We arrived from Maui before everyone else, but only shortly before Stephen who was arriving from Toronto. We had time to pick up the rental car (Jeep Wrangler) and make a quick stop at Costco for Hurricane Popcorn and leis to welcome the travelers to Hawaii. After picking up Stephen we drove to our lovely rental home in Mauna Lani. We dropped Stephen off to rest after his long flight and headed to the local grocery store to pick up some staples for the next few days. Then back to the airport for Bennie to pick up Katie, Brandon, Annabelle and Anita. It was tight fit in the Jeep but everyone and their belongings fit. Brandon brought his bike along for a ride to the top of Mauna Kea. Bennie held Anita's suitcase in his lap for the ride back to our home.
Our digs in Hawaii....NICE
On the way back they stopped for Hawaiian barbecue for our dinner on the Big Island.
Sunday March 27. The next morning Katie & Brandon's friends from Chicago came over for a pool party. Sarah, Phil, Isabella and Annika lived downstairs from them. They have relocated to Honolulu and made a special trip to the Big Island for a reunion. Everyone enjoyed a continental breakfast and a fun time in the pool.
Pool Party....top left is our back yard view....cattle egret are swarming the mower!
Kimbark 60637 Reunion
We took a bike ride in the afternoon following the UNC victory over St. Peters. For supper Anita and Ann whipped up a Loco Moco recipe which Anita found in an Hawaiian cookbook.
Loco Moco! Addams Family grace...what are you thankful for?
Monday. This was Brandon's big bike ride to the top of Mauna Kea. Katie, Stephen & Anita provided sag wagon support and Brandon made it all the way to the summit (13,700 feet). Bennie did a more extensive shopping trip in Kona and Ann enjoyed entertaining Annabelle. We walked to the neighborhood grocery store to buy a coconut cake to celebrate Brandon's feat. For supper we enjoyed shrimp, beef, chicken and pork for a local restaurant (Waikola Shrimp Company).
Brandon's Ride up Mauna Kea - 13,803 Feet
Coconut Cake....Annabelle picked out rainbow cake for herself...she ended up eating two packages before we left Hawaii
Tuesday. In the morning we headed to our neighborhood beach. We enjoyed building sand castles, playing in the water and snorkeling. We headed back to the house for lunch. We did a hike to see some petroglyphs. It was an interesting hike over the lava rocks to a large area with multiple petroglyphs. On our return Ann and Bennie made Lava Flow cocktails, a rum based drink with strawberries, banana and coconut cream. Anita heated up rice and bugolgi beef from Costco. A kale salad completed the meal.
Petroglyph Park
Wednesday. We headed to the Lava Lava beach which borders a former native fish pond. This beach is in the Hilton based resort. Snorkeling was not as good here but the sand was nice and the waves were small. After the beach we headed to the Kings Court Mall in Waikola for shaved ice and shopping. We enjoyed an afternoon in the pool and had rib eye steaks for dinner.
Lava Lava Beach
Shaved Ice
Steak Dinner
Thursday. We headed to Volcanoes National Park by way of Hilo. From the west side of the island we took the saddle road which passes between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa over to Hilo on the east side. We stopped for gas, poke and pastries before heading into the park. We stopped at the crater overlook before enjoying our picnic lunch. We went on to explore the steam vents and hiked out to see the lava flow (not visible during the day). Our last stop was the lava tube which is huge and you can walk through it. We decided to take the long way back along the coast and through Kona. We stopped in Kona at the turtle back and spotted 2 turtles - one eating in the surf and the other up on the beach. We tried a few restaurants which couldn't seat a party of 7 in a timely fashion. So we headed to the Pine Tree Cafe which offered counter service. It worked out great as it wasn't crowded and Annabelle could run around after a long day in the car.
Kiluea Caldera Overlook
The elusive State Bird...the NeNe
Malasadas - the purple filling is UBE
Friday. Folks split up today.. Katie, Bennie, Ann & Annabelle went to Beach 49, a black sand beach. All beaches in Hawaii must have public access. Resort communities have been built up around the beaches and Beach 49 has a lovely community you drive through to reach the public access beach parking. The black sand was much finer than our experience with the black sand on Maui. Even though the winds were up and sea a little choppy, the snorkeling was still good. There were lots of fish and the visibility was still good. Annabelle enjoyed playing in the sand and surf.
Snorkeling Video from 49 Black Sand Beach
Brandon went bike riding with a fellow biker from Anchorage. Anita and Stephen opted for a shopping trip. We all met up back at the house for lunch and then headed to Thunder Mountain Kona Coffee Farm. We enjoyed our factory tour and coffee samples. Unfortunately they had not green beans, only roasted ones so we headed into Kona to the Kona Coffee and Tea for green beans for Andrew to roast. We also mailed our post cards and then headed back to the house for a quick changes before our evening luau.
Thunder Moutain Kona Coffee Visit
The luau was at the Hilton resort about 15 minutes away. The program was excellent and everyone enjoyed their meal and liquid libations (Mai Tai, Lava Flow, Pina Colada, Blue Hawaiian). The sunset was beautiful and then the stars came out. It was a lovely evening for our luau entertainment.
Our direct flight from Anchorage to Maui left late afternoon. We arrived two hours ahead of our flight and had plenty of time after checking in to enjoy a Starbucks latte before heading to our gate. Ted Stevens International Airport Anchorage - Sprinke Donut for Carter The plane had no video screens which was nice as everyone kept their window blinds up. This created a nice light in the cabin. We enjoyed our meal and service in first class on the almost six hour flight. Hot meals have returned on Alaska Air...When will Delta follow? After retrieving our bags we decided to walk to the rental car facility. It was only a 10 minute walk. We could choose any car in the executive lot and opted for a Jeep Sahara with a removable roof. Our first accomodations were at Sugar Beach in Kihie, a fairly short drive from the airport. Our unit was on the ground floor so we could walk right out our lanai sliding glass doors to the beach. View of Kihei Beach from our C...
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