One of the big questions I get is “Why Hawaii?” People usually understand the thirst for adventure, but not necessarily the destination. The last few days serve as a testament to the reasons why. 

All of the islands of Hawaii have their own reasons. We are presently on “the Big Island,” which is also called Hawaii. 

While most of our days are spent working on the farm, we are able to go exploring on our days off. Fortunately, we met a wonderful friend, Alyssa, who lives in Kona. She had the secret ingredient to exploring: a car! With our contagious sense of adventure, we made a solid team. This time, we headed south.
THE POOL

Our first stop was a temperate swimming pool just inland of the ocean. Only a small barricade bridged the gap. It was the perfect place to swim, as the water was warmer and calmer than the usual rip roar of the sea. We swam around a while, and Alyssa had brought her new mask, so we were able to snorkel some too. Although it was not as impressive as the reef we snorkeled in last week, it was fun to look for shells and swim with the fish. One of the locals had brought some pretzels for the fish to snack on, so we were able to see a school of tangs, flitting about. “You should see them when I bring an avocado!” he told us. Maybe one day.

THE BEACH

After the pool, we stopped at Uncle Robert’s. While it used to be quite a bit smaller, it still has a fairly quaint community feel to it. There was plenty of laughter, good food, and a few friendly pups there too. We got a smoothie bowl, picked up a hitchhiker, and headed to our next destination – Kehena Beach. This was a fairly secluded black sand beach. It was a fairly steep hike down to a shoreline of about 75 yards, with lava rock cliffs along the back of the beach. People were scattered about, playing instruments, swimming, and sunbathing. It was a beautiful place to enjoy the Kai (ocean water). Oh, and another unique aspect of Kehena Beach, it was clothing optional.

It was a pretty primal and wonderful experience. The environment felt mostly safe and non-judgemental. As I have said, my bucket list is shrinking every day.

THE LAVA

Our final destination for the day was one of the main reasons for coming to Hawaii – the lava! A popular spot to enter Volcanoes National Park is from the front entrance toward the crater, which costs $20 per vehicle. That sounds cool, and we plan to come visit there soon. Instead, we went in the back entrance. It’s free, but you have to work for it. The hike from the parking lot was around four miles each way. It is a pretty unusual sight on the way in. The land is barren and unlike anything I have seen, recent mounds and patterns of dried lava. 

Sure, I see lava here all the time, old lava. Lava rocks cover the earth here almost everywhere. This lava rock was fresher, blacker, and looked like an enormous pan of brownies, fresh from the oven. Walking down the road, we saw several homes built on the terrain. One even had a cooler set up by the road to sell cool drinks. Even with a bike rental at the parking lot, most people were having a tough time getting down the road in the heat. Most days are only in the 80s (Farenheit), but the sun beating down and radiating off of the black lava field did not make it any cooler. We entered the park along the way and after the four miles, turned to head toward the lava flow. I felt the heat before I saw it. Although it was not the explosively erupting giant pits of lava you might see on National Geographic (thankfully, I might add), it was pretty amazing to see. The sense of power you get from experiencing the raw heat of nature is pretty humbling. 

Here, I am basking in the heat and glory of When I have access Wifi, I will try to post a video of the lava flow.

It was so great to experience Hawaii in its raw form. The walk back, though tiring, was exhilarating. Still full of wonder, we watched the clouds turn as the sun set and the moon rose, and that moment alone was worth all the trouble of getting here.