DAY 2
Snorkel in Kapalua Bay

DAY 3
Snorkel in Kapalua Bay; Drive further north

DAY 4
Move to Aston at Papakea Resort

DAY 5
Maui

DAY 6
Maui

DAY 7
Maui

DAY 8
Maui

DAY 9
Depart for Big Island; Drive to Volacano House

DAY 10
Look for lava

DAY 11
Visit Hilo; Drive to Kona

DAY 12
Snorkel at Kealakelua Bay

DAY 13
Kona

DAY 14
Kona

DAY 15
Kona

DAY 16
Kona

DAY 17
Depart Kona to New York, via Washington DC

© 2002, Asha and Srini Seshan

  The next morning, after exploring the hotel, we went for a swim at Kapalua Bay.  The water was perfect and there were plenty of fish and an eel.  Srini tried to shove Asha into an eel in the Kapalua Bay waters.  The newspaper headlines would have read "Wife dies of Eel bite" had Asha not struggled away.  The claim is that he just shoved her closer so that she could see it better!  Who wants to see an eel up close?

Day 3 included snorkeling at Kapalua Bay again followed by a drive to Honokohau Bay- further North on the road past Kapalua Bay.  We drove along until the highway ended on a dirt road.  It was a pleasant drive and we enjoyed watching the windsurfers in the waters below.

The next day we moved to the Aston Royal Seacliffe (condo-style hotel with full kitchen).  We went to Iao Valley State Park.

Day 5 was a bad day to travel on the "road to Hana".  We got started late and the weather was lousy.  We made it about 3/4 of the way to Hana and decided to turn back.  We had spent a lot of time stopping at each of the scenic spots along the way. The rain was pouring down and parts of the road were even getting flooded in some places.  It is a very scenic road and the next trip we take to Hawaii will include Hana.

On Day 6 we decided to be more adventurous and try to get to some more distant snorkeling spots at Ahini-Kinau Natural Reserve.  The access to this snorkeling spot probably could have used a four-wheel drive.  Nevertheless, we got there and had a wonderful time snorkeling.

The next day was to begin very early - at 4am or so.  The plan was to watch the sunrise at Mt.Haleakala and then go hiking there.  We had prepared food for lunch, but we had not prepared for the cold at 10,000ft.  The peak of the mountain was frightfully cold and the sunrise was not that spectacular.  This year, it was Asha who fainted on top of the mountain. After the sun rose, we sat in our car and took a nap until it got warmer.  Hiking Haleakala is always fun.  Although no longer active, the set of craters is comprised of several cones in various hues of browns and reds.  This year, we hiked to the same crater as last year, but came prepared with PB&J sandwiches and drinks.

Day 8 was spent recovering from the physical exertion of the previous few days.  We spent the day relaxing in our hotel.  We purchased some young coconuts and rented The Matrix which we watched on our laptop.

Departing for Big Island the next day was very exciting because we knew that the volcano was erupting.  We had splurged to stay at the lodge right on the volcanoes rim and for a volcano side view (rather than the parking lot).  The lodge was very simplistic and other than being able to say that "I stayed at the edge of the crater", there was little to the room.   In addition, the weather was hardly cooperative and so the crater rim was constantly covered with fog.  After checking in and driving to the various checkpoints on top of the caldera (ie. the volcano tube, the previous lava flows) we drop to the bottom of the mountain to see the lava.  By the time we got there, the sun was setting.  You could see the lava flows glowing in the distance, but without a flashlight, it was pointless trying to walk closer on the jagged rocks (made of new lava flow).

The volcano became the highlight of the Hawaiian trip.  The next day, we went in the morning (armed with good shoes, umbrella, and sandwiches).  Despite the cloudy weather and rain showers, we walked over the lava and got to "fresh, flowing lava" in 30mins.  It was a spectacular site.  The new lava turned light gray as it cooled and throughout the area (for a mile or so) there were fumes.  The warmth of the lava felt good as we were getting soaked by the rain.  We found it very difficult to leave such an awesome site.  We saw first hand the difference between the two types of lava that the helicopter guide had described the year before ('a'a and pahoehoe)

It was time to leave the volcano and make the 3 hour drive to the Kona side of the island.  We stopped in Hilo along the way to pick up a few essentials at the farmer's market that we had discovered the year before.  Our favorite ice cream place was, unfortunately, closed for the day.  We also stopped at the the Mauna Loa macadamia nut farm to pick up a can or two of our favorite chocolate covered macadamia nuts.

The Aston Royal SeaCliff in Kona is our long- time favorite.  Wonderful studio rooms with a view of the ocean that have full kitchens and laundry included - perfect for the farmer's market finds.  We got settled into our room and placed all our findings (including a whole jackfruit) in the kitchen.

The next day, we went on a snorkel tour.  The main point was to snorkel at Kealakelua Bay which is inaccessible by car.  On Kealakelua Bay stands a monument to English explorer Capt. James Cook, killed there by natives in 1779.  En route, the tour guide stopped to show us whales, dolphins and lava tubes.

Our last few days at Kona were spent snorkeling at Kahaluu Beach Park and visiting coffee plantations.  At Kahaluu, we got to swim with turtles that came right up to the shore.  

For a virtual tour of several of the places we visited, click here.

Haleakala, Maui

Kilauea Lava Flow

Kilauea Lava Flow

Turtle

Lagoon Triggerfish

Black Triggerfish

Spotted Puffer

All photographs taken by Asha and Srini Seshan