At Rainbow’s End

Heather’s group loaded up the van at 8:00 yesterday morning while I headed out in the rental car to see the waterfalls. My first stop was Rainbow Falls, primarily known for the rainbows visible at the bottom of the falls if viewed in the morning when the sun is behind you (If you look close, you can see one).

Then I continued on to the Boiling Pots and Pe’epe’e Falls (pronounced Peh-eh Peh-eh). Unfortunately, the current was a bit too calm for the pots to be boiling (they aren’t actually boiling… it’s just the way they look when the current is strong), but the falls were still spectacular.

Next stop was Wai’ale Falls, which showed the massive power that that the current is carrying. All of these falls were within about three miles of our hotel in Hilo. Then I returned to Dolphin Bay to pack up the car. I had Heather’s bags to load in addition to my own because she didn’t really want her luggage strapped to the top of the van for transport (I don’t blame her!). We didn’t want to load them in the car before she left because the parking areas at the falls are notorious for break-ins.

After loading up and checking out, I visited the Pacific Tsunami Museum in Hilo and learned about the devastating tsunamis that have hit Hilo in the past, and the efforts that have been made to reduce the death and destruction should one occur in the future (which they know will happen). Then I had a quick lunch, spotted an out-of-state license plate (I won the license plate game!!), and visited some of the areas that had been wiped out by the tsunamis. One (Lili’uokalani Gardens—named for Queen Lili’uokalani) is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.

Another has made a clock which is stopped at the moment of impact into a monument.

Next was a quick stop to snap a picture of Kamehameha the Great before hitting the road for Kailua-Kona. But the sightseeing wasn’t even close to done. As I drove up Highway 19 along the Hamakua Coast, I made a few more stops. I ventured along the four-mile scenic route, making a stop to view a cove with some crashing waves. Later I took a side road to see the spectacular Akaka Falls and neighboring Kahuna Falls. Finally it was time to begin the two hour drive to the west side of the island. I arrived at the Royal Kona Resort about 5:15, but the rest of the group wasn’t there yet, so I could do nothing but drive around and see where things were until Heather called to tell me they had arrived and I could return to the hotel to check in. We then got cleaned up and met in the lobby at 7:30 so that we could go to the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. for dinner, drinks, and good times.

Exhaustion finally brought us back to the Royal Kona so we could turn in for the night and prepare for another day.