Week 2
We returned to Kona Brewing Sunday evening because they have live music. Colin John and his brother played a mix of Hawaiian, country, and classic rock – Johnny Cash songs with a Uke and Sitar. Good music, good food, lots of fun.
Can’t get enough of sitting on the lanai – whale watching….
People watching….
Beautiful sunsets….
Amazing moonsets….
Friday, we were up bright and early because we booked a tour with Volcano Van to see the sites south of Kona and head over to Volcano National Park. Our first stop (not really a stop, more of a drive-by because some local said no commercial vehicles were allowed to park) was Kealakekua.
This is the area was the inspiration for Don Ho’s song “Little Grass Shack”.
Our next stop was a lookout point amidst A’a lava.
A’a lava is rocky and sharp on the top and extremely dense underneath – producing some of the most difficult rock to cut through. A’a lava tumbles in the form of small rocks with very jagged sharp edges.
As we continued our drive, the harshness of the landscape gave way to lush forest. Apparently the island has 10+ climate zones.
Next we drove to Black Sands Beach (aka Punalu’u Beach).
What an exciting day to show up! Research biologists and volunteer students from University of Hawaii’s Marine Option Program were there to study the green sea turtles.
The green sea turtles (actually all sea turtles in Hawaii) are protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The turtles were temporarily captured.
Thorough examinations were conducted to check for injuries or disease. They were measured and weighed.
Then they were tagged before being released. Tagging allows insight into how fast they grow, where they travel to, and (for adults) how often they breed.
Well, that was about it for the tour – the van broke down. The poor independent tour operator was beside himself. We assured him we were “okay”; it was just something that happened, nothing he could do about it. His wife came and picked us up with her vehicle (after 1 ½ hr. wait…). We are rebooked for next week… Upon return, we strolled on over to Bongo Ben’s for Happy Hour and to meet up with a couple from BC whom we met who are here for a month long vacation.
Most nights we have eaten at the condo, on the lanai – watching the sunset. Saturday night, we decided to dine out and chose Lava Java. Live music + sunset + good food.
Kalua Pork Pizza
Hard to believe 2 weeks have gone by !!