Rain on the Island of Fire- Big Island in April 2

It was time to leave Kona for our camping trip around the island, we did not plan much, just the fact that we would like to travel around with deciding from day to day what to do. We drove North, our goal was to hike down to Pololu Valley, back up and finding a place to camp on the way. That was the plan at least.

Yeah, road trip.

Leaving Kona we first stopped at a huge lava tube, walkable right off the street. - Great little adventure and also the first time we got caught in the rain - ha.

One could have guessed from the clouds above.

Broken down lava tube.

Waiting out the worst of it in the car we quickly downloaded the recommended rain radar app and drove on to a place without rain, Holoholokai beach. A nice beach with a turtle enjoying a tide pool.

Teenagers are always tired. P sleeping at the beach.

K discovering the beach.

Da turtle - did I mention I love turtles!

We soaked up all the sun we could get and drove on to Pololu Valley, but not without stopping for some coffee and snacks in Hawi at the Kohala Coffee Mill. Hawi is a sweet little town and I would have loved to stay some more, but it started to rain again. So off we go further down the road until the highway ends and the footpath down Pololu Valley starts. We were so happy that we took the slippery path down because on the way you have the most amazing views of the coast with immense waterfalls into the ocean.

Black pebble beach from above.

Slippery slop down.

Coastline.

Trail.

Once down in the valley, it is just awesome. There are ropes in the trees to swing around and pebbles to build things. Or just enjoy the ocean until it starts to rain AGAIN!

In the valley.

Swinging fun.

Pebble fun.

 First, we thought we would wait out the rain under a tree and that was fun for some time, but the skies did not clear up. So we made the way up in heavy rain, which surprisingly was easier than the way down. We took the shoes off and waded in the forming stream coming down the path. It was really fun. Back in the car, we decided to look for an Airbnb instead of looking for a campground - enough rain for one day.

Rain on the Island of Fire - Big Island in April 1

Springbreak! Yeah and what better way to make the most of it by trying to catch the first flight Saturday morning to Hawai'i - if it would only be that easy ;)
We started off by missing the first flight, big tears, standby mode and finally getting to our planned destination some 10 h later than planned. But we got there! Later but not less happy - we also had Mimosas on the way that might have helped a bit.

If spending some hours at the airport you better be prepared with some serious toys for all ages!

The first day on the island was our 11th wedding anniversary :) and we celebrated with a kayak and snorkeling tour with Adventures in Paradise. At 7 am we left at the Napoopoo pier and paddled over to the Captain Cook monument accompanied by some Spinner dolphins. Once there, we saw tons of fish and octopus. And one big advantage of getting there early is that we almost had the place to ourselves and left when the crowds arrived.

11 years and still looking tired in the morning.

Kayaking buddies.

The kayak tour was great and we were ready for some of the famous Kona coffee. So we headed back to Kona, where we would spend another night at a hotel before going on our road trip. We found a small hut with the promising name of Kona Wave Cafe. The coffee was excellent and their shaved ice perfection since their syrups are made from real fruit without dyes, we would be back for more.

Hawai'ian treats - iced Kona for the grown-ups and shaved ice for the 'little' ones.

Pineapple, lime, and mango!

And then it was time, K couldn't wait no more. Time for sandcastles and so we took it easy, spread our towels on the beach, and watched K build kingdoms, while also enjoying the luau show taking place near our spot - we could not have asked for more.

One happy builder.

Luau show.