Hawaii is still Hell

Old Feb 27th, 2015, 05:11 PM
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Hawaii is still Hell

Not really. The flights from the east coast are tormentuous but the destination has never failed to stun us, no matter which island. Homework, homework, homework. This trip we chose to revisit the Island of Hawaii and Maui. How could we not book 10 nights at Kohala Ranch at this remarkable home? At an affordable rate for just the two of us. A truly grand estate with a view that never stops.

https://plus.google.com/photos/10181...14636342271738

We left the east coast after a 2 1/2 stay on the tarmac waiting for de-icing, yet managed to make our connections and arrived in KOA at 8am to see the beautiful snowcapped peaks of Mana Kea and Mana Loa. (A forshadowing of returning to witness 100 inches of snowfall)

Just a breathtaking home. We knew the area and the commute to some of our favorite places from our first visit to the Big Island a few years ago. We knew that this property was the place to pull the trigger and plan our trip around. It most certainly did not disappoint.
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Old Feb 28th, 2015, 03:41 AM
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Wow, that is a beautiful home. I don't think I'd ever leave!
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Old Feb 28th, 2015, 08:04 AM
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Thanks nanabee. Yes it was very easy not to leave for more then a few hours a day. I had been closely monitoring the the lava flow and had every intention of visiting Pahoa and revisiting Govt Beach road that had recently been regraded for local travel if and when the lave cuts off the main rd. Never happened - it's a long journey from one end of the island to the other - far too long from our home for a short time. The same with South Kona, there would be no snorkling at 2 step - just too far away.

After our first sleep we had our one and only big day after watching the sunrise and sipping Kona Coffee poolside we headed upcountry saying good morning to the freerange cows and horses, ( a daily ritual) to Mountain Rd, to maybe have breakfast at Hawaiian Style, but the line was long, so i suggested visiting Waipo and trying some malasadas at Tex Drive Thru. We've been in the valley before, so this was a more Chevy Chase overlook moment. It is so beautiful. These legs will never do the hike down and back up, but I highly recommend booking a tour to get down into this very special aina (land). At this point since we were just a few miles away, I suggested knocking this priority off my list, so googling on the iPhone, we made our way to the mushroom farm.

http://hamakuamushrooms.com

mushrooms will never be better then those we purchased and cooked many times during our visit.

We'd gone thru some roadwork so decided to continue on the Hilo rather then turn back and try Saddle Rd to return to the other coast. It's in pristine condition, but I still would never drive it at night. And of course I stopped in Hilo to the farmers stands to pick up some fresh provisions. Last stop was Waimea for some local beef to grill to go with our shrooms.

We never again left the house for that long or that far, nor did we ever feel compelled to go farther then Hawi Popolu Valley in one direction and a couple of lunches at the 4Seasons until our return to the airport.

And it was that early morning departure that we realized we had not once in 10 nights stay been out driving in the dark. 10 sunrises and 10 sunsets - PRICELESS!
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Old Feb 28th, 2015, 08:08 AM
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Very nice. How much a night and how far north? of the Mauna Kea turnoff? Did you get into Waimea town or up to Hawi?
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Old Mar 1st, 2015, 09:03 AM
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Surely Tomsd, I have left enough kibbles in the bowl for you to answer you questions. . .

well other then the cost. you can easily search and find your answers, but I am leary to share my privately negotiated rate out of respect to the owner
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Old Mar 3rd, 2015, 04:39 AM
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Thanks for the info on the mushroom farm. Will definitely add that to my list for Big Island. I love mushrooms!
The day before we left Kauai, I noticed a sign on the road towards Kalaheo/Hanapepe that there was a farm selling mushrooms too. We didn't have time to stop there but was curious about it. Next time!
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Old Mar 3rd, 2015, 08:47 AM
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Thanks for the comment tifa! I am a fan of your blog and trip reports, so glad I could pay back. It was an impromptu visit, so we didn't do the tour, but you can see plenty about it on their website. They had just sent most of their harvest to the barge - I think each Monday and Thursday, so only had their most popular shroom available, the Alii. They are sometimes sold at the grocers.

One Saturday morning we made the 20 minute morning sunrise trek to Hawi for their farmers market, where we found a couple of vendors selling multiple varieties of Hamakua Mushrooms. It was a bounty because we just kept buying more and more. We also got a small blueberry pie that was spectacular, some lillikoi puree and smoked unsalted mac nuts. A bounty of good things.

I knew shrooms were on the agenda, so my only regret was not tossing that hunk of real parm in my carryon at home. I didn't want to set up any red flags. I drove 40 miles roundtrip to buy arborio rice to make risotto and the grocers at Wailkaloa Village and Waimea all had pedestrian processed parm - yet it still came out fantastic.

I do know there is real parm on island as we had it on a remarkable luncheon pizza with marcepone, parma procsuitto and arugala pizza - so good we had it twice at Four Seasons with spectacular views and service.

We ended up sharing the rest of our shroom bounty with our hosts in hellacious Hana at this great spot for two sleeps - another fantastic find.

http://www.vrbo.com/572934

Homework homework homework
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Old Apr 1st, 2015, 12:55 PM
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About that vendor at Hawi Sat early morning market - running out of the fantastic smoke roasted macs due to quite a few homecooked ban/mac/blu pancakes with fresh berries and a savory pork product breakfasts. We are also falling short on the lillikoi puree. If anyone is stoping by and meets this vendor, please ask if he ships his mac nuts - they are extraordinary.
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Old Jun 25th, 2015, 04:49 PM
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So, what are your opinions on see the volcanos? I have read that you should see the sunset and star gaze at Mauna Kea, but the map shows that road as being a 4 wheel drive only road. Is there a way to take a bus [ugh] or tour [ugh, ugh], but we are not renting a 4 wheel drive based on other posts and we are there primarily for a wedding...

Also, I've been told we should do a heli tour over Kilauea. Any suggestions there. My husband says I'm trying to fit too much into a short visit, but what else is new?!?!

Thanx for all of your ideas/comments/suggestions about the leis. I think we're going to do the service. I had to laugh at an earlier comment about the leis no longer being "free"... it's been a while since I was there last, but I remember when that was standard, too. Commercial arrives everywhere, eh?

Thanx for all your comments! It has been very helpful.
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Old Jun 25th, 2015, 06:06 PM
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DrDebi, regarding Mauna Kea, I think most MK tour companies offer summit excursions, but few if any offer stargazing from there. Usually it takes place well below the summit, at the Visitor's Center. They do this to minimize altitude sickness and related problems for visitors, but also because the road to the Visitor's Center is excellent and doesn't require 4WD. The remaining road to the summit is the hairy part, it's very steep and the effect is made worse by tall touring vans.
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