As I sit on the lanai watching the sunset (again), I’m reminded of my trip to Southern Africa about fifteen years ago and how connected I felt to that place. I feel similar feels for the Big Island. It hit me at Kua Bay a couple of days ago and again on the drive to Kīlauea today and again while I was hiking across Kīlauea Iki crater. It probably would have hit me last night on the summit of Maunakea, but it was so cold I couldn’t feel anything… 🤣
So that’s a summation of my last few days.
Here it is in more detail.
Saturday
I walked six kilometres along the Walua Trail, which is not far from where I am staying. It was hilly, hot and humid, but I will do it again a few times before I leave. Then, I headed to the Keauhou Farmers Markets to stock the fridge with fresh produce and bread and had a couple of conversations with local women. At another stall where I bought cucumbers, I said “Hello” to a white man, and he looked blankly at me and said, “What?” … so there’s that. On Saturday afternoon, I drove into town, parked the car and dipped my feet into the ocean for the first time at Kamakahonu Beach. Then I wandered around the pier before sitting on the Kailua Bay seawall and watching the sunset behind the trees, realising that in By the Eye, By the Hand, I have the sun setting over the ocean, so I’ll have to edit that!!! At five o’clock on the dot, the doors to Sushi Cocoro & Udon Noodle, which is described as:
A rustic, family-owned eatery offering poké, traditional & modern sushi & other Japanese dishes.
I’ve been looking forward to it for six months, and it did not disappoint. The Red Hot Lava Rolls were spectacular but were outdone by the sheer magnificence of the Hamachi Kama. I will definitely be back to try some of the other dishes.
Sunday
You might have seen on Instagram my failed attempt to find the 3½ km section of the Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail between Manini‘owali Beach (Kua Bay) and Makalawena Beach, which is part of Kekaha Kai State Park. I now realise I was too far inland, but only by a dozen metres or so. A dozen metres across jagged lava might as well be a whole kilometre, though. It is treacherous and slow to walk across. From Kua Bay, the trail starts right near the water and ventures inland a little further along. But I won’t be attempting it again in that direction.
Instead, I will drive to Mahai‘ula Beach, swim/snorkel there, and then walk north to Makalawena Beach. It’s shorter, and the trail is clearer. From Mahai‘ula Beach, it’s also a short hike south to Makole‘a Black Sand Beach, and from Makalawena Beach, it’s a short hike north to Pu‘u Ku‘ili, a 342-foot cinder cone.
But enough about what I’m going to do! Here’s what I did: I swam at Kua Bay on Sunday. And there’s a video below that doesn’t do it justice.
I ate dinner at Island Ono Loa Grill — a double cheeseburger with applewood smoked bacon that was as big as my head, onion rings on the side, and washed down with an Aussie Bundaberg Ginger Beer, which was a pleasant surprise all the way over here in Hawai‘i. The onion rings alone will be worth another visit before I leave.
After that, I watched the sunset from Magic Sands Beach, which was… magical.
Monday
I allowed myself a sleep-in but still woke at 6:30 am. After cooking myself a hearty breakfast at the guest house, I spent some time reading before heading off on my tour to the summit of Maunakea. Our driver was Jeff, and there were eleven passengers. I was the odd one. Of course. We had to introduce ourselves and tell the others why we had chosen to visit Maunakea. Naturally, I mentioned By the Eye, By the Hand, which became a favourite subject when chatting later with the passengers. A few of the women are interested in reading it, so I pointed them in the direction of Sandalwood for the time being, explaining that BTEBTH isn’t due for release until mid-2025 since it’s the third book in the Triptych series (after Disrupted and Setting the Hook).
Maunakea was incredible. It really felt like I was on top of the world. It is the highest peak on the island, so from the summit, we were able to see three of the other volcanos: Kohala (extinct), Mauna Loa (very active but dormant), and Hualālai (dormant, but volcanologists predict it will erupt within the next 100 years). Only Kīlauea was out of sight.
Maunakea measures 4,207 metres from sea level but 9,330 metres from its underwater base, making it technically taller than Mount Everest by almost 500 metres! Impressive. It is home to thirteen observatories, even though only ten are allowed, so it’s a contentious issue, made even more contentious by plans to build the Thirty Metre Telescope, which is indefinitely delayed and possibly won’t ever see the light of day (or night, pardon the pun). You see, Maunakea is incredibly sacred to Native Hawaiians, hence the delay resulting from numerous protests.
Keck I and II Telescopes.
From the summit, we watched the sunset, and then we descended about 1000 feet, where our driver set up two telescopes, and we star-gazed for a couple of hours before heading back to Kailua-Kona. I could tell you so much more, but Monday was a late night, and I spent today (Tuesday) hiking Kīlauea Iki crater and its rim, I’m tired, so I’ll leave that story for another blog post.
Mahalo for reading!
All my aloha…
Rebecca x