit he had there, more information than I could
process
(especially since I could not identify some of the fruit). He chopped
off the
top of an enormous triangular coconut and drilled out a hole in the
center,
which popped with the slight carbonation inside. He inserted two straws
and
Chris and I set to drinking—quite a feat given the size of the coconut
and
volume of water inside! The taste was pleasant, only slightly sweet,
and cured
my thirst in a hurry (the owner said it is far superior to sports
drinks in
terms of electrolytes, is the closest vegetative analog to human
mother’s milk,
and that coconuts are the closest plant relative to humans).
From
there I drove north listening to Kapa Radio
(which had
quickly become my favorite station), interested to hear that the high
wind
warning was still in effect and that, though the roads were still open,
drivers
should drive with caution! We did get buffeted around, but I wondered
what the
driving hazard is in high wind, and what roads get closed? Chris napped
while I
drove all the way to the northernmost beach on the strip, the most
enticing
beach I could think of, the one we’d tried to visit when it was closed
for
maintenance: Spencer. It was the right choice. Spencer Beach’s stretch
of white
sand is modest in length, but there was plenty of room for beach goers.
The
sand extended inland to create a large picnic/lounging area among what
I think
may be Thespesia populnea trees, dead and alive. At first we chose a
place in
the middle with a bare sunny patch of sand and a small shaded area
(Chris
wanted sun, I wanted shade), but when I came back from the restrooms I
found a
much more desirable spot on the northern corner of the beach just below
a large
white tree trunk sprawled across the sand. A live tree gave me ample
shade and
there was a soft, sandy patch for Chris in the sun. And we were much
closer to
the water. Spencer turned out to be the perfect beach for out final
afternoon.
We rested there for hours, not swimming or snorkeling, just enjoying
the beach.
To the north some folks were camped in the trees that lined the beach
there and
I could see how ideal a camping beach it would be.
At 5:00 with the sun lowering on the horizon, I
changed into
travel clothes in the restroom (pondering again whether the heiau-like
architecture of the park facilities (and, for that matter, many
residential
walls) is intentional for cultural acknowledgement reasons, practical
reasons
(after all, presumably there’s a practical reason that heiaus are
constructed
as they are) or both) and we headed back to Kailua and the Fish Hopper
for
dinner and more tropical drinks. I did some research about the
sustainability
of ahi as we sipped drinks and, satisfied that it was a well-managed
fishery,
decided to order some for dinner. To my dismay, it came seared but
generally
raw and I enjoyed it less than I hoped (I did not know at that time
that ahi is
never cooked in restaurants!). Eventually we made our way to the
airport,
enjoying the open air waiting areas while other planes loaded. We both
slept
most of the way to Seattle, breakfasting on Beecher’s macaroni and
cheese and
hot drinks in the airport. A few hours later we were on a plane for
Juneau and
a reunion with the dog.
 Fish pond near Honokohau Bay |
 Fish trap pond in Honokohau Bay |
 Was this once stairs up the heiau? |
 Beach along Honokohau Bay |
 Surf near Manini Beach |
 Surge crashes near Manini Beach |
 There's a neat Hawaiin story about these flowers |
 Chopping our coconut |
 Spencer Beach |
 Check out this bathroom's architecture |
 Spencer Beach trees |
 Ali'i Drive, Kailua |
