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Green Sands, Hawaii, Hawaii
We visited Green Sands again. We love the place. Is it worth the drive? Only if you have a four wheel drive with great clearance. I would not hike the 3 miles in, as there isn’t any shade, it can be very windy, and it is dusty. There are also no bathrooms or drinking water,…
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The Original King Kamehameha Statue
The Original Statue of King Kamehameha The story of the statue is interesting. There are four copies of the statue: one in downtown Honolulu; another in Washington, D.C.; a 14-foot, five-ton statue in Hilo and the original statue in front of the old court house in Kapa’au in north Kohala. The sculptor Thomas Ridgeway Gould had…
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Kapakai Kokoiki – Birthplace of King Kamehameha
When we visited the Big Island a couple of years ago, I wanted to visit the birthplace of King Kamehameha. Using Google Maps searching for the correct road, we drove to the south side on Coast Guard Road. Respecting closed gates, this was a dead end. Then on to the north side via Upolo Airport…
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Binoculars for Whale Watching
Four humpback whales played in the sunset at the mouth of the bay. Normally I’m a person that does lots of research before buying, but an impulse buy turned out to be perfect. We bought binoculars in September, because the package specifically said they were good for whale watching. I bought them the day we…
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Lava Hike Success
April Fools Day, I can’t think of a better day to attempt a hike to the lava flows. The plan is to hike through the National Park during the day then back at night. I had to see the glowing red flows at night. This plan was carefully calculated based on the first attempt chronicled…
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Submariner
Tang at Two Step, Big Island, Hawaii It is always exciting looking for the rare or large fish. The thrill of crossing paths with a shark, swimming in tandem with a dolphin, or a close up of a hungry eel. During these searches we pass over schools of yellow tangs, black triggers, raccoon butterflies and…
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Shark Tale
We have seen her before. Visiting her cave is now part of the ritual. Swim to the left over the first big canyon, through octopus flats and back into shark shallows. Today, she was there sticking her tail out further than the last time we were together. We snorkeled above her fighting the currents, trying to…
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Dive Skin to Protect Your Skin and the Reef
Before we arrived in Hawaii, I purchased a new dive skin, which is the Lycra equivalent of a wetsuit. Skins are thinner, stretchier, cooler, easier to get into, and more comfortable than wetsuits. A dive skin is a one-piece bodysuit made of very stretchy Lycra material. I hate to sunburn. The day I saw an ad for reef-safe sunscreen, I thought,…
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Don’t Pet the Sea Life: It might follow you home or worse.
When snorkeling, I try to follow the rule “touch nothing.” It simplifies my life, because I don’t have to remember which things are dangerous and which are not. I can simply enjoy myself, and the sea life appreciates it, too. Bill doesn’t always follow the “don’t touch rule.” Most notably was the time we were walking on the beach near…
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Yesterday I was swimming with about 50 spinner dolphins about (the adults are 150 to 200 pounds each) and I felt nothing but excitement. A few minutes later, I swam over an eight-inch fish sitting in the coral inches from my face that I didn’t see until I was right on top of him. It…
Info about our island from our photos, writings, and video