Located 1 mile up the road from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the quiet village of Volcano, Hawaii. As small Hawaiian towns go, Volcano is fairly large, but that’s not really saying much. Volcano is more a place of residence than anything else. There’s not much here, but one thing that is plentiful are Bed […]
Standing at 13,796 feet, the summit of Big Island’s Mauna Kea is the highest point in the state of Hawaii as well as the central pacific. With its last eruption more than 4,600 years ago, Hawaii’s most recoginized mountain is now home to some of the most technologically advanced astronomy equipment on the planet. Until […]
The Puna coastline is vast and rugged. With rocky cliffs and crashing waves, there aren’t many places to access the ocean in Puna, but Pohoiki makes up for that by having just about everything right in one place. Pohoiki, also known as Isaac Hale Beach Park, is the only surf spot in Puna and the […]
“Kipuka” is a Hawaiian word that has become a commonly used volcanic term. It refers to an area of vegetation surrounded but spared by lava. An island of forest in a sea of lifeless rock. Often these areas contain life not found in the surrounding area, and trees found here may be hundreds of years […]
Far away from everything except Ocean View, Manuka State Wayside is an area that’s rather secluded. It offers a nice hike through lava forest and a great view of a large forest pit crater. Manuka (pronounced “manu-KAH”) is located just west of mile 81 on highway 11. There is no advance signage so keep an […]
The southernmost point of the United States of America is Big Island’s South Point. It’s believed that it was here approximately 1200 years ago that Polynesian voyagers first landed in Hawaii upon discovering the untouched islands. You may be surprised at how many guidebooks skip over this place, but south point has a lot to […]
The Big Island is the youngest of all the Hawaiian islands. Older islands like Oahu and Maui have had time to erode, filling their surrounding waters with sand and silt which can limit visibility. Big Island’s Kona coastline is mostly rocky shore, and desert land conditions produce very little runoff. This make’s Kona’s waters some […]
Located just north of the small town of Naalehu in Big Island’s Kau district sits the remnants of a more prosperous time. The town of Honuapo was once a bustling sugar cane town but today all that’s left is the rusted skeleton of a shipping pier jutting into the bay at Whittington Beach Park. Whittington is a […]
At 8:15 we’re driving down Ali’i dr. headed for Keauhou bay. The sun’s been down for two hours, there’s no moon, the ocean is just an inky blackness beyond the guardrail. We arrive at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay, park the car, and proceed up to the ocean overlook attached to the outdoor lounge. Here at […]
About two miles up the road from Honoli’i, Hilo’s most popular surf beach, is the small community of Papaikou. Here you’ll find a Hamakuan bakery that many claim has the best Malasadas on island. For those who haven’t had one, a malasada is basically a portuguese donut. It’s a fried ball of sweetened dough rolled […]
