Maui:
Island is difficult to navigate. Lots of one lane bridges and low speed limits, even though its small it takes a long time to get all the way around. Recommend 4-wheel drive but not something too big because you will take up too much of the road. East side is the wet side, west side is the dry side more touristy. I camped the entire time here, except one night and did minimal hiking. For these reasons I am putting it at the bottom of my list. Also, Lehainia, which is the main tourist area on the West side of Maui reminded me a little of LBI mixed with Red Bank. It had cute little boutiques and surf shops along a cobblestone street. Haleakala crater was gorgeous at sunrise but a very far drive from the Kipahulu campground, which was much warmer than Hosmer in the winter time. Kipahulu campground was a great location with tidepools, a waterfall, and the seven sacred pools right there. Camp Olowalu south of Lehainia was the nicest private campground I stayed at during the entire trip, offering nice new showers and bathrooms, but they came at price. At $20 a night it was the most expensive campground of my trip as well. With beach access to a beautiful snorkeling and whale watching spot it was well worth the money. The East side was definitely a bit chiller and I was only able to get in the water if there was a tidepool or at the red sand beach. The shoreline is very rocky and the waves were very big. The West side was much warmer and the water was almost like a lake with no waves at all. If I went back I would definitely spend more time in Paia, which is a hippie surf town on the north shore. I also think I would spend more time in Kihei, which was a tourist spot with lots of restaurants and resorts on the south side but seemed more chill than Lehainia.
Turtles, whales, dolphins
Hippie commune 🙌
Oahu:
Again be prepared for lots of driving if you want to see the whole island. It doesn't matter what kind of car you have here. All the roads are developed and there are normal speed limits. Traffic can be an issue around Honolulu during rush hour. Keep in mind you cannot drive all the way around the island!! This is a mistake that my mom and I made and it cost us of hours in driving. I didn't camp at all on this island and I hiked the most out of any of the islands. Again, I think my experience here is too skewed one way to put it on the top of the list. Obviously, Honolulu and Waikiki are huge tourist destinations but if you are looking for something more remote there are definitely options available, such as Waianae and Haleiwa. There didn't seem to be a wet and dry side on the island. Overall, the weather was probably the worst during my time on Oahu. There were a couple of days were it rained on and off a bit and some strong winds. The waves were so huge it made it impossible to swim unless you were at a protected bay. Oahu definitely had more beach access than Maui overall with less rocky shoreline. The island offered some amazing hikes and it was good to learn the history of the islands and really feel the spirit of the Hawaiian people. If I ever went back I would spend my time in Haleiwa on the North Shore.
Turtles, whales, monk seals
Hippie commune 🙌
Kauai:
Definitely the easiest island to get from point A to point B. Since it's the smallest of the islands you can get from one side to the other in 2 hours or so. Again, you cannot drive around the whole island! I would recommend 4-wheel drive here. I didn't have it and wish that I did. Some of the cool hiking spots required 4-wheel drive to get to. I had a really nice balance of camping, hiking, and relaxing at a resort here. I also stayed at the nicest resort of the trip and did the most challenging hike of the trip. For those reasons it is at the top of my list. I also left with the feeling that this was what Hawaii was suppose to be like. I wasn't ready to leave. There was definitely a wet side and dry side. I am just not sure what it was, haha. I know for sure the south side is the dry side. When I was East it seemed cloudy and cold, same for when I was North. When I went to Waimea canyon which is West it is called the wettest place on earth and it was freezing...so I am not really sure. I do know that for hiking the Napali coast the mild temperatures were perfect and then I came back and went South to Poipu to hang at the beach where it was 85 degrees. The whole island has a laid back feel and small town vibe. Each little small town has their resorts, shops, and restaurants. The other islands it seems like one big tourist trap Lehainia, Kihei, and then nothingness. There are so many accessible beaches, virtually no rocky shorelines, and the waves seemed to much more manageable. One regret I have is that I didn't snorkel at all. I went to plenty of beaches that had snorkeling, I just didn't. I loved Poipu and would definitely go back. I loved the Napali coast and would definitely go back. I loved Princeville but it was not the right time of year, I would go back in the summer. I would have loved to spend more time in the canyon as well in warmer weather.
Monk seals, goats, dolphins, probably turtles but I wasn't looking
Hippie commune 🙌
Hawaii aka The Big Island:
The most challenging of all the islands to drive. Not only because it is the biggest and takes a long time to get to each destination but a lot of the local spots require off-roading and you definitely need 4-wheel drive to navigate the terrain. The main roads are developed and have high speed limits but to access a lot of the beaches you need to take dirt roads which contain lava rocks. You can travel around the entire island. I felt I again had a nice balance of camping, staying at a hostel, and with friends. Unfortunately, I didn't stay at any resorts here to be able to speak on them but the vibe here is so local that I don't even remember seeing that many! The East side is definitely the wet side and the West side is definitely the dry side. Out of all the islands, this is a very clear difference, with an extreme difference between the two sides. The West side is probably the hottest of all the islands and the East side is probably the wettest of all the islands. I lucked out when I was there and had almost no rain. Because the West side gets blocked by Maui the waves as not as intense, making the water more manageable as well. The issue with the West side is beach access. I found that the Big Island for as large as it is has far less beach access than Oahu and Kauai. I think a big reason for that is the terrain. Having lava rock covering so much of the island makes it hard to make roads to get to the beach. When you do find your way to a beach it has a lot of coral, lava, and trees. Beautiful scenery but not much for laying out and getting a tan. Have I mentioned there is an active volcano?! Currently flowing lava into the ocean like a fire hydrant?! It is amazing!! That alone makes it worth it! When are you are ever going to get to see something like that in your life?! Not to mention the fact that the island has so many different climates and ecosystems, it is incredible!! Just a different vibe from the other islands in so many ways. The people, the landscape, everything about it. Different and interesting. I highly recommend it.
Turtles, whales, dolphins, monk seals, shark, goats, horses, cows
Hippie commune aka Rainbow Gathering 🙌
Most of us don't have the opportunity to go the islands for 6 weeks and get the chance to experience them the way that I did. I highly recommend if you do want to go and only have a short period of time.
For the hiking and outdoor enthusiast any of the islands will do but I think Oahu or Kauai as my top choices.
For leisure resorts and relaxing at the beach and snorkeling Kauai or Maui West side.
For the science nerd in all of us the Big Island! LAVA! VOLCANO!
For the hippies you are welcome everywhere you just have to know where to look 😂
The islands all have something very different to offer and my experiences were very on all four but I ranked them as such:
1. Kauai
2. Big Island
3. Oahu
4. Maui
Who knows how it would have changed if I would have visited them in a different order?
AROOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Friday, March 3, 2017
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
The Big Island
Hey all! I finally made my way over to the island of Hawaii, the Big Island, and boy it did not disappoint!! The big island is so different from the other islands in a lot of ways. The big island as the name might suggest is much larger than the other three islands. It takes about 2 hours to get from East to West and their speed limit is significantly higher than the other islands as well, with speed limits in the 50's for the most part. The big island has 8 different climates throughout the island; including snow covered mountains, tropical rainforests, sandy beaches, and prairie fields. Once again I was expected the weather to be much worse than it was but it actually the warmest of the islands. The Kona side was close to 90 degrees everyday I was there.
I arrived Wednesday night and after having such a great experience at the hostel in Kauai I figured I would give it a shot in Kona, since it was going to be dark by the time I got the rental car, etc. I stayed at a hostel called Pineapple Park about 30 minutes from the airport and there was definitely a different vibe from the hostel in Kauai. First of all the woman running the place was like a Korean nazi. There were tons of rules and she was pretty uptight. In Kauai the guy working there was in his twenties hanging out and drinking with everyone. Also, the types of people staying there seemed very different as well. In Kauai the hostel was filled with solo travelers, the most would be two people traveling together. At Pineapple Park there were two big groups of friends traveling together, a group of guys from Canada and a group from Australia. There also were a couple of local people staying there because they were in between places. One being a family originally from Ukraine and they other being a guy named Jeff, who recently broke up with his girlfriend. I was friendly with everyone there chatting about what they have seen and done so far, but Jeff and I really hit it off. He was originally from Virginia and has been living in Hawaii for about 8 years. Surfer guy, a bit younger than me he lived on Kauai first for 5 years and then decided to move to The Big Island about 3 years ago when his sister decided to move to Oahu.
The next day Jeff offered to take me up to Mauna Kea. Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano that is actually the tallest summit in the world and currently has snow on it. The reason it is the tallest in the world even though Mt. Everest is actually higher is because a lot of it is below sea level. After having the Spark on Kauai and living out of that tiny little trunk, I needed to go back to a mid-size. The rental car prices continued to rise and I knew that out of all the islands the Big Island had the best development roadways, I figured a mid-size would be fine. Unfortunately, I think this is the most important island to have four-wheel drive on. A lot of the beaches and hiking trails are only assessable with four-wheel drive because there are lava rocks everywhere. Jeff had a Toyota Tacoma, which seemed to be a popular car throughout the island, that he did a lot of custom work on to help handle the rugged terrain. Jeff is a mechanic. He used to work at a dealership but now he runs his own business. He knows so many people on the island and their cars get destroyed living there, he seemed like his phone was constantly ringing.
We drove the nearly two hour drive up to Mauna Kea but unfortunately due to 70 mph winds we couldn't go all the way to the top. Still above the clouds we hiked up a small mountain and took some pictures. It was harder to breath up there for sure and was definitely much colder. We then went to his favorite beach Makalawena, or Maks, to watch the sunset. This required some serious off-roading. It was a pretty amazing extreme to be up in the cold mountains one minute and then watching the sunset at the warm beach the next.
The next day I woke up and was getting packed up to leave the hostel. I started talking to this girl at the kitchen table that said her and her boyfriend didn't rent a car because of how expensive it was and they wanted to know which way I was headed. When I told them I was headed to Hilo they asked if they could catch a ride to The Rainbow gathering. It was some kind of festival happening out in Pahoe. I said sure no problem but that I was going to be doing some sight-seeing along the way and they more than happy with that agreement since they just arrived to the island the day before. In previous posts I have discussed the term Wook, well these two definitely looked the part.
They both had disgusting dreadlocks and were extremely underweight. They explained to me more about The Rainbow Gathering where everyone joined together to help work and live off the land, play ukelele, and be at one with nature. They seemed like good enough kids. Both of them pretty young, the girl only 22 and her boyfriend 28. They were going to be staying on the island for a month and a half doing a work for stay program at a ranch. Both were circus performers from Nova Scotia, yes that's right, I said circus performers, who actually had been stuck in Vancouver for close to two weeks because of the strict travel policies Canada has. Before leaving the country they needed to know all the specifics of their trip and I guess there was some issue because they saw this trip as work rather than leisure and the two didn't have working visas. The first stop was a snorkeling beach where we spent a few hours, the two seeing the first sea turtle of their trip. After that we did some whale watching where they got to see their first whales and then headed down to South Point.
South Point is the southern most tip of not only the island but the entire United States. Driving down the road to get there was totally picturesque, but not at all what you would expect. It was like driving in the middle of Oklahoma with horses and cows and tall grass. There was a really cool cliff jump about 500ft that had a crazy cave you could swim to. The scariest part was trying to climb back up the ladder afterwards which was a rickety metal ladder that was just swinging back and forth as you tried your damnedest to climb up it.
After some crazy directions we made our way to The Rainbow Gathering where I dropped off my new Canadian friends for the weekend. When we pulled the car up a guy in overalls cheerfully said, "Welcome home." It seemed like an interesting group of people looking to spread love and good vibes but I was ready to get out of there and head to Hilo to spend the weekend with Keith and Sherri.
The three of us all went to high school together and Sherri and Keith got married about a year and a half ago and are expecting their first child, a baby girl in April. They spent the entire weekend taking me up and down the East coast of the island showing me all the highlights. Keith has been living on the islands for the past couple years working on Oahu and then The Big Island as a mechanical engineer. Sherri just finished up her doctorate in physical therapy and joined him out there over the summer.
We biked to the volcano on Sunday night for sunset. Unfortunately, Sherri couldn't come with us due to the toxic gases, it is not recommended in pregnancy. The bike ride was from the town of Kilauea, and was about 4 miles each way. We arrived right around sunset. The area was roped off and very crowded with people. Keith explained that he had been much closer in the past but ever since a section of land had fallen into the ocean around New Year's they had been much more strict as to where people were allowed to stand. We broke the rules anyways until a ranger came and yelled at everyone to get back behind the rope. It was incredible. To have had the opportunity to see an active volcano flowing into the ocean like that, it was unreal. It looked like a waterfall of hot lava shooting into the ocean at full force. The whole area looked like the apocalypse. Lava everywhere. People trying to rebuild their homes and putting up tiny houses on top of lava rocks. I couldn't imagine living there.
I was so impressed with the amount of knowledge Keith and Sherri had about everywhere we went, especially Sherri, since she has only lived there a few months. You could tell they don't just go see places, they truly care to learn about them. It was refreshing to be with people I felt like I could relate to. They both have great educational backgrounds, love to travel, and are passionate about fitness. I hope they had as much fun as I did with them. I truly left their house wondering why I wasn't better friends with them when I had the chance. It was so nice to stay with them but I didn't want to overstay my welcome so Monday morning it was time to get back to the hammock.
I decided I would head back to Kona, or the West side, for some more beach days and then end the trip back at Volcano National Park, hiking. The Big Island definitely has a much different vibe to it than the other islands. Being in Hilo I definitely noticed it wherever I went out with Keith and Sherri and I was a bit nervous to camp for the first time since I started this trip. The Big Island has a lot more locals than the other islands and their presence is strong at the beach parks where I would be camping. It's not that they seemed unfriendly but they didn't seem very friendly either. Camping on the other islands was filled with other people traveling from all around the world. This you could tell were people hanging out and living there. I took the advise of my tour guide Lucy from Kauai and headed to her favorite beach park, Spencer's, in Kawai Hae. I didn't really like the beach much at all because the water was murky and brown and I actually saw a shark in a cove nearby so I was scared to go in it. It was so hot sitting on the sand and not going in the water and there was practically no where to put my hammock up.
As the night grew darker I felt more and more uncomfortable being there. I decided to call Jeff and see what he was up, maybe he might meet me so I wouldn't feel so scared. He told me come to a different beach where he was hanging out with his friends. I really didn't want to pack up my stuff but he sounded so convincing and I really didn't want to be alone. Just as I was leaving the park I ended up in a ditch of lava rocks and practically popped my tire!! Thankfully I didn't but I was definitely stuck. I didn't know what to do!! Thankfully Jeff ended up coming to tow me out with his truck and he ended up staying at Spencer's with me. We spent the rest of the week together camping at his favorite beach Maks using his truck. During the day I would go do my own thing if he had to go to work. We hung out with all of his friends at the beach and I really feel like he opened up and told me a lot about his life and hardships in the short time we were together. I felt comfortable around him too. No judgement, no holding back. I told him everything about my life and what I was about.
On Thursday I decided to head back to National Park to do some hiking and see the volcano from the National Park side. I got there a little later than I originally wanted to because I left later than I intended and it is 2 hours away. When I arrived all the campsites, there were only 12, were already full. On top of that it looked like it was going to rain. I went back to the visitor's center to get more information about backcountry camping or cabins in the park. The woman suggested The Volcano Inn which was very close to the park and had great rooms and rates. The place was perfect! So cute with a delicious breakfast included in the morning and a 24 hour hot tub, you couldn't beat it! It ended up pouring that night which squashed my plans of hiking to the lava for sunrise. The rain cleared and I spent the day exploring the park and doing some small hikes. That night I went to The Rim restaurant which sat at the volcano's caldera. Although the lava was below the rim of the caldera it seemed illuminated the smoke in the air with a beautiful red color you can only see at night.
On Saturday, I woke up at about 3:30am to drive down to do the 10 mile round-trip hike to the lava flow and back. I timed it perfectly and arrived just in time for sunrise. This time I got extremely close to the lava flow. So close I could see "Pele's hair", or the glass fibers, all over the ground and literally hear the ground cracking below me. It was too early in the morning for rangers and a group of people had gone that close so I figured it was safe. I got up there took a few pictures and got the hell out of there because it did not feel safe. Thankfully the wind was blowing in the opposite direction so we didn't have to worry about toxic fumes but at any moment where I was standing could have collapsed into the ocean. Seeing the volcano not once but twice was definitely a highlight of this entire trip. I was so memorized by it. Science is incredible!
I headed back to Kona and spent my last afternoon at the beach watching Jeff surf and walking around the shops and restaurants in Kona. I had a really hard time saying goodbye to him. I have learned over the past two years to focus on me and keep my guard up. Despite what I know, its not always easy to do. The lone wolf doesn't want to be alone forever. There was definitely something about his goofy personality that made me laugh but his maturity, always wanting to know what I thinking and feeling, that I really appreciated. What it all comes down to is that the only relationship I know is the relationship I had with Chris. Although Jeff was only 28 he said he had been in relationships his whole life. I am excited to explore the dating world and figure out what my likes and dislikes are when I get out to San Diego.
I am going to write another entry in the next couple days comparing the islands and wrapping up my trip as whole but I did want to mention that on the Big Island I saw Monk seals, whales, and turtles! Maybe a dolphin but not positive so I am going to go with no....AROOOOOO!!!!
Instragram: lone_she_wolf
I arrived Wednesday night and after having such a great experience at the hostel in Kauai I figured I would give it a shot in Kona, since it was going to be dark by the time I got the rental car, etc. I stayed at a hostel called Pineapple Park about 30 minutes from the airport and there was definitely a different vibe from the hostel in Kauai. First of all the woman running the place was like a Korean nazi. There were tons of rules and she was pretty uptight. In Kauai the guy working there was in his twenties hanging out and drinking with everyone. Also, the types of people staying there seemed very different as well. In Kauai the hostel was filled with solo travelers, the most would be two people traveling together. At Pineapple Park there were two big groups of friends traveling together, a group of guys from Canada and a group from Australia. There also were a couple of local people staying there because they were in between places. One being a family originally from Ukraine and they other being a guy named Jeff, who recently broke up with his girlfriend. I was friendly with everyone there chatting about what they have seen and done so far, but Jeff and I really hit it off. He was originally from Virginia and has been living in Hawaii for about 8 years. Surfer guy, a bit younger than me he lived on Kauai first for 5 years and then decided to move to The Big Island about 3 years ago when his sister decided to move to Oahu.
The next day Jeff offered to take me up to Mauna Kea. Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano that is actually the tallest summit in the world and currently has snow on it. The reason it is the tallest in the world even though Mt. Everest is actually higher is because a lot of it is below sea level. After having the Spark on Kauai and living out of that tiny little trunk, I needed to go back to a mid-size. The rental car prices continued to rise and I knew that out of all the islands the Big Island had the best development roadways, I figured a mid-size would be fine. Unfortunately, I think this is the most important island to have four-wheel drive on. A lot of the beaches and hiking trails are only assessable with four-wheel drive because there are lava rocks everywhere. Jeff had a Toyota Tacoma, which seemed to be a popular car throughout the island, that he did a lot of custom work on to help handle the rugged terrain. Jeff is a mechanic. He used to work at a dealership but now he runs his own business. He knows so many people on the island and their cars get destroyed living there, he seemed like his phone was constantly ringing.
We drove the nearly two hour drive up to Mauna Kea but unfortunately due to 70 mph winds we couldn't go all the way to the top. Still above the clouds we hiked up a small mountain and took some pictures. It was harder to breath up there for sure and was definitely much colder. We then went to his favorite beach Makalawena, or Maks, to watch the sunset. This required some serious off-roading. It was a pretty amazing extreme to be up in the cold mountains one minute and then watching the sunset at the warm beach the next.
The next day I woke up and was getting packed up to leave the hostel. I started talking to this girl at the kitchen table that said her and her boyfriend didn't rent a car because of how expensive it was and they wanted to know which way I was headed. When I told them I was headed to Hilo they asked if they could catch a ride to The Rainbow gathering. It was some kind of festival happening out in Pahoe. I said sure no problem but that I was going to be doing some sight-seeing along the way and they more than happy with that agreement since they just arrived to the island the day before. In previous posts I have discussed the term Wook, well these two definitely looked the part.
They both had disgusting dreadlocks and were extremely underweight. They explained to me more about The Rainbow Gathering where everyone joined together to help work and live off the land, play ukelele, and be at one with nature. They seemed like good enough kids. Both of them pretty young, the girl only 22 and her boyfriend 28. They were going to be staying on the island for a month and a half doing a work for stay program at a ranch. Both were circus performers from Nova Scotia, yes that's right, I said circus performers, who actually had been stuck in Vancouver for close to two weeks because of the strict travel policies Canada has. Before leaving the country they needed to know all the specifics of their trip and I guess there was some issue because they saw this trip as work rather than leisure and the two didn't have working visas. The first stop was a snorkeling beach where we spent a few hours, the two seeing the first sea turtle of their trip. After that we did some whale watching where they got to see their first whales and then headed down to South Point.
South Point is the southern most tip of not only the island but the entire United States. Driving down the road to get there was totally picturesque, but not at all what you would expect. It was like driving in the middle of Oklahoma with horses and cows and tall grass. There was a really cool cliff jump about 500ft that had a crazy cave you could swim to. The scariest part was trying to climb back up the ladder afterwards which was a rickety metal ladder that was just swinging back and forth as you tried your damnedest to climb up it.
After some crazy directions we made our way to The Rainbow Gathering where I dropped off my new Canadian friends for the weekend. When we pulled the car up a guy in overalls cheerfully said, "Welcome home." It seemed like an interesting group of people looking to spread love and good vibes but I was ready to get out of there and head to Hilo to spend the weekend with Keith and Sherri.
The three of us all went to high school together and Sherri and Keith got married about a year and a half ago and are expecting their first child, a baby girl in April. They spent the entire weekend taking me up and down the East coast of the island showing me all the highlights. Keith has been living on the islands for the past couple years working on Oahu and then The Big Island as a mechanical engineer. Sherri just finished up her doctorate in physical therapy and joined him out there over the summer.
We biked to the volcano on Sunday night for sunset. Unfortunately, Sherri couldn't come with us due to the toxic gases, it is not recommended in pregnancy. The bike ride was from the town of Kilauea, and was about 4 miles each way. We arrived right around sunset. The area was roped off and very crowded with people. Keith explained that he had been much closer in the past but ever since a section of land had fallen into the ocean around New Year's they had been much more strict as to where people were allowed to stand. We broke the rules anyways until a ranger came and yelled at everyone to get back behind the rope. It was incredible. To have had the opportunity to see an active volcano flowing into the ocean like that, it was unreal. It looked like a waterfall of hot lava shooting into the ocean at full force. The whole area looked like the apocalypse. Lava everywhere. People trying to rebuild their homes and putting up tiny houses on top of lava rocks. I couldn't imagine living there.
I was so impressed with the amount of knowledge Keith and Sherri had about everywhere we went, especially Sherri, since she has only lived there a few months. You could tell they don't just go see places, they truly care to learn about them. It was refreshing to be with people I felt like I could relate to. They both have great educational backgrounds, love to travel, and are passionate about fitness. I hope they had as much fun as I did with them. I truly left their house wondering why I wasn't better friends with them when I had the chance. It was so nice to stay with them but I didn't want to overstay my welcome so Monday morning it was time to get back to the hammock.
I decided I would head back to Kona, or the West side, for some more beach days and then end the trip back at Volcano National Park, hiking. The Big Island definitely has a much different vibe to it than the other islands. Being in Hilo I definitely noticed it wherever I went out with Keith and Sherri and I was a bit nervous to camp for the first time since I started this trip. The Big Island has a lot more locals than the other islands and their presence is strong at the beach parks where I would be camping. It's not that they seemed unfriendly but they didn't seem very friendly either. Camping on the other islands was filled with other people traveling from all around the world. This you could tell were people hanging out and living there. I took the advise of my tour guide Lucy from Kauai and headed to her favorite beach park, Spencer's, in Kawai Hae. I didn't really like the beach much at all because the water was murky and brown and I actually saw a shark in a cove nearby so I was scared to go in it. It was so hot sitting on the sand and not going in the water and there was practically no where to put my hammock up.
As the night grew darker I felt more and more uncomfortable being there. I decided to call Jeff and see what he was up, maybe he might meet me so I wouldn't feel so scared. He told me come to a different beach where he was hanging out with his friends. I really didn't want to pack up my stuff but he sounded so convincing and I really didn't want to be alone. Just as I was leaving the park I ended up in a ditch of lava rocks and practically popped my tire!! Thankfully I didn't but I was definitely stuck. I didn't know what to do!! Thankfully Jeff ended up coming to tow me out with his truck and he ended up staying at Spencer's with me. We spent the rest of the week together camping at his favorite beach Maks using his truck. During the day I would go do my own thing if he had to go to work. We hung out with all of his friends at the beach and I really feel like he opened up and told me a lot about his life and hardships in the short time we were together. I felt comfortable around him too. No judgement, no holding back. I told him everything about my life and what I was about.
On Thursday I decided to head back to National Park to do some hiking and see the volcano from the National Park side. I got there a little later than I originally wanted to because I left later than I intended and it is 2 hours away. When I arrived all the campsites, there were only 12, were already full. On top of that it looked like it was going to rain. I went back to the visitor's center to get more information about backcountry camping or cabins in the park. The woman suggested The Volcano Inn which was very close to the park and had great rooms and rates. The place was perfect! So cute with a delicious breakfast included in the morning and a 24 hour hot tub, you couldn't beat it! It ended up pouring that night which squashed my plans of hiking to the lava for sunrise. The rain cleared and I spent the day exploring the park and doing some small hikes. That night I went to The Rim restaurant which sat at the volcano's caldera. Although the lava was below the rim of the caldera it seemed illuminated the smoke in the air with a beautiful red color you can only see at night.
On Saturday, I woke up at about 3:30am to drive down to do the 10 mile round-trip hike to the lava flow and back. I timed it perfectly and arrived just in time for sunrise. This time I got extremely close to the lava flow. So close I could see "Pele's hair", or the glass fibers, all over the ground and literally hear the ground cracking below me. It was too early in the morning for rangers and a group of people had gone that close so I figured it was safe. I got up there took a few pictures and got the hell out of there because it did not feel safe. Thankfully the wind was blowing in the opposite direction so we didn't have to worry about toxic fumes but at any moment where I was standing could have collapsed into the ocean. Seeing the volcano not once but twice was definitely a highlight of this entire trip. I was so memorized by it. Science is incredible!
I headed back to Kona and spent my last afternoon at the beach watching Jeff surf and walking around the shops and restaurants in Kona. I had a really hard time saying goodbye to him. I have learned over the past two years to focus on me and keep my guard up. Despite what I know, its not always easy to do. The lone wolf doesn't want to be alone forever. There was definitely something about his goofy personality that made me laugh but his maturity, always wanting to know what I thinking and feeling, that I really appreciated. What it all comes down to is that the only relationship I know is the relationship I had with Chris. Although Jeff was only 28 he said he had been in relationships his whole life. I am excited to explore the dating world and figure out what my likes and dislikes are when I get out to San Diego.
I am going to write another entry in the next couple days comparing the islands and wrapping up my trip as whole but I did want to mention that on the Big Island I saw Monk seals, whales, and turtles! Maybe a dolphin but not positive so I am going to go with no....AROOOOOO!!!!
Instragram: lone_she_wolf
Monday, February 13, 2017
Kalalau Trail
The "Hippie Highway", the most beautiful hike in the world, the most dangerous hike in the world. Kalalau trail along the Na Pali coast. To be honest, I never heard of it. Come to find out people come to Kauai just to do this trail! Throughout my trip I obviously have been camping and went on my first backpacking trip to San Jacinto in California. After all the hiking I had been doing on Oahu I knew that I had to do this trip. I looked into getting a permit, but they were "sold out". I thought to myself, "What are they going to do to me once I am already there?" I figured it was worth the risk and I would take my chances. The park rangers I encountered thus far seemed to be pretty laid back. The night before at camp I asked around and most people said no one was even out there checking permits anyways. The trail was 11 miles one-way. The campsite I was staying at was a little over a mile from the trailhead and I decided that would be the best place to leave my car overnight.
I woke up Thursday morning and had to prepare my backpack for the two day trip. I decided if I was too tired or enjoyed it so much there was a chance I could camp there for two nights. My supplies included: hammock, sleeping bag, headlamp, flashlight, sweatshirt, raincoat, light pants to sleep in, my "slippers" or flip-flops to change into, 4 bottles of Dasani water and a water filtration system for refills, two apples, two oranges, and 4 sandwiches. By the time I had my pack set and had some breakfast it was already after 9am by the time I set out on the trail. No cell service on the trail so I wanted to make sure I took care of any last minute things, especially if I was going to be gone for for a couple days.
I already knew the first two miles of the trail because I had just done it the previous day. Some people had said the first two miles were the most challenging but I didn't think that could be possible. The first two miles of the trail has quite a bit of uphill with a river crossing right at the two mile mark. From there you can either go to Hanakapiai beach, Hanakapiai waterfall, or continue along the trail towards Hanakoa and eventually Kalalau. It is important to mention that any hike changes drastically when you add a backpack with weight to it. I thought I had lightened my pack significantly from my trip to San Jacinto but I still had heavy fruits and water bottles. I couldn't weigh it but I would say it was about 20 -25 pounds, close to 10 pounds lighter than San Jacinto. The weight didn't seem to bother me at all the first two miles, plus the extra mile from the campsite. I felt good, ready to go. One issue was that the day before on the waterfall trail my boots got pretty wet and were rubbing against the back of my ankles cutting them open. Since they were pretty raw from yesterday I had to double up on my socks to help prevent any further rubbing, which seemed to work really well.
Because of the rugged terrain with hills and valleys my pace was about 2 miles per hour. I know it sounds insanely slow! My plan was to break at Hanakoa for lunch, which was at the 6 mile mark. If for some reason it took me way longer than expected to get there or I was super tired you could camp at Hanakoa as well. The next four miles to Hanakoa after Hanakapiai beach was mostly a ridge line trail filled with switchbacks and overgrown with vegetation. I really felt pretty good at mile 6 and was fairly confident I could continue the rest of the way to Kalalau without any problem. It was only 1pm by the time I got to Hanakoa so I was making fairly good time and didn't find the trail, even with my pack, too challenging.
I knew between mile 7 and 8 was going to be the most challenging section with the dreaded "crawlers ledge". It was briefly described to me the day before that at the campsite as a narrow walkway but very stable and you had a mountain to hold on to for stability. Right around mile 6 and a half there was a very long switchback that was all downhill. It was also slanted downwards and mostly made of loose gravel. I grew increasing nervous and was going very slowly through this area. Most people had hiking poles or sticks with them on the trail. I did not and one slip could send you tumbling down the mountain especially with 25 pounds on your back.
Once through that section with my anxiety building there was a group of people headed back. I told them I was kind of scared of heights and that part was challenging for me. They told me the worst part was still ahead and to only go as far as I felt comfortable. When I reached "crawler's ledge" my anxiety was already heightened. When I saw how steep it actually was and I was standing on the edge of a cliff, I definitely freaked quite a bit. I held onto the mountain for dear life and slowly tip-toed my way along the edge, trying not to look down. I assumed that was worst of it was over and breathed the biggest sigh of relief. As I continued along the trail my anxiety did not subside. I still felt as though I was walking along the edge of a massive cliff that at any point I could slip, misstep, and there was nothing to catch my fall. A lot of mile 7 through 8 I walked extremely slowly and held onto the mountain side as much as possible.
Right around the 8 mile mark I got to a part of the trail known as the "red hills", which nobody bothered to mention the night before at camp. This area was basically steep loose red sand with nothing to grab onto to help you along it. The drop-off was dramatic and I started to lose it. I wasn't sure how I was going to get across. I slip all the time on loose gravel while hiking and with nothing to grab on to I would slip some 500 feet into the ocean, I began to panic. Should I turn around? No way!! I just got through the "crawler' ledge" I don't want to do that again. I began to pray and then went over the options. Crawl along the ledge? That would take too long and I wouldn't want to be in area increasing my chances of falling. Run across to get it over with? Hell no!! That would definitely increase my chances of a slip. I would just have to shuffle tip-toe my way across and hope for the best. If I slip try to dig my foot in and ditch my pack as quick as possible. 1,2,3, go! Once across my heart was beating out of my chest and I actually got choked up a bit. Thank God!! I was through it! I saw another group right after this and said, "Oh please tell me it's almost over?!" They said the worst of it was over but I still had about 2 miles. They did warn me that there was one more part of red sand that was a "challenging". My voice started to crack and I said thank you and was dreading this section, praying the whole there. Once I arrived it was totally not what I was expecting. It was a large staircase going downhill and was nowhere near the edge of the cliff...whew!
I arrived to Kalalau beach around 4:30pm and set up camp. The beach was beautiful with caves, a waterfall, and a gorgeous coastline. Unfortunately, my anxiety never really fully subsided. I felt as though I couldn't relax and enjoy myself. I also did not attempt to go find the hippie community that was living out there living off the land, hunting wild boars and goats. I was so physically and emotionally exhausted I went to bed pretty early. I also was confident I wanted to hike back the next day because I was apprehensive about the hike back and any impeding weather changes.
I was so uneasy I could only eat half of one of sandwiches I brought. At Hanakoa, I had one apple and one orange. The next morning I woke up super early and took a walk on the beach and had breakfast at the waterfall. Still not that hungry I ate the other half of my sandwich and an apple. I again set out around 9:30am almost 10am and was already feeling pretty sore and sluggish. I stopped and saw this couple I had seen the day before. I discussed my anxiety and they talked me through how accomplished I should feel and how freeing the experience has been. I gave them two of my sandwiches because they said they were low on food and I continued with confidence along the trail. Along the way giving myself words of encouragement and trying to stay positive. Feeling weak and tired I definitely took a lot more breaks on the way back. As the trail grew increasely difficult on the way back I kept thinking if you can do this without any problem you will be fine once you get to the scary parts.
All of a sudden I rounded a corner and saw the steep mountainous switchback that was right before "crawler's ledge" so it would have been right after it. I saw a barefooted hippie and said, "I did it already? It's over?" She said, "I've never done the trial before but it's all wooded up there." I couldn't believe it!! I had done the "red hills" and "crawler' ledge" without even knowing it!! Feeling so reliefed and grateful I thanked God for helping me and happily made my way through the rest of the trail. Still physically exhausted by the end I got a ride back to camp from a couple I met at the trailhead. The thought of going just 1 more mile seemed near impossible.
On Sunday, after a day of rest I went to the oldest church in Kauai to thank God for answering my prayers and protecting me through that hike. The final song played at church was, "Be not afraid". I totally lost it and cried again because the words go; "Be not afraid, I go before you always. Come follow me and I will give you rest. AROOOO!!!!
🌋🍾🌊🌺🐋🙏🌈🍍
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
I woke up Thursday morning and had to prepare my backpack for the two day trip. I decided if I was too tired or enjoyed it so much there was a chance I could camp there for two nights. My supplies included: hammock, sleeping bag, headlamp, flashlight, sweatshirt, raincoat, light pants to sleep in, my "slippers" or flip-flops to change into, 4 bottles of Dasani water and a water filtration system for refills, two apples, two oranges, and 4 sandwiches. By the time I had my pack set and had some breakfast it was already after 9am by the time I set out on the trail. No cell service on the trail so I wanted to make sure I took care of any last minute things, especially if I was going to be gone for for a couple days.
I already knew the first two miles of the trail because I had just done it the previous day. Some people had said the first two miles were the most challenging but I didn't think that could be possible. The first two miles of the trail has quite a bit of uphill with a river crossing right at the two mile mark. From there you can either go to Hanakapiai beach, Hanakapiai waterfall, or continue along the trail towards Hanakoa and eventually Kalalau. It is important to mention that any hike changes drastically when you add a backpack with weight to it. I thought I had lightened my pack significantly from my trip to San Jacinto but I still had heavy fruits and water bottles. I couldn't weigh it but I would say it was about 20 -25 pounds, close to 10 pounds lighter than San Jacinto. The weight didn't seem to bother me at all the first two miles, plus the extra mile from the campsite. I felt good, ready to go. One issue was that the day before on the waterfall trail my boots got pretty wet and were rubbing against the back of my ankles cutting them open. Since they were pretty raw from yesterday I had to double up on my socks to help prevent any further rubbing, which seemed to work really well.
Because of the rugged terrain with hills and valleys my pace was about 2 miles per hour. I know it sounds insanely slow! My plan was to break at Hanakoa for lunch, which was at the 6 mile mark. If for some reason it took me way longer than expected to get there or I was super tired you could camp at Hanakoa as well. The next four miles to Hanakoa after Hanakapiai beach was mostly a ridge line trail filled with switchbacks and overgrown with vegetation. I really felt pretty good at mile 6 and was fairly confident I could continue the rest of the way to Kalalau without any problem. It was only 1pm by the time I got to Hanakoa so I was making fairly good time and didn't find the trail, even with my pack, too challenging.
I knew between mile 7 and 8 was going to be the most challenging section with the dreaded "crawlers ledge". It was briefly described to me the day before that at the campsite as a narrow walkway but very stable and you had a mountain to hold on to for stability. Right around mile 6 and a half there was a very long switchback that was all downhill. It was also slanted downwards and mostly made of loose gravel. I grew increasing nervous and was going very slowly through this area. Most people had hiking poles or sticks with them on the trail. I did not and one slip could send you tumbling down the mountain especially with 25 pounds on your back.
Once through that section with my anxiety building there was a group of people headed back. I told them I was kind of scared of heights and that part was challenging for me. They told me the worst part was still ahead and to only go as far as I felt comfortable. When I reached "crawler's ledge" my anxiety was already heightened. When I saw how steep it actually was and I was standing on the edge of a cliff, I definitely freaked quite a bit. I held onto the mountain for dear life and slowly tip-toed my way along the edge, trying not to look down. I assumed that was worst of it was over and breathed the biggest sigh of relief. As I continued along the trail my anxiety did not subside. I still felt as though I was walking along the edge of a massive cliff that at any point I could slip, misstep, and there was nothing to catch my fall. A lot of mile 7 through 8 I walked extremely slowly and held onto the mountain side as much as possible.
Right around the 8 mile mark I got to a part of the trail known as the "red hills", which nobody bothered to mention the night before at camp. This area was basically steep loose red sand with nothing to grab onto to help you along it. The drop-off was dramatic and I started to lose it. I wasn't sure how I was going to get across. I slip all the time on loose gravel while hiking and with nothing to grab on to I would slip some 500 feet into the ocean, I began to panic. Should I turn around? No way!! I just got through the "crawler' ledge" I don't want to do that again. I began to pray and then went over the options. Crawl along the ledge? That would take too long and I wouldn't want to be in area increasing my chances of falling. Run across to get it over with? Hell no!! That would definitely increase my chances of a slip. I would just have to shuffle tip-toe my way across and hope for the best. If I slip try to dig my foot in and ditch my pack as quick as possible. 1,2,3, go! Once across my heart was beating out of my chest and I actually got choked up a bit. Thank God!! I was through it! I saw another group right after this and said, "Oh please tell me it's almost over?!" They said the worst of it was over but I still had about 2 miles. They did warn me that there was one more part of red sand that was a "challenging". My voice started to crack and I said thank you and was dreading this section, praying the whole there. Once I arrived it was totally not what I was expecting. It was a large staircase going downhill and was nowhere near the edge of the cliff...whew!
I arrived to Kalalau beach around 4:30pm and set up camp. The beach was beautiful with caves, a waterfall, and a gorgeous coastline. Unfortunately, my anxiety never really fully subsided. I felt as though I couldn't relax and enjoy myself. I also did not attempt to go find the hippie community that was living out there living off the land, hunting wild boars and goats. I was so physically and emotionally exhausted I went to bed pretty early. I also was confident I wanted to hike back the next day because I was apprehensive about the hike back and any impeding weather changes.
I was so uneasy I could only eat half of one of sandwiches I brought. At Hanakoa, I had one apple and one orange. The next morning I woke up super early and took a walk on the beach and had breakfast at the waterfall. Still not that hungry I ate the other half of my sandwich and an apple. I again set out around 9:30am almost 10am and was already feeling pretty sore and sluggish. I stopped and saw this couple I had seen the day before. I discussed my anxiety and they talked me through how accomplished I should feel and how freeing the experience has been. I gave them two of my sandwiches because they said they were low on food and I continued with confidence along the trail. Along the way giving myself words of encouragement and trying to stay positive. Feeling weak and tired I definitely took a lot more breaks on the way back. As the trail grew increasely difficult on the way back I kept thinking if you can do this without any problem you will be fine once you get to the scary parts.
All of a sudden I rounded a corner and saw the steep mountainous switchback that was right before "crawler's ledge" so it would have been right after it. I saw a barefooted hippie and said, "I did it already? It's over?" She said, "I've never done the trial before but it's all wooded up there." I couldn't believe it!! I had done the "red hills" and "crawler' ledge" without even knowing it!! Feeling so reliefed and grateful I thanked God for helping me and happily made my way through the rest of the trail. Still physically exhausted by the end I got a ride back to camp from a couple I met at the trailhead. The thought of going just 1 more mile seemed near impossible.
On Sunday, after a day of rest I went to the oldest church in Kauai to thank God for answering my prayers and protecting me through that hike. The final song played at church was, "Be not afraid". I totally lost it and cried again because the words go; "Be not afraid, I go before you always. Come follow me and I will give you rest. AROOOO!!!!
🌋🍾🌊🌺🐋🙏🌈🍍
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
Kauai
I can't believe I have already been here for 10 days! The time has really gone by fast. While with my mom I definitely got out of the camping routine and it was hard to jump back into it. Especially as I mentioned, everything had to planned out ahead of time. Well, as one might imagine, I didn't stick to the plan and it all worked out in the end. My opinion of Kauai has drastically changed from when I first arrived. I had some major life changing moments during my time here and I can't wait to share how I am feeling about my experience.
Maybe it was getting back into the swing of things or maybe it was because the weather was a bit colder and cloudier then I was hoping for but during my first couple days on Kauai I really convinced myself I was not going to like this island as much as the other two. The first two nights I was camped at Anahola Beach Park. It is on the East side of the island and definitely had a more local feel. It was pretty quiet with not many campers and lots of chickens and roosters. The other islands had them as well but Kauai definitely has the most. Despite being camped at such a beautiful beach the weather was definitely not beach weather so I spent the first part of my time on the island out on the trails, hiking.
On Tuesday I set out for a couple short trails near the campgrounds. The first was Nounou Mountain or "The Sleeping Giant" and the second was the Kuilau Ridge Trail. Neither were very challenging or very exciting compared to the hikes I had been on in Oahu, but enjoyable all the same. On Wednesday I was already headed to the next campground, Ha'ena which was the furthest North West of all the county campgrounds and also the closest to the Na Pali coast. I set up camp early and went on an 8 mile hike along the Na Pali coast to a waterfall called Hanakapiai. When I arrived to the trailhead I noticed it was actually the start of another trail Kalalau, an eleven mile one-way trail. It shared the trail with Hanakapiai for the first two miles and then they separated off. Hanakapiai was a great trail! Challenging at some parts, with multiple stream crossings to maneuver, and featured a gorgeous waterfall. The whole way back I knew I was going to have to do the Kalalau trail. I decided to write a separate entry discussing the Kalalau trail because it was such a powerful experience.
I returned from Kalalau Friday evening and could not imagine setting up camp again at Ha'ena. I decided to get a room at the Westin in Princeville where I took a hot shower, soaked in the jacuzzi, and did all my laundry, it was wonderful. The Westin is a sister property of the St. Regis so I able to use all the amenities at the St. Regis as well. Saturday was finally the first gorgeous day since I arrived so it was the perfect excuse to relax and soak up the sun. I took full advantage of the pool, beach, and coaktails. I was beginning to learn that just like the other islands there is a wet and dry side. A couple at the St. Regis was telling me they were there for 15 days and that was their first sunny day!! Doesn't sound very enjoyable to me. The south side is the "dry" side and it almost never rains. That was where I was headed but because I hiked the Na Pali coast I messed up my camping permit dates and only had a permit for Saturday night and wasn't leaving until Wednesday night. I was planning on going to a state park in Waimea canyon Sunday to Wednesday which I didn't need to book that in advance. I was concerned however because the forecast was calling for rain in the area on Sunday and Monday. I think part of me enjoyed that resort a bit too much as well. As I got further south and the sky grew darker not only with clouds but it was getting pretty late to be setting up rain tarps and all in the dark, I made the executive decision to get another hotel in Poipu, which is in the south.
The town of Poipu had great beaches and the resort had some great amenities as well, including a Super Bowl party starting at 1:30pm (and I thought games in California had early start times). Looks like I was staying for two nights! Definitely a Super Bowl of firsts for me. It was a great game to watch! I had a great time with a group of strangers having a free buffet and drinks all night. I guess the bartender liked me because my tab was $7 😉. It was awesome to have been able to stay at such nice places for a few days recovery from my epic voyage and enjoy some beautiful weather, however it was time to get back to the hammock before I broke the bank.
My original plan was to head to Waimea canyon and camp at the state park there. The forecast was right and it did rain the night before, heavy. The wind was pretty intense as well. The canyon was muddy and very cold. The campground there was empty, I didn't see a soul. I thought, "Why camp here and freeze alone when I can go camp 15 minutes away and be on the beach 20 degrees warmer." The canyon was at a much higher elevation and although it wasn't freezing compared to Jersey, it was cold to me, probably 50 at night. The canyon was gorgeous though. One thing about these islands that amazes me is how diverse the terrain is. I feel like the Caribbean is flat beaches, that's it. Maybe it is because for the most part anytime I went we just stayed at a resort the whole time?
I'm glad I left the canyon and stayed at Salt Pond campground instead. It was probably one of the nicest campgrounds I stayed at, besides Olowalu on Maui, which was private. I think it gets its name because it's like a baby beach, a protected cove with almost no waves and looks like a pond or lake. My hammock was set up right on the beach and about 50 yards from a monk seal. Talk about the best neighbor ever! It was another gorgeous sunset and a beautiful clear night under the stars. The perfect last night of camping on Kauai. Tuesday the campground closed for their weekly "maintenance" day. I don't think they really do much maintenance at the park but it is a way to keep people from living at a campsite full-time. As Wednesday was drawing near I was getting more and more upset about leaving. I decided that one thing I really wanted to do before I left was go on the kayak tour to Wailua Falls.
The tour was in Kapaa, on the East side. Another great thing about Kauai is that you can get to anywhere on the island pretty quickly. Since Kapaa was on the East I found a hostel close by since I had to go to one of their earliest tours since I was flying out in the afternoon. I spent all day Tuesday enjoying the beach based on the assumption that the Big Island will be colder and cloudier, but I've been wrong before...and then drove back over to Kapaa.
I haven't stayed at a hostel since the very beginning of my trip in Chicago where I got a private room because I was hesitant and I talked to no one! This time I stayed in a mixed dorm room with 8 other people of all various ages from 20 to 60!! I thought I was going to turn in early since I had the kayak trip in the AM but I ended up seeing a girl that I first met at that the rental car place and then saw on the Kalalau trail. I couldn't believe now here she was again! Needless to say a big group of us stayed up pretty late telling "stories of the trail" and our experiences on the various islands.
After watching the most gorgeous sunrise from the deck at the hostel I headed to the kayaking trip. It was a small group of myself, a couple in their fifties from Washington state, and a family from Northern California. The guide Lisa was actually second cousin's with the one woman. They had never met until a few days before. Lisa was a very interesting woman. Hiking with no shoes, playing her bongo talking about her life on the islands. It was a nice tour. About a 2 mile paddle down the Wailua river and then a mile hike out to the waterfall and then we turned around and came back. I really liked Lisa's energy as a person and she gave me so many tips about the Big Island, even though it had been over 15 years she had been there.
I am really going to miss Kauai, but I am looking forward to what's next! As much as I wish I could have stayed longer I received authorization from California to take my pharmacy law exam so I am anxious to get home and buckle down and start studying!
AROOOOOOOOO!!!!! 🍍🌊🌺🌈🌦😎🐋
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Trip thus far
Maui - all camping, minimal hiking, tons of turtles and whales, dolphins one day
Oahu - no camping, tons of hiking, one turtle, whales on the last day, monk seals, no dolphins
Kauai - half camping half resorts, half hiking half beaching, no whales, no turtles, monk seals, dolphins one day - I actually never went snorkeling so it's kind of hard to find turtles if you aren't looking
Maybe it was getting back into the swing of things or maybe it was because the weather was a bit colder and cloudier then I was hoping for but during my first couple days on Kauai I really convinced myself I was not going to like this island as much as the other two. The first two nights I was camped at Anahola Beach Park. It is on the East side of the island and definitely had a more local feel. It was pretty quiet with not many campers and lots of chickens and roosters. The other islands had them as well but Kauai definitely has the most. Despite being camped at such a beautiful beach the weather was definitely not beach weather so I spent the first part of my time on the island out on the trails, hiking.
On Tuesday I set out for a couple short trails near the campgrounds. The first was Nounou Mountain or "The Sleeping Giant" and the second was the Kuilau Ridge Trail. Neither were very challenging or very exciting compared to the hikes I had been on in Oahu, but enjoyable all the same. On Wednesday I was already headed to the next campground, Ha'ena which was the furthest North West of all the county campgrounds and also the closest to the Na Pali coast. I set up camp early and went on an 8 mile hike along the Na Pali coast to a waterfall called Hanakapiai. When I arrived to the trailhead I noticed it was actually the start of another trail Kalalau, an eleven mile one-way trail. It shared the trail with Hanakapiai for the first two miles and then they separated off. Hanakapiai was a great trail! Challenging at some parts, with multiple stream crossings to maneuver, and featured a gorgeous waterfall. The whole way back I knew I was going to have to do the Kalalau trail. I decided to write a separate entry discussing the Kalalau trail because it was such a powerful experience.
I returned from Kalalau Friday evening and could not imagine setting up camp again at Ha'ena. I decided to get a room at the Westin in Princeville where I took a hot shower, soaked in the jacuzzi, and did all my laundry, it was wonderful. The Westin is a sister property of the St. Regis so I able to use all the amenities at the St. Regis as well. Saturday was finally the first gorgeous day since I arrived so it was the perfect excuse to relax and soak up the sun. I took full advantage of the pool, beach, and coaktails. I was beginning to learn that just like the other islands there is a wet and dry side. A couple at the St. Regis was telling me they were there for 15 days and that was their first sunny day!! Doesn't sound very enjoyable to me. The south side is the "dry" side and it almost never rains. That was where I was headed but because I hiked the Na Pali coast I messed up my camping permit dates and only had a permit for Saturday night and wasn't leaving until Wednesday night. I was planning on going to a state park in Waimea canyon Sunday to Wednesday which I didn't need to book that in advance. I was concerned however because the forecast was calling for rain in the area on Sunday and Monday. I think part of me enjoyed that resort a bit too much as well. As I got further south and the sky grew darker not only with clouds but it was getting pretty late to be setting up rain tarps and all in the dark, I made the executive decision to get another hotel in Poipu, which is in the south.
The town of Poipu had great beaches and the resort had some great amenities as well, including a Super Bowl party starting at 1:30pm (and I thought games in California had early start times). Looks like I was staying for two nights! Definitely a Super Bowl of firsts for me. It was a great game to watch! I had a great time with a group of strangers having a free buffet and drinks all night. I guess the bartender liked me because my tab was $7 😉. It was awesome to have been able to stay at such nice places for a few days recovery from my epic voyage and enjoy some beautiful weather, however it was time to get back to the hammock before I broke the bank.
My original plan was to head to Waimea canyon and camp at the state park there. The forecast was right and it did rain the night before, heavy. The wind was pretty intense as well. The canyon was muddy and very cold. The campground there was empty, I didn't see a soul. I thought, "Why camp here and freeze alone when I can go camp 15 minutes away and be on the beach 20 degrees warmer." The canyon was at a much higher elevation and although it wasn't freezing compared to Jersey, it was cold to me, probably 50 at night. The canyon was gorgeous though. One thing about these islands that amazes me is how diverse the terrain is. I feel like the Caribbean is flat beaches, that's it. Maybe it is because for the most part anytime I went we just stayed at a resort the whole time?
I'm glad I left the canyon and stayed at Salt Pond campground instead. It was probably one of the nicest campgrounds I stayed at, besides Olowalu on Maui, which was private. I think it gets its name because it's like a baby beach, a protected cove with almost no waves and looks like a pond or lake. My hammock was set up right on the beach and about 50 yards from a monk seal. Talk about the best neighbor ever! It was another gorgeous sunset and a beautiful clear night under the stars. The perfect last night of camping on Kauai. Tuesday the campground closed for their weekly "maintenance" day. I don't think they really do much maintenance at the park but it is a way to keep people from living at a campsite full-time. As Wednesday was drawing near I was getting more and more upset about leaving. I decided that one thing I really wanted to do before I left was go on the kayak tour to Wailua Falls.
The tour was in Kapaa, on the East side. Another great thing about Kauai is that you can get to anywhere on the island pretty quickly. Since Kapaa was on the East I found a hostel close by since I had to go to one of their earliest tours since I was flying out in the afternoon. I spent all day Tuesday enjoying the beach based on the assumption that the Big Island will be colder and cloudier, but I've been wrong before...and then drove back over to Kapaa.
I haven't stayed at a hostel since the very beginning of my trip in Chicago where I got a private room because I was hesitant and I talked to no one! This time I stayed in a mixed dorm room with 8 other people of all various ages from 20 to 60!! I thought I was going to turn in early since I had the kayak trip in the AM but I ended up seeing a girl that I first met at that the rental car place and then saw on the Kalalau trail. I couldn't believe now here she was again! Needless to say a big group of us stayed up pretty late telling "stories of the trail" and our experiences on the various islands.
After watching the most gorgeous sunrise from the deck at the hostel I headed to the kayaking trip. It was a small group of myself, a couple in their fifties from Washington state, and a family from Northern California. The guide Lisa was actually second cousin's with the one woman. They had never met until a few days before. Lisa was a very interesting woman. Hiking with no shoes, playing her bongo talking about her life on the islands. It was a nice tour. About a 2 mile paddle down the Wailua river and then a mile hike out to the waterfall and then we turned around and came back. I really liked Lisa's energy as a person and she gave me so many tips about the Big Island, even though it had been over 15 years she had been there.
I am really going to miss Kauai, but I am looking forward to what's next! As much as I wish I could have stayed longer I received authorization from California to take my pharmacy law exam so I am anxious to get home and buckle down and start studying!
AROOOOOOOOO!!!!! 🍍🌊🌺🌈🌦😎🐋
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Trip thus far
Maui - all camping, minimal hiking, tons of turtles and whales, dolphins one day
Oahu - no camping, tons of hiking, one turtle, whales on the last day, monk seals, no dolphins
Kauai - half camping half resorts, half hiking half beaching, no whales, no turtles, monk seals, dolphins one day - I actually never went snorkeling so it's kind of hard to find turtles if you aren't looking
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Oahu-Waianae/North Shore
Tuesday, the plan was to check out Makaha beach, which was steps away from our AirBnB. Unfortunately, it rained most of the morning and we were getting tired out waiting for it to clear. We decided to hike Ka'ena Point which was a 5 mile coastal trail. The trail ended at Ka'ena Point a nature preserve that had albatross nesting and monk seals asleep on the beach. It was a beauty walk and to see the wildlife in their natural habitat was a real treat. It rained on and off most of the time and our boots got so caked with mud they looked like moon shoes.
That night we went to Kuhumana Farm, which was very similar to the hippie commune on Maui. The food at Kuhumana Farm was delicious. I had Tandori chicken and it was one of the best meals of the whole trip. Waianae is probably a bigger town than Hana on Maui where the hippie commune was. Waianae is considered one of the last small town gems on Oahu. It seemed very run down. Close enough to Honolulu where most people would probably commute for work, lots of homeless. Tents set-up along the beach that you could tell were peoples' permanent residence. I know Maui has a lot of permit regulations in place for camping to prevent homeless from living on the beach full-time. In Kauai it's even more strict. I didn't do any camping in Oahu but I know that the state campgrounds are much fewer and far between, I think only two on the whole island.
After arriving to Waianae it didn't take long to realize that we couldn't drive all the way around the island to the North Shore. We were unaware of this and probably should have done some research but not really something that you would think to research. The North Shore was definitely where we wanted to be and the GPS basically routed us all the back to Honolulu and then North to get there, a little over an hour drive. Not ideal but we were going to make the best of it. Wednesday we decided to check out the North Shore. We woke up early and headed to Haleiwa for our new favorite thing, acai bowls. We figured despite the fact they probably aren't that great for you we are still on vacation and it is a better choice than white chocolate macademia pancakes with coconut syrup, although I need to get those at least one more time...😂. The waves were insanely huge that day and no one was surfing the pipeline due to the conditions but there were a bunch of surfers at Waimea Bay. We spent all day going along the North Shore stopping off at various beaches to watch the waves and the surfers. We ended the day by going to one of the infamous North Shore shrimp trucks, Giovanni's. Of course neither of us wanted to order from that truck so we picked something from one of the surrounding trucks instead.
Back at the AirBnB we met two girls that were staying in one of the other units. They were nurses from New Jersey here for a wedding in Kapolei, go figure. They said most of the wedding guests were staying at the Disney Resort in Kapolei but rooms there were like $400 a night. The house we stayed in was broken into 4 separate units. Two back units, studios with a mini-fridge, we stayed in one of these units, a front unit where they were staying, and an upstairs unit. They said it had a full kitchen and two bedrooms. The other studio unit had guests in and out the whole time we were there but we didn't meet any of them and the upstairs unit there seemed to be a full-time resident. This one house was pulling in a lot of money renting all these separate units...$$$$.
Thursday was finally the perfect beach day, not a cloud in the sky. We spent the day relaxing at Makaha Beach and had dinner at one of the only other restaurants in town, Coquitos. Coquitos was a Latin restaurant. I ordered a plantain tamale dish and my mom ordered pork chops, which we both really enjoyed.
Friday being our last full day we thought about what we didn't do that we really wanted to. We decided to head back to Hawaii Kai and do KoKo Head. Although it was not a long hike it was steep with a lot of stairs and we wanted to take on the challenge. Again it was a very highly trafficked trail with both tourists and locals who use this trail as their regular workout regimen. The amount of stairs and the steepness was definitely a challenge but overall the hike was short so the struggle was over pretty quickly. My mom and I can both agree can we enjoy longer hikes better, with less crowds. Her favorite being the coastal trail we did to Ka'ena Point and mine was Kuliouou Ridge which still had a lot of stairs and was steep but was 6 miles instead of 2. After some acai bowls we headed over to the Polynesian Cultural Center. The center is run by the Hawaii branch of Brigham Young University. They had students from all over the world working there and the center represented all of the Polynesian islands; Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, New Zealand, and Hawaii. You went around to the different islands and watched performances and listened to them speak about their various differences and similarities amongst the islands. It was pretty interesting and there was so much more you could have done there that we choice not to do, go to a luau, we missed presentations from two islands, the canoe show; we could have spent all day there.
After spending the morning whale watching from the AirBnB, where Mom finally got to see some whales jumping around, it was time to head to the airport. I dropped off Mom and was back and forth a bunch of times as to whether or not I should stay. The Volcom Pipe Pro was scheduled to start the next day at the pipeline and because the waves were so big earlier in the week and we didn't get to see anyone riding the pipe I figured it would be an amazing once in a lifetime opportunity. Also, in Kauai you have to obtain all camping permits in advance and the office is closed on the weekends. This meant I would have to stay at hostel in Kauai until Monday when I could get the permits. When I called around to the hostels it turned out that no space was available it made the decision pretty easy, I would stay in Oahu until Monday. I even looked into booking a flight back to Jersey and being done with the trip. Not that I don't want to keep going but I have been spoiled having my mom with me and staying at Air BnBs. Believe it or not it is hard to stay in vacation mode for this long. I am ready to get back to work and get life started in San Diego.
My extended stay in Oahu turned out to be a bit of an upset. By the time I dropped off Mom at the airport and got back to the North Shore most of the day was over. On Sunday, there were poor surf conditions and the competition was off for the day and my flight was early Monday, although the competition was canceled Monday as well. I spent some extra time in the town of Haleiwa and did some shopping. There was a lot of rain Saturday night and Sunday was pretty cloudy and chilly. I really liked Haleiwa and think if there was one thing I would have changed it would have been that we got an Air BnB in Haleiwa rather than Waianae, because it was so far from everything.
I arrived in Kauai around 11:30am. I picked up my rental car, which was the most expensive of all the islands so far, and by far the smallest; a Chevy Spark, my luggage didn't even fit in the trunk. I decided to go to the grocery store because the camping permit office was at lunch until 1pm. It took me over an hour to get everything sorted out with the permits. This entire trip I make decisions at the last minute; I like it I'll stay, or I think I want to go here next. To have to plan out everyday in advance where you want to camp, I am feeling very apprehensive about it. I could get to the campground and hate it. The good news is the permits are $3 a piece so if I don't like the place it's only $3, not the end of the world. The weather here is kind of a bummer. Cloudy and chilly with really high winds. I didn't get much of tan so far but it's going to fade being on this island for sure!
AROOOOOO!!!! 🏄🏻♀️🌺🌈🌊💨🍍🤙🌦
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
That night we went to Kuhumana Farm, which was very similar to the hippie commune on Maui. The food at Kuhumana Farm was delicious. I had Tandori chicken and it was one of the best meals of the whole trip. Waianae is probably a bigger town than Hana on Maui where the hippie commune was. Waianae is considered one of the last small town gems on Oahu. It seemed very run down. Close enough to Honolulu where most people would probably commute for work, lots of homeless. Tents set-up along the beach that you could tell were peoples' permanent residence. I know Maui has a lot of permit regulations in place for camping to prevent homeless from living on the beach full-time. In Kauai it's even more strict. I didn't do any camping in Oahu but I know that the state campgrounds are much fewer and far between, I think only two on the whole island.
After arriving to Waianae it didn't take long to realize that we couldn't drive all the way around the island to the North Shore. We were unaware of this and probably should have done some research but not really something that you would think to research. The North Shore was definitely where we wanted to be and the GPS basically routed us all the back to Honolulu and then North to get there, a little over an hour drive. Not ideal but we were going to make the best of it. Wednesday we decided to check out the North Shore. We woke up early and headed to Haleiwa for our new favorite thing, acai bowls. We figured despite the fact they probably aren't that great for you we are still on vacation and it is a better choice than white chocolate macademia pancakes with coconut syrup, although I need to get those at least one more time...😂. The waves were insanely huge that day and no one was surfing the pipeline due to the conditions but there were a bunch of surfers at Waimea Bay. We spent all day going along the North Shore stopping off at various beaches to watch the waves and the surfers. We ended the day by going to one of the infamous North Shore shrimp trucks, Giovanni's. Of course neither of us wanted to order from that truck so we picked something from one of the surrounding trucks instead.
Back at the AirBnB we met two girls that were staying in one of the other units. They were nurses from New Jersey here for a wedding in Kapolei, go figure. They said most of the wedding guests were staying at the Disney Resort in Kapolei but rooms there were like $400 a night. The house we stayed in was broken into 4 separate units. Two back units, studios with a mini-fridge, we stayed in one of these units, a front unit where they were staying, and an upstairs unit. They said it had a full kitchen and two bedrooms. The other studio unit had guests in and out the whole time we were there but we didn't meet any of them and the upstairs unit there seemed to be a full-time resident. This one house was pulling in a lot of money renting all these separate units...$$$$.
Thursday was finally the perfect beach day, not a cloud in the sky. We spent the day relaxing at Makaha Beach and had dinner at one of the only other restaurants in town, Coquitos. Coquitos was a Latin restaurant. I ordered a plantain tamale dish and my mom ordered pork chops, which we both really enjoyed.
Friday being our last full day we thought about what we didn't do that we really wanted to. We decided to head back to Hawaii Kai and do KoKo Head. Although it was not a long hike it was steep with a lot of stairs and we wanted to take on the challenge. Again it was a very highly trafficked trail with both tourists and locals who use this trail as their regular workout regimen. The amount of stairs and the steepness was definitely a challenge but overall the hike was short so the struggle was over pretty quickly. My mom and I can both agree can we enjoy longer hikes better, with less crowds. Her favorite being the coastal trail we did to Ka'ena Point and mine was Kuliouou Ridge which still had a lot of stairs and was steep but was 6 miles instead of 2. After some acai bowls we headed over to the Polynesian Cultural Center. The center is run by the Hawaii branch of Brigham Young University. They had students from all over the world working there and the center represented all of the Polynesian islands; Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, New Zealand, and Hawaii. You went around to the different islands and watched performances and listened to them speak about their various differences and similarities amongst the islands. It was pretty interesting and there was so much more you could have done there that we choice not to do, go to a luau, we missed presentations from two islands, the canoe show; we could have spent all day there.
After spending the morning whale watching from the AirBnB, where Mom finally got to see some whales jumping around, it was time to head to the airport. I dropped off Mom and was back and forth a bunch of times as to whether or not I should stay. The Volcom Pipe Pro was scheduled to start the next day at the pipeline and because the waves were so big earlier in the week and we didn't get to see anyone riding the pipe I figured it would be an amazing once in a lifetime opportunity. Also, in Kauai you have to obtain all camping permits in advance and the office is closed on the weekends. This meant I would have to stay at hostel in Kauai until Monday when I could get the permits. When I called around to the hostels it turned out that no space was available it made the decision pretty easy, I would stay in Oahu until Monday. I even looked into booking a flight back to Jersey and being done with the trip. Not that I don't want to keep going but I have been spoiled having my mom with me and staying at Air BnBs. Believe it or not it is hard to stay in vacation mode for this long. I am ready to get back to work and get life started in San Diego.
My extended stay in Oahu turned out to be a bit of an upset. By the time I dropped off Mom at the airport and got back to the North Shore most of the day was over. On Sunday, there were poor surf conditions and the competition was off for the day and my flight was early Monday, although the competition was canceled Monday as well. I spent some extra time in the town of Haleiwa and did some shopping. There was a lot of rain Saturday night and Sunday was pretty cloudy and chilly. I really liked Haleiwa and think if there was one thing I would have changed it would have been that we got an Air BnB in Haleiwa rather than Waianae, because it was so far from everything.
I arrived in Kauai around 11:30am. I picked up my rental car, which was the most expensive of all the islands so far, and by far the smallest; a Chevy Spark, my luggage didn't even fit in the trunk. I decided to go to the grocery store because the camping permit office was at lunch until 1pm. It took me over an hour to get everything sorted out with the permits. This entire trip I make decisions at the last minute; I like it I'll stay, or I think I want to go here next. To have to plan out everyday in advance where you want to camp, I am feeling very apprehensive about it. I could get to the campground and hate it. The good news is the permits are $3 a piece so if I don't like the place it's only $3, not the end of the world. The weather here is kind of a bummer. Cloudy and chilly with really high winds. I didn't get much of tan so far but it's going to fade being on this island for sure!
AROOOOOO!!!! 🏄🏻♀️🌺🌈🌊💨🍍🤙🌦
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Oahu-Hawaii Kai
My Mom and I have spent the first five days on the 'windward' or East side of Oahu, in the area of Hawaii Kai or East Honolulu. We stayed at a Bed and Breakfast of a retired couple that has been living on the island for over 35 years. After traveling most of the day Wednesday, I picked my Mom at the airport around 4:30pm and we spent some time in traffic making our way to our place. We were both pretty tired, me because of the camp life mentality up by sunrise, asleep by dark. My mom had been up since 3am East coast time so it had been a long day. We went to Kona Brewing Company for a quick dinner and then went to bed. We both really liked the ambience of the restaurant with big open wooden beams and a nice breeze off the marina but the food was so-so.
Thursday morning we decided to head to Hanauma Bay and spent the day relaxing at the beach and snorkeling in the bay. Hanauma Bay is a marine nature preserve and there is an admission fee. Because of how crowded it gets you actually have to watch a video about how to protect the coral reef and be safe while using snorkel equipment. Despite, the large crowds there were a lot of fish in the reef but no turtle sightings. The water was much too shallow for turtles. You would have had to go pretty far out before the reef finally dropped off. That night we had a pretty low key dinner at a Greek restaurant by the house and went to bed pretty early again. There were four other people staying at the BnB; a couple from Japan that barely spoke any English, and a guy named Tom from Milwaukee with one of his employees from his pet store, who never spoke a word to us. Needless to say, there wasn't much deep conservations or wild parties happening back at the house.
Friday we woke up early and went for a hike at Manana Trail. This was a 6 mile loop that led to the Waimano waterfall. Unfortunately, the waterfall was more of a trickle but the hike was a lot of fun with ropes to climb and some steep rocks to maneuver. The trail was near Pearl Harbor which is why we chose it. Afterwards, our plan was to go visit Pearl Harbor for the rest of the afternoon. To get to the hike and Pearl Harbor from where we were staying took close to an hour due to traffic. When we got there and parked we discovered that the tickets to the Arizona Memorial were sold out for the day. We did not look into going to Pearl Harbor ahead of time at all. We were pretty certain there wasn't much to it if you didn't go to out to the Arizona Memorial. We decided we would come back another day because we had to go all the way back to the car because no bags or purses were allowed in anyways.
Since we had the whole afternoon ahead of us, we decided to hike Diamond Head Monument which is less than a 2 mile hike but uphill and provides awesome views of Honolulu. We had a great time through the tunnels and running up the stairs, laughing and enjoying. Those types of hikes I typically tend to avoid because they are tourist traps and people who shouldn't be hiking are all over the trail with little kids, it's so crowded! I think despite that it was a fun hike and we enjoyed it.
After Diamond Head we didn't want to head back to Hawaii Kai during rush hour so even though it wasn't something we would typically do we decided to head to Waikiki and watch the sunset and go to happy hour. Waikiki was pretty ridiculous. All high-end stores; Fendi, Chanel, Louis Vuitton. I don't know why anyone from the mainland would buy anything from these stores? In New Jersey with tax free shopping it would make zero sense to pay 4.5% sales taxes on already overpriced luxury items. The sunset on the other hand, was gorgeous! One of the best I have seen on this trip! The ocean looked so clear, so blue. The only part of this beautiful scene was all the crazy protesters that came storming down the street.
Don't get me wrong I think some of things Trump has said and done is unacceptable for someone holding office. I also find it kind of silly that people with no real positions that didn't even take the time to vote just want to be upset and think their time is best served protesting something that has already happened. He is the president, we need to deal with it. We need to focus on things that are important, not how many people were at his inauguration or that some idiot from SNL bullied an innocent child. It does concern me that he already gotten rid of Obamacare, which may not be perfect, but is necessary and he is moving forward with the pipelines in the Dakotas, which Obama opposed.
Enough politics, on Saturday the weather was a factor, with rain and strong winds in the forecast. I wanted to hike the Lani kai pillboxes, can you guess why? As a pharmacist I was intrigued by the name of this hike! The "pillboxes" were actually old bunkers from World War II. In the beginning the wind was so intense it was actually kind of scary at times that you might blow right off the mountain. By bunker 2 it had started to rain so we took shelter for a bit and waited for it to pass. Someone told us you could continue on and there was a third bunker that was hidden and then the trail led down to a neighborhood and you could walk back from there. We decided to go for it and in the pouring rain trecked up and down the mountains, sliding at times! Even with the wind and rain we really liked the hike and had a great time, plus the views were incredible! We went to Kailua Beach Park after the hike but the wind prevented us from staying there for too long.
That night we went to Roy's. A nice restaurant in town that offered a pre-fixed menu. We both agreed that the pre-fixed menu was a good deal when compared to the rest of the prices on the menu for single entrees, neither of us were thrilled with our entrees and were happier at the Greek place for $15 a piece. There is definitely a ton of sushi and Asian style food here; Korean BBQ, Thai, Pho, you name it. Roy's was an upscale Hawaiian-Asian fusion type restaurant. I had macadamia encrusted mahi-mahi and my mom had salmon with a cold Asian noodle side. My favorite part of the meal was dessert, a molten lava cake and macadamia tart with prosecco and I'm not big on desserts.
Sunday we were back at Pearl Harbor with reservations to take a boat out to the USS Arizona Memorial. Once we arrived we discovered that no boats would be going to the memorial due to strong winds! As previously mentioned it took us about an hour to get there from our place and of course since we thought we planned in advance with tickets we never dreamed to double check that boats would be running. We went and walked around the museums and looked at the memorial from afar and realized it was not meant to be. We wanted to do another hike after leaving and thought we would finally make it to KoKo head, another big tourist area hike. We decided to do the Kuliouou Ridge Trail instead because it was a longer hike, around 5 miles out and back. It was great! Amazing views and a really fun trail with even some of the stairs KoKo head brags about.
For our last morning on the windward side we wanted to check out the Makapu'u tidepools and Manoa Falls. The weather yet again was a factor. The tidepools with the wind made it too dangerous to go down but we still enjoyed the hike up to Makapu'u Point. We met an interesting man who was hiking there with his family who were visiting from California. He asked us to take their picture and he took out a box of his wife's ashes. He explained that it was her favorite hike. We chatted for awhile about his life in Hawaii and about his daughters living in California, one of them in San Diego. I told him good luck spreading the ashes on such a windy day and he informed me he wasn't planning to spread her ashes but that he just brought her with him while he did the hike. The plan was once he died then his ashes would be mixed with hers and spread over Makapu'u Point. We left and headed for Manoa Falls which was closed due to high winds! A disappointment but we decided to head to the Dole Plantation instead.
The Dole Plantation was actually pretty cool. Totally geared for kids with a Pineapple Express train tour and a giant pineapple maze, but we actually had a great time. Of course the pineapple whip was delicious and my mom found more of the secret stations in the maze than me.
Now we will spend the rest of our trip on the 'leeward' side of the island, a small town called Waianae. Much more remote than Hawaii Kai we are right on the ocean, with gorgeous sunset views!
AROOOOO!!! 🌈🍍🌺🕉🐋🐢🌦💨
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Thursday morning we decided to head to Hanauma Bay and spent the day relaxing at the beach and snorkeling in the bay. Hanauma Bay is a marine nature preserve and there is an admission fee. Because of how crowded it gets you actually have to watch a video about how to protect the coral reef and be safe while using snorkel equipment. Despite, the large crowds there were a lot of fish in the reef but no turtle sightings. The water was much too shallow for turtles. You would have had to go pretty far out before the reef finally dropped off. That night we had a pretty low key dinner at a Greek restaurant by the house and went to bed pretty early again. There were four other people staying at the BnB; a couple from Japan that barely spoke any English, and a guy named Tom from Milwaukee with one of his employees from his pet store, who never spoke a word to us. Needless to say, there wasn't much deep conservations or wild parties happening back at the house.
Friday we woke up early and went for a hike at Manana Trail. This was a 6 mile loop that led to the Waimano waterfall. Unfortunately, the waterfall was more of a trickle but the hike was a lot of fun with ropes to climb and some steep rocks to maneuver. The trail was near Pearl Harbor which is why we chose it. Afterwards, our plan was to go visit Pearl Harbor for the rest of the afternoon. To get to the hike and Pearl Harbor from where we were staying took close to an hour due to traffic. When we got there and parked we discovered that the tickets to the Arizona Memorial were sold out for the day. We did not look into going to Pearl Harbor ahead of time at all. We were pretty certain there wasn't much to it if you didn't go to out to the Arizona Memorial. We decided we would come back another day because we had to go all the way back to the car because no bags or purses were allowed in anyways.
Since we had the whole afternoon ahead of us, we decided to hike Diamond Head Monument which is less than a 2 mile hike but uphill and provides awesome views of Honolulu. We had a great time through the tunnels and running up the stairs, laughing and enjoying. Those types of hikes I typically tend to avoid because they are tourist traps and people who shouldn't be hiking are all over the trail with little kids, it's so crowded! I think despite that it was a fun hike and we enjoyed it.
After Diamond Head we didn't want to head back to Hawaii Kai during rush hour so even though it wasn't something we would typically do we decided to head to Waikiki and watch the sunset and go to happy hour. Waikiki was pretty ridiculous. All high-end stores; Fendi, Chanel, Louis Vuitton. I don't know why anyone from the mainland would buy anything from these stores? In New Jersey with tax free shopping it would make zero sense to pay 4.5% sales taxes on already overpriced luxury items. The sunset on the other hand, was gorgeous! One of the best I have seen on this trip! The ocean looked so clear, so blue. The only part of this beautiful scene was all the crazy protesters that came storming down the street.
Don't get me wrong I think some of things Trump has said and done is unacceptable for someone holding office. I also find it kind of silly that people with no real positions that didn't even take the time to vote just want to be upset and think their time is best served protesting something that has already happened. He is the president, we need to deal with it. We need to focus on things that are important, not how many people were at his inauguration or that some idiot from SNL bullied an innocent child. It does concern me that he already gotten rid of Obamacare, which may not be perfect, but is necessary and he is moving forward with the pipelines in the Dakotas, which Obama opposed.
Enough politics, on Saturday the weather was a factor, with rain and strong winds in the forecast. I wanted to hike the Lani kai pillboxes, can you guess why? As a pharmacist I was intrigued by the name of this hike! The "pillboxes" were actually old bunkers from World War II. In the beginning the wind was so intense it was actually kind of scary at times that you might blow right off the mountain. By bunker 2 it had started to rain so we took shelter for a bit and waited for it to pass. Someone told us you could continue on and there was a third bunker that was hidden and then the trail led down to a neighborhood and you could walk back from there. We decided to go for it and in the pouring rain trecked up and down the mountains, sliding at times! Even with the wind and rain we really liked the hike and had a great time, plus the views were incredible! We went to Kailua Beach Park after the hike but the wind prevented us from staying there for too long.
That night we went to Roy's. A nice restaurant in town that offered a pre-fixed menu. We both agreed that the pre-fixed menu was a good deal when compared to the rest of the prices on the menu for single entrees, neither of us were thrilled with our entrees and were happier at the Greek place for $15 a piece. There is definitely a ton of sushi and Asian style food here; Korean BBQ, Thai, Pho, you name it. Roy's was an upscale Hawaiian-Asian fusion type restaurant. I had macadamia encrusted mahi-mahi and my mom had salmon with a cold Asian noodle side. My favorite part of the meal was dessert, a molten lava cake and macadamia tart with prosecco and I'm not big on desserts.
Sunday we were back at Pearl Harbor with reservations to take a boat out to the USS Arizona Memorial. Once we arrived we discovered that no boats would be going to the memorial due to strong winds! As previously mentioned it took us about an hour to get there from our place and of course since we thought we planned in advance with tickets we never dreamed to double check that boats would be running. We went and walked around the museums and looked at the memorial from afar and realized it was not meant to be. We wanted to do another hike after leaving and thought we would finally make it to KoKo head, another big tourist area hike. We decided to do the Kuliouou Ridge Trail instead because it was a longer hike, around 5 miles out and back. It was great! Amazing views and a really fun trail with even some of the stairs KoKo head brags about.
For our last morning on the windward side we wanted to check out the Makapu'u tidepools and Manoa Falls. The weather yet again was a factor. The tidepools with the wind made it too dangerous to go down but we still enjoyed the hike up to Makapu'u Point. We met an interesting man who was hiking there with his family who were visiting from California. He asked us to take their picture and he took out a box of his wife's ashes. He explained that it was her favorite hike. We chatted for awhile about his life in Hawaii and about his daughters living in California, one of them in San Diego. I told him good luck spreading the ashes on such a windy day and he informed me he wasn't planning to spread her ashes but that he just brought her with him while he did the hike. The plan was once he died then his ashes would be mixed with hers and spread over Makapu'u Point. We left and headed for Manoa Falls which was closed due to high winds! A disappointment but we decided to head to the Dole Plantation instead.
The Dole Plantation was actually pretty cool. Totally geared for kids with a Pineapple Express train tour and a giant pineapple maze, but we actually had a great time. Of course the pineapple whip was delicious and my mom found more of the secret stations in the maze than me.
Now we will spend the rest of our trip on the 'leeward' side of the island, a small town called Waianae. Much more remote than Hawaii Kai we are right on the ocean, with gorgeous sunset views!
AROOOOO!!! 🌈🍍🌺🕉🐋🐢🌦💨
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Thursday, January 19, 2017
West Maui
On Friday morning before heading to Camp Olowalu, on the south side of Lahaina, I decided to spend some time at the beach in Kihei and checking out the town. It was another gorgeous day and the beach was extremely hot. The market place in the town of Kihei had a lot of little shops and restaurants. After getting a nice lunch outside I took the drive over to the campground which was only suppose to be about 25 minutes away. There was bumper to bumper traffic and it ended up taking well over an hour to get to the campground.
My original plan was to stay at Camp Olowalu until Monday and then head further North and check out Honolua Bay until Wednesday. After being at the grounds for just a day or two and talking to other campers, there was no point in leaving. First off, there were no other campgrounds further North and Honolua Bay was only a thirty minute drive away.
Camp Olowalu had the nicest amenities of any of the campgrounds I had been to this far so that also made it very hard to want to leave. At $20/pp/day they had nice showers and flush toilets. Which in comparison the other campground had pit toilets, which can get quite stinky, and no showers, but it was free to stay there with a national park pass. Camp Olowalu sat at the foot of the Olowalu Valley in the West Maui Mountains and was private property that granted you beach access to a coral reef where everyday I was snorkeling with sea turtles and plenty of fish. Tons of boats brought snorkel groups over everyday and I got access to it morning, noon, and night for free! I couldn't believe how vastly different the water conditions were from the other beaches I had been too. The water was so shallow and so calm it was incredible.
The first night there was pretty quiet. By the time I set up camp it was already dark so I decided to call it a night. The next day I went to the general store to get some supplies and spent most of the day exploring and snorkeling. The general store had better prices than in Hana but the selection was much more limited. Just to give everyone an idea I bought a can of Pringles for $4, a six-pack of beer was $10, but they had no cheese or meat like the Hana general store. Luckily, Lahaina was 15 minutes away so I knew I was probably going to just go out to eat most nights.
That day my new neighbors, Lindsay and Jonah, a married couple who run a photography business in Bakersfield, California arrived and were staying until Wednesday the 18th. We had basically done the opposite trip where they were headed to Hana and helped persuade me to stay because there was nothing North of where we were. They also had just come from Kauai and gave me tons of great suggestions. They were actually hired to come to Hawaii for an anniversary shoot for friends of theirs from California and were making a vacation out of it.
That night I hung out at the Wi-fi spot and charging station talking to a bunch of people and listening to music. Yes a charging station and Wi-fi something else I was not used to at any of the other campgrounds. I ended up hanging out with a local guy named Will who winded-up being my guide to West Maui for the rest of the week.
Let me start by saying I am very hesitate to talk about this man at all. He made it very clear that prefers to stay under the radar. I also hesitate to speak about him because if I were to discuss even half of what this guy told me you all would think I was totally crazy and tell me to run and fast. Bottom line, I am very skeptical to believe most of the things that he told me. I guess we shall see if he is another Maui bullshit artist.
On Sunday Lindsay, Jonah, and I decided to rent paddle boards. Will had his own and didn't have to. We paddled all day and were out on the water watching the most gorgeous sunset right on the horizon. Of course the photographers were very upset that it was not captured by film or photo. I unfortunately broke my cheap Japanese like Go-Pro so they had already promised to send me all the underwater shots from snorkeling. We rented the paddle boards for 24 hours so Will planned out a very detailed and elaborate day hitting all the best spots in West Maui.
On Monday, we got up nice and early piled all the paddle boards on Will's car and headed for Wahikuli Beach Park. It was another great spot for stand up paddle boarding and swimming with sea turtles. After dropping off the boards we headed to Honolua Bay which was a very beautiful and diverse place. Honolua Bay is either extremely calm and provides some of the best snorkeling around or is extremely rough and houses some pretty epic surf competitions. Winter tends to be a surf time for the area but it was very calm when we were there but we decided to check out the scenic cliff views rather than snorkel.
Once we left the bay we went to an amazing breakfast, even though it was lunch time, at the Gazebo Restaurant. I was dying to try macadamia nut pancakes with coconut syrup. I ended up getting white chocolate macadamia nut pancakes which were amazing, and I am totally NOT a sweet tooth type. The coconut syrup though was super sweet. Honestly the pancakes were so good, no syrup required. After lunch we went Dragon's Teeth another iconic landmark and picked up some fresh fish to cook for dinner. After watching the sunset in Lahaina, we went back to camp and make some deliciously fresh walu and ono. We also had fresh ahi poke which was the most delicious sushi I ever had in my life. After dinner Lindsay and Jonah went to bed pretty early and Will and I stayed up late talking. I was probing and digging deeper about a lot of the things he was telling me.
The next day, Tuesday, was all of our last day together. Lindsay and Jonah were headed to Hana on Wednesday, I was headed to Oahu to meet my mom, and Will no one, including himself really knew what his plan was. His story was that he was living with his girlfriend and they recently broke up. He didn't have to work and was enjoying this time to himself. It all seemed a little suspicious to me. I took Will's paddle board out for the afternoon while he returned some phone calls. went to Lahaina and got caught up on work. Lindsay and Jonah spent the day snorkeling.
Tuesday night, Lindsay and Jonah's friends came in from Oahu for their anniversary shoot so they went into downtown Lahaina with them. Will took me to a show called Unalena, which was a beautiful musical about the history of the Hawaiian people. Afterwards, we walked up and down Front St. and he took me to dinner at this restaurant right next to a traditional Luau so that I could watch the dancers without having to eat a five course meal. He said that it's totally not worth it and I believe him. I just wanted to see the performance which is why we went to Unalena and why he brought me to a restaurant next store. He wants to come meet me in Kauai, I told him I would think about it. I don't know if I trust him. Some of the stuff he said is just so unbelievable. I don't want to keep questioning. I don't want to ask him to proof it. The bottom line is he seems to have a lot going on in his life right now and not for the good. I don't want to surround myself with that. As much as I would like to help him and he seemed like a nice person, I really don't think I want to have any part of it. The bigger reason is this my adventure, my trip I am the lone wolf. And although Lindsay and Jonah didn't understand my name because wolves travel in packs, I don't really want a companion. The point is me standing on my own two feet and leaving "the pack" for awhile to find my own way.
Traveling to Oahu today to meet my mom for ten days! I am super excited and I know we are going to have a great time together! I'm getting better with my Hawaiian pronounications so hopefully I will be able to help here along because she is pretty bad.
AROOOOOO!!!!! 🌈🌊🌺🍍🕉🤙🐢🐋🐠
Song of the Day - Don't know how much longer the reggae island theme will last. If there is a song worth discussing here I will definite mention it.
I know today I picked Jack Johnson because he lives on the North Shore of Oahu and I love this song from high school and my friend Katey!
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
My original plan was to stay at Camp Olowalu until Monday and then head further North and check out Honolua Bay until Wednesday. After being at the grounds for just a day or two and talking to other campers, there was no point in leaving. First off, there were no other campgrounds further North and Honolua Bay was only a thirty minute drive away.
Camp Olowalu had the nicest amenities of any of the campgrounds I had been to this far so that also made it very hard to want to leave. At $20/pp/day they had nice showers and flush toilets. Which in comparison the other campground had pit toilets, which can get quite stinky, and no showers, but it was free to stay there with a national park pass. Camp Olowalu sat at the foot of the Olowalu Valley in the West Maui Mountains and was private property that granted you beach access to a coral reef where everyday I was snorkeling with sea turtles and plenty of fish. Tons of boats brought snorkel groups over everyday and I got access to it morning, noon, and night for free! I couldn't believe how vastly different the water conditions were from the other beaches I had been too. The water was so shallow and so calm it was incredible.
The first night there was pretty quiet. By the time I set up camp it was already dark so I decided to call it a night. The next day I went to the general store to get some supplies and spent most of the day exploring and snorkeling. The general store had better prices than in Hana but the selection was much more limited. Just to give everyone an idea I bought a can of Pringles for $4, a six-pack of beer was $10, but they had no cheese or meat like the Hana general store. Luckily, Lahaina was 15 minutes away so I knew I was probably going to just go out to eat most nights.
That day my new neighbors, Lindsay and Jonah, a married couple who run a photography business in Bakersfield, California arrived and were staying until Wednesday the 18th. We had basically done the opposite trip where they were headed to Hana and helped persuade me to stay because there was nothing North of where we were. They also had just come from Kauai and gave me tons of great suggestions. They were actually hired to come to Hawaii for an anniversary shoot for friends of theirs from California and were making a vacation out of it.
That night I hung out at the Wi-fi spot and charging station talking to a bunch of people and listening to music. Yes a charging station and Wi-fi something else I was not used to at any of the other campgrounds. I ended up hanging out with a local guy named Will who winded-up being my guide to West Maui for the rest of the week.
Let me start by saying I am very hesitate to talk about this man at all. He made it very clear that prefers to stay under the radar. I also hesitate to speak about him because if I were to discuss even half of what this guy told me you all would think I was totally crazy and tell me to run and fast. Bottom line, I am very skeptical to believe most of the things that he told me. I guess we shall see if he is another Maui bullshit artist.
On Sunday Lindsay, Jonah, and I decided to rent paddle boards. Will had his own and didn't have to. We paddled all day and were out on the water watching the most gorgeous sunset right on the horizon. Of course the photographers were very upset that it was not captured by film or photo. I unfortunately broke my cheap Japanese like Go-Pro so they had already promised to send me all the underwater shots from snorkeling. We rented the paddle boards for 24 hours so Will planned out a very detailed and elaborate day hitting all the best spots in West Maui.
On Monday, we got up nice and early piled all the paddle boards on Will's car and headed for Wahikuli Beach Park. It was another great spot for stand up paddle boarding and swimming with sea turtles. After dropping off the boards we headed to Honolua Bay which was a very beautiful and diverse place. Honolua Bay is either extremely calm and provides some of the best snorkeling around or is extremely rough and houses some pretty epic surf competitions. Winter tends to be a surf time for the area but it was very calm when we were there but we decided to check out the scenic cliff views rather than snorkel.
Once we left the bay we went to an amazing breakfast, even though it was lunch time, at the Gazebo Restaurant. I was dying to try macadamia nut pancakes with coconut syrup. I ended up getting white chocolate macadamia nut pancakes which were amazing, and I am totally NOT a sweet tooth type. The coconut syrup though was super sweet. Honestly the pancakes were so good, no syrup required. After lunch we went Dragon's Teeth another iconic landmark and picked up some fresh fish to cook for dinner. After watching the sunset in Lahaina, we went back to camp and make some deliciously fresh walu and ono. We also had fresh ahi poke which was the most delicious sushi I ever had in my life. After dinner Lindsay and Jonah went to bed pretty early and Will and I stayed up late talking. I was probing and digging deeper about a lot of the things he was telling me.
The next day, Tuesday, was all of our last day together. Lindsay and Jonah were headed to Hana on Wednesday, I was headed to Oahu to meet my mom, and Will no one, including himself really knew what his plan was. His story was that he was living with his girlfriend and they recently broke up. He didn't have to work and was enjoying this time to himself. It all seemed a little suspicious to me. I took Will's paddle board out for the afternoon while he returned some phone calls. went to Lahaina and got caught up on work. Lindsay and Jonah spent the day snorkeling.
Tuesday night, Lindsay and Jonah's friends came in from Oahu for their anniversary shoot so they went into downtown Lahaina with them. Will took me to a show called Unalena, which was a beautiful musical about the history of the Hawaiian people. Afterwards, we walked up and down Front St. and he took me to dinner at this restaurant right next to a traditional Luau so that I could watch the dancers without having to eat a five course meal. He said that it's totally not worth it and I believe him. I just wanted to see the performance which is why we went to Unalena and why he brought me to a restaurant next store. He wants to come meet me in Kauai, I told him I would think about it. I don't know if I trust him. Some of the stuff he said is just so unbelievable. I don't want to keep questioning. I don't want to ask him to proof it. The bottom line is he seems to have a lot going on in his life right now and not for the good. I don't want to surround myself with that. As much as I would like to help him and he seemed like a nice person, I really don't think I want to have any part of it. The bigger reason is this my adventure, my trip I am the lone wolf. And although Lindsay and Jonah didn't understand my name because wolves travel in packs, I don't really want a companion. The point is me standing on my own two feet and leaving "the pack" for awhile to find my own way.
Traveling to Oahu today to meet my mom for ten days! I am super excited and I know we are going to have a great time together! I'm getting better with my Hawaiian pronounications so hopefully I will be able to help here along because she is pretty bad.
AROOOOOO!!!!! 🌈🌊🌺🍍🕉🤙🐢🐋🐠
Song of the Day - Don't know how much longer the reggae island theme will last. If there is a song worth discussing here I will definite mention it.
I know today I picked Jack Johnson because he lives on the North Shore of Oahu and I love this song from high school and my friend Katey!
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
Friday, January 13, 2017
East Maui
First week in Hawaii is in the books! I started the adventure by flying into Kahului Airport, Maui. After a long day of traveling I decided to stay at a hotel close to the airport which I didn't arrive at until close to midnight after two six hour flights, a lay-over in LA, a long line at the rental car pick up, and a five hour time difference. The hotel was nothing special and after a traditional Filipino breakfast, a delicious Kona coffee, and some fresh guava juice I headed out to Baldwin Beach in Paia. The beach there was a definite local spot with tons of surfers and some pretty gnarly waves. I am already big into using all the slang here like gnarly, slippers for flip-flops, and attempting to pronounce as many Hawaiian words as possible.
After leaving Paia, I headed south on the infamous road to Hana stopping at various waterfalls and Honomanu Bay. I also stopped at the Garden of Eden arboretum which broke up the drive quite nicely with gorgeous waterfalls and peacocks. My first camping destination was Wai'anapanapa State Park. My biggest concern was that it was not going to be able to accommodate my hammock. I was right to be concerned. The park was under a great deal of construction and most of the tree lined areas were closed off. Luckily, I was able to find two trees to hang my hammock for the night but most other campers were in an open grassy field. The park had a ton to offer. There was a gorgeous black sand beach, multiple hiking trails, and caves to explore. Unfortunately, there were no available camping spots for Saturday and a permit is required to camp there so I was only able to stay one night. I took full advantage and hiked the entire park.
The next day I made my way to Kipahula Campground which is part of the Haleakala National Park. It is free to camp here but you can only stay for a maximum of three days. Once I got there and found a sweet spot for my hammock I knew I was going to stay there for the three days. Although it was right on the ocean the waves are intense and the shores were rocky cliffs so it was definitely not a beach. What was so great about it though was that you could hike down to these tide pools and swim in those when the tide was low. It also had some neat hiking trails through dense bamboo forest to Pools of 'Ohe'o or the seven sacred pools. I actually hiked with a guy named Robby who knew the area and took a hidden trail to swim in one of the pools, which were closed to the public. It was fresh water coming from the waterfall above and a nice place to clean up since there were no showers at the camp. The campground was packed with vacationers and locals alike. We all had a good time getting to know each other, grilling up some fish that had been caught, and enjoying the weather.
I did my own thing exploring, hiking, and taking it all in. I took the drive up to the top of the Haleakala crater for sunrise. Haleakala is a dormant volcano with an elevation of 10,000 feet. East Maui in general is the wet side of the island. Very lush, more prone to rain, and tends to be a little cooler. The top of the crater was much colder! I was in a winter coat. Haleakala, meaning "house of the sun", so naturally you have to go see it at sunrise. It was a two hour drive from camp because the roads are not well maintained and you can only drive about 20 mph. Although, I was exhausted from waking up at 4am to make sure I was there in time, the intense beauty of the sun coming up over the horizon woke me up right away. I made it without a moment to spare! It was like you were on another planet looking down at the clouds peaking through the crater rim.
I met a couple, Mitch and Kristen, who were both veterinarians living in San Diego. They saw me at Wai'anapanapa and asked where I was going to be camping next and decided to come. Mitch's old roommate had moved to Maui and was living on a hippie commune nearby. On Sunday nights they have open mic night and serve a raw vegan meal and call themselves Cafe Attitude. We decided to go over and check it out. Mitch and Kristen live in OB and you may remember me talking about that neighborhood and how hippie and laid back it was. Mitch and Kristen, despite being animal lovers and into organic farming, didn't seem to quite fit the typically mold of OB. Cafe attitude took hippie to a whole new level. Everyone was about love and positive vibes. I'm not sure what was in tea everyone was drinking, but it sure was an interesting night. That day before were went to Cafe Attitude Robby and I had gone to town to get some supplies and hung out at one of the beaches near Hana. We ran into a couple of friends of his who went into a deep discussion about getting rid of all your bills and debt by giving it to the IRS. Supposedly it's a big secret that no one wants you to know about because then clearly everyone would want to do it. You simiply mail your bill to the IRS and
they pay it for you. According to them, Donald Trump has been doing for years. They went on to talk about the financial you and the physical you and your financial self is always in capital letters. I told them I was going to look into further. I will definitely be emailing them if I find a way to eliminate my student loan debt. Maybe some of what they are saying is true but not if you ever want to have credit, get a loan, buy a house, or function in the society. I was starting to realize that I could never live in Maui. If I thought Californians were laid back and it was a nice balance for me, this was extreme.
Robby had been living in Hawaii for over 15 years and recently quit his job as a chef on a whale watching boat to move back to Hana. After leaving Kipahula, he was planning to go to a local camping spot in Kaupo for a few days while he was in between places and invited me along. I decided my original plan of going to Hosmer Grove Campground which was halfway up Haleakala summit was probably not a great idea in a hammock because the temperatures at night drop to the single digits so I decided to come along. Before heading there it we made a pit stop in town for more supplies (food, beer, ice). I also requested that we hiked to the red sand beach, which was close to town. There is so much iron in the lava rocks there that the beach is red. It was very secluded but the hike there was hard to find if you didn't know what to look for. It was nice having Robby around to show me all these secret spots.
The campground was not actually a campground but there were others there camping. You drove through a Rasta colored gate that led down to the beach. It was along the shore but there were huge rocks and massive waves making it impossible to swim. It was pretty relaxing. In my hammock asleep by 8pm up by sunrise with naps in between. Robby grew more distant as the days went on. I'm not sure if it was because he knew I had zero interest in him or maybe it was because we didn't have any alcohol and he was shutting down. The last night I tried to hang out but he said he was tired so I left him alone. I woke up in the morning packed up and left, didn't even say goodbye. I appreciated meeting him like I said because he showed me places I wouldn't have known about. There were definitely times that I thought he was full of shit like when he went on and on that he knew Mitch's friend Hana going into detail about her boyfriend and her musical talent and then we got to Cafe Attitude and she ignored him he was like, "Oh I was a talking about a different Hana." Bottom line he was so talkative and friendly and told me so much about himself, his life, his hardships. The whole time I was thought, "Wow, men open up this much!" It was honestly so encouraging to meet someone who wanted to engage in deep conversations and then he suddenly shut down. Maybe he was just a drunk, or a bullshit artist, or maybe it was something I said?
I was headed for Kihei. In need of real shower I figured it was time to get a hotel for one night. On my way I ended up popping a tire on the rental car! The roads are sketchy between Kaupo and Kehei and there is a dirt road for some of the time. I hit a sharp rock and the tire slit. Change of plans. After changing my first flat tire I was headed back to the airport to exchange the car for a new one because the rental company did not authorize that I put a used tire on the car, which was all that was available. It wasn't too far out of the way and then I was back on track and headed to Kihei, a totally different vibe from camping and East Maui. Not yet in West Maui, Kihei is considered on the South side and has a very arid climate. It is also is much more touristy. I checked into my hotel and after an extremely long shower, went to the pool side bar for happy-hour dinner and drinks.
I decided to Uber (yes there is Uber, so much more civilized than camping and dirt roads) to Maui Brewing Co since I had been drinking their IPA Big Swell all week and do love a good brewery. Ultimately, it was kind of a disappointment beer wise but they had a guest tap from one of favorites Modern Times in San Diego and I got some pretty sweet souvenirs.
Now, I am headed further West and back to a campground which is private and I think will be vastly different from the others I have been to so far, offering kayaking and snorkeling.
Aloha, AROOOOO!!! 🌺🌈🍍🌊
Song of the Day
As much reggae island jams I can find!!
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
Instagram: lone_she_wolf
After leaving Paia, I headed south on the infamous road to Hana stopping at various waterfalls and Honomanu Bay. I also stopped at the Garden of Eden arboretum which broke up the drive quite nicely with gorgeous waterfalls and peacocks. My first camping destination was Wai'anapanapa State Park. My biggest concern was that it was not going to be able to accommodate my hammock. I was right to be concerned. The park was under a great deal of construction and most of the tree lined areas were closed off. Luckily, I was able to find two trees to hang my hammock for the night but most other campers were in an open grassy field. The park had a ton to offer. There was a gorgeous black sand beach, multiple hiking trails, and caves to explore. Unfortunately, there were no available camping spots for Saturday and a permit is required to camp there so I was only able to stay one night. I took full advantage and hiked the entire park.
The next day I made my way to Kipahula Campground which is part of the Haleakala National Park. It is free to camp here but you can only stay for a maximum of three days. Once I got there and found a sweet spot for my hammock I knew I was going to stay there for the three days. Although it was right on the ocean the waves are intense and the shores were rocky cliffs so it was definitely not a beach. What was so great about it though was that you could hike down to these tide pools and swim in those when the tide was low. It also had some neat hiking trails through dense bamboo forest to Pools of 'Ohe'o or the seven sacred pools. I actually hiked with a guy named Robby who knew the area and took a hidden trail to swim in one of the pools, which were closed to the public. It was fresh water coming from the waterfall above and a nice place to clean up since there were no showers at the camp. The campground was packed with vacationers and locals alike. We all had a good time getting to know each other, grilling up some fish that had been caught, and enjoying the weather.
I did my own thing exploring, hiking, and taking it all in. I took the drive up to the top of the Haleakala crater for sunrise. Haleakala is a dormant volcano with an elevation of 10,000 feet. East Maui in general is the wet side of the island. Very lush, more prone to rain, and tends to be a little cooler. The top of the crater was much colder! I was in a winter coat. Haleakala, meaning "house of the sun", so naturally you have to go see it at sunrise. It was a two hour drive from camp because the roads are not well maintained and you can only drive about 20 mph. Although, I was exhausted from waking up at 4am to make sure I was there in time, the intense beauty of the sun coming up over the horizon woke me up right away. I made it without a moment to spare! It was like you were on another planet looking down at the clouds peaking through the crater rim.
I met a couple, Mitch and Kristen, who were both veterinarians living in San Diego. They saw me at Wai'anapanapa and asked where I was going to be camping next and decided to come. Mitch's old roommate had moved to Maui and was living on a hippie commune nearby. On Sunday nights they have open mic night and serve a raw vegan meal and call themselves Cafe Attitude. We decided to go over and check it out. Mitch and Kristen live in OB and you may remember me talking about that neighborhood and how hippie and laid back it was. Mitch and Kristen, despite being animal lovers and into organic farming, didn't seem to quite fit the typically mold of OB. Cafe attitude took hippie to a whole new level. Everyone was about love and positive vibes. I'm not sure what was in tea everyone was drinking, but it sure was an interesting night. That day before were went to Cafe Attitude Robby and I had gone to town to get some supplies and hung out at one of the beaches near Hana. We ran into a couple of friends of his who went into a deep discussion about getting rid of all your bills and debt by giving it to the IRS. Supposedly it's a big secret that no one wants you to know about because then clearly everyone would want to do it. You simiply mail your bill to the IRS and
they pay it for you. According to them, Donald Trump has been doing for years. They went on to talk about the financial you and the physical you and your financial self is always in capital letters. I told them I was going to look into further. I will definitely be emailing them if I find a way to eliminate my student loan debt. Maybe some of what they are saying is true but not if you ever want to have credit, get a loan, buy a house, or function in the society. I was starting to realize that I could never live in Maui. If I thought Californians were laid back and it was a nice balance for me, this was extreme.
Robby had been living in Hawaii for over 15 years and recently quit his job as a chef on a whale watching boat to move back to Hana. After leaving Kipahula, he was planning to go to a local camping spot in Kaupo for a few days while he was in between places and invited me along. I decided my original plan of going to Hosmer Grove Campground which was halfway up Haleakala summit was probably not a great idea in a hammock because the temperatures at night drop to the single digits so I decided to come along. Before heading there it we made a pit stop in town for more supplies (food, beer, ice). I also requested that we hiked to the red sand beach, which was close to town. There is so much iron in the lava rocks there that the beach is red. It was very secluded but the hike there was hard to find if you didn't know what to look for. It was nice having Robby around to show me all these secret spots.
The campground was not actually a campground but there were others there camping. You drove through a Rasta colored gate that led down to the beach. It was along the shore but there were huge rocks and massive waves making it impossible to swim. It was pretty relaxing. In my hammock asleep by 8pm up by sunrise with naps in between. Robby grew more distant as the days went on. I'm not sure if it was because he knew I had zero interest in him or maybe it was because we didn't have any alcohol and he was shutting down. The last night I tried to hang out but he said he was tired so I left him alone. I woke up in the morning packed up and left, didn't even say goodbye. I appreciated meeting him like I said because he showed me places I wouldn't have known about. There were definitely times that I thought he was full of shit like when he went on and on that he knew Mitch's friend Hana going into detail about her boyfriend and her musical talent and then we got to Cafe Attitude and she ignored him he was like, "Oh I was a talking about a different Hana." Bottom line he was so talkative and friendly and told me so much about himself, his life, his hardships. The whole time I was thought, "Wow, men open up this much!" It was honestly so encouraging to meet someone who wanted to engage in deep conversations and then he suddenly shut down. Maybe he was just a drunk, or a bullshit artist, or maybe it was something I said?
I was headed for Kihei. In need of real shower I figured it was time to get a hotel for one night. On my way I ended up popping a tire on the rental car! The roads are sketchy between Kaupo and Kehei and there is a dirt road for some of the time. I hit a sharp rock and the tire slit. Change of plans. After changing my first flat tire I was headed back to the airport to exchange the car for a new one because the rental company did not authorize that I put a used tire on the car, which was all that was available. It wasn't too far out of the way and then I was back on track and headed to Kihei, a totally different vibe from camping and East Maui. Not yet in West Maui, Kihei is considered on the South side and has a very arid climate. It is also is much more touristy. I checked into my hotel and after an extremely long shower, went to the pool side bar for happy-hour dinner and drinks.
I decided to Uber (yes there is Uber, so much more civilized than camping and dirt roads) to Maui Brewing Co since I had been drinking their IPA Big Swell all week and do love a good brewery. Ultimately, it was kind of a disappointment beer wise but they had a guest tap from one of favorites Modern Times in San Diego and I got some pretty sweet souvenirs.
Now, I am headed further West and back to a campground which is private and I think will be vastly different from the others I have been to so far, offering kayaking and snorkeling.
Aloha, AROOOOO!!! 🌺🌈🍍🌊
Song of the Day
As much reggae island jams I can find!!
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/cteijelo/playlist/1uNEjK1mra1y0s3gAkTEZ4
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