We had the pleasure of welcoming our first and second guests recently. Chris and Maryann Curtis were nice enough to make it out to the property and were rightfully our very first visitors from the mainland. After completing the Idaho State Capitol remodel in 2008, a coworker and I planned a trip to Hawaii. Chris mentioned that we should visit the Big Island and noted it as one of the best kept secrets in Hawaii, had I not taken his advice we wouldn’t be here today. They were only on the island for a short time so 4 hours was about all the longer we got to spend with them but it was long enough to show them around the property. I didn’t get any pictures with them but wanted to mention them in this post and say “thank you for the great advice”
Zak and Erin were our next visitors, they flew in early on 2-26-16 and left late on the evening of 2-28-16. We were honored to have them stay in our Ohana house and we actually got to show them quite a bit for such a short trip. The first pictures are at volcanoes national park. If you look closely at the second picture you can see Zak peeing in an active volcano, how many people can say they’ve done that before? Not many I’m sure.
Volcano national park
The two pictures above are Kilauea caldera at night. The pictures really don’t do it any justice. You can see the glow from the molten lava from miles away as you approach the park, these pictures were taken at Jagger Museum. Truly an amazing experience. Bonny and I had been to the park before but never hiked the trails and had never seen the glow at night.
Here is a picture of Zak and Erin at South point, the surf was much to dangerous to swim this time of year but in the summer months you can actually jump into the water from where they are standing, assuming you have the testicular fortitude required to preform such acts. Of course I do.
This is another spot that Bonny and I have read about but never ventured to, Green sands beach. Very close to South point but about a 20 or 30 minute 4×4 trail with some serious terrain to cover. Most people walk to this place which is probably an hour hike or longer. We drove the jeep, it did great but you definitely have to pay attention or you will destroy your vehicle.
Last but definitely not least, the nude beach. I still can’t remember the name of this place but it’s basically a crazy combination of Burning Man, The Rainbow Gathering, and a rave every weekend. They have a large drum circle, people smoke marijuana everywhere here and the majority of people are sporting nothing but the birthday suit. We couldn’t help but take some pictures. They make for some great memories and of course comical relief. Bonny managed to take a picture of me passing a group of naked older men, it almost looks like I was hanging out with them, but as you can see I still had my shorts on, ha ha. It’s one of the larger sand beaches that’s easy to access, not a good place for those who are easily offended or can’t handle full frontal nudity. All I can say is “when in Rome….”
Overall it was a great weekend with great friends. We hope to see more of you in the coming months and years so you too can experience all of these places and more. 3 days wasn’t long enough, even a 7 day trip would leave you hard pressed to see all the amazing sites that the Big Island has to offer.