Category Archives: Activities

Get on your bike and ride

Cyclists make the turn at Hawi in the IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii race on the Big Island.

A cyclist make the turn at Hawi in the IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii race on the Big Island.

Yesterday, IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii took place on the Big Island. It’s a triathlon featuring a 1.2 mile swim followed by a 56 mile bike ride and topped off with a 13.1 mile run. If all this sounds exhausting, as it does to me, bear in mind that the full IRONMAN race is twice as long.

A cyclist approaches the turn at Hawi in the IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii race on the Big Island.

The world championship for the IRONMAN triathlon also takes place on the Big Island, in October. In both races, the turnaround for the bike leg is at Hawi on the northern tip of the island. For the October race the turnaround is downtown and a decent crowd gathers to cheer on the racers. The 70.3 event makes the turn about a mile out of town. By and large, only race volunteers are there to cheer on the cyclists.

I like to go out to watch both events. They’re colorful and dynamic. Sometimes I get caught up in the euphoria of it all and imagine myself on one of those bikes, leaning into the turn before heading back for the run. But then I go back to my truck and drive home.

For more information about IRONMAN, go to Ironman.com.

The turn at Hawi in the IRONMAN 70.3 Hawaii race on the Big Island.

Gone fishing

I’m the the world’s worst fisherman with total catches counted on one hand and the price for those fish, in terms of lost tackle, etc., coming in around $100 a pound. However, a lot of people on the Big Island fish, especially when the moon is right, whenever that is.

This man was fishing on a calm, warm early-evening. It’s an idyllic-looking scene, but I wasn’t tempted to join him.

Pololu Valley hike

Pololu beach and coastline — Pololu beach seen from the trail down from the parking area.

The bench at the lookout above Honokane Nui valley and the views toward the Kohala Mountains.

The bench at the lookout above Honokane Nui valley and the coastal views. — The bench and coastal views.

Pololu valley lies at the end of highway 270. It’s a popular destination. Most people find a parking space (not easy), snap a few photos, then climb back in their cars and try to get out without hitting anything (there’s no real turnaround).

A moderate number brave the steep switchback trail to the beach. This is worth it as better views open up, even part way down the trail. It’s 15-20 minutes down, 25-30 back up, depending on your condition and rate of hiking. If it’s rained recently the ground can be super slick.

Once at the beach there are options. (Bear in mind that only the beach is public. Everything else is private land.) There’s the view inland, up the Pololu River valley to the mist-shrouded Kohala Mountains. There’s the area just inland from the beach where people camp among the trees even though that’s not allowed. There’s the beach itself, which is mostly rounded rocks with black sand if the tide is low. And there’s the ocean, which looks inviting after that hot, sweaty hike, but is exceedingly dangerous with fierce rips, and only for those who really know what they’re doing, which excludes me.

Then there’s another option which very few take. This is to walk to the far side of the valley (following the trail just inland from the beach itself is easiest) until it trends upwards into a narrow gulley. This area gets a lot of rain, so this part of the trail is likely be muddy. It’s steep, narrow, and cut off from any breezes that may have been blowing on the beach. From time to time, views back to the beach open up and are worth taking in, if only to catch your breath.

After a while the trail comes out into the open and is less steep. I always think this is the end, but it’s not. It dips again into a shallow valley with low hung branches and much traveled by wild pigs. Then it’s up the other side, far less steep than the first part of this stage, until the trail pokes through some low bushes into an open area. And there, in my humble opinion, is one of the finest sights on the island.

There are views up the Honokane Nui valley towards the mountains. There are views along the coast and out across the ocean. And to make it more enjoyable, there’s a bench where you can sit and take it all in. I have to say that on my most recent visit the bench was in much worse shape than the last time I saw it. The wood supports had rotted out on one side so there was a jaunty lean to it. But with care, it was still possible to enjoy a solid seat with an unparalleled view.

From the parking area to the bench is about an hour walk (your timing may vary). Beyond the bench, the trail descends into the next valley, but an earthquake in 2006 rearranged this, basically taking the trail and dropping it several hundred feet. You can still get down there, but it involves scrambling directly down a steep hillside using ropes that have been strung there. Bear in mind that the ropes are no doubt going through the same decline that the bench has.

From the bench, the hike back to the parking area is about the same as it was on the way out (steep hike down, steep hike up). The last time I did this I saw a ton of vehicles and people around the parking area, 20 or 30 people on the beach, and three on the hike from the beach to the bench and back.

For more information about the Pololu hike, go to bigislandhikes.com/pololu-valley/.

This is the only lifeguard at Pololu beach.

The Pololu River and view toward the Kohala Mountains.

Peacock grouper

One difference in taking photos as a snorkeler rather than a diver, is that I can’t follow fish when they dive or hug the bottom. Also, when a fish is 30 feet down, the water affects how they look and the sun doesn’t reach them as much.

I mention this because I most often see peacock groupers in 20 to 30 feet of water where they look somewhat dull in color. They also tend to be quite shy, hurrying for cover under ledges or whatever other shelter is at hand.

However, as with many kinds of fish, juveniles can often be found in shallower water. I happened on this young peacock grouper one day and it promptly headed for cover. Before it did though, I got a couple of good images that captured the sun bringing out the spectacular blue patterns that I never see when they run deeper.

In my attempts to identify what I see in the water, I use John P. Hoover’s book The Ultimate Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fishes, Sea Turtles, Dolphins, Whales, and Seals. His website is hawaiisfishes.com.

Green turtle swimming

One day, when I got in the water, I dipped my head below the surface and saw a large barracuda idling a few feet away in murky water. Gathering myself, I took a few photos, none of which turned out.

When the barracuda swam away, I tried to follow, but didn’t see it again. Instead, this green turtle slid by not two feet away. It pottered among the rocks, then came back out, passing me almost as close as before. I followed at a discreet distance, before it eased into the ruins of an old pier. I love seeing turtles in the water – they’re so graceful. First time I’ve had my camera with me.

Kiholo to Mano Point hike

The start of the trail below the parking area at Kiholo.

The house built for Loretta Lynn at Kiholo.

The anchialine pool at the south end of the first beach.

The trail winds down to the bench before Mano Point.

This hike is a not-too difficult, out and back, 4-mile round trip. Aside from wanting to check out this part of the coast, I also wanted to try out a new pair of shoes, more suited to hiking, rather than the old pair of walking shoes I’d been flogging my toes in recently.

The access road to the trailhead can be rough, but on this occasion had been recently graded, at least down to the private road near the bottom. The hike follows the coast south from the Kiholo parking lot. There’s camping here Friday through Sunday, but on this day it was much quieter – three people on the beach when I set out, not many more when I returned. The day was hot, as it usually is on this coast, and the vog was thick enough to chew on.

The hike starts out crossing the first of three black sand beaches. It’s part of Kiholo State Park Reserve, which means it’s a park for which the plans have not yet been finalized. Behind this first beach is a house built by country singer Loretta Lynn back in the 1980s. It’s boarded up now, but is tabbed to be some sort of visitor/cultural center in the new park. Check back in 10 years or so to see how things are going!

At the south end of the beach is an anchialine pool. After the pool, the trail winds up and over a’a lava to another smaller black sand beach. There’s another up and over to the third beach, Luahinewai, which is backed by a large private residence, overlooking another anchialine pool and surrounded by vegetation. The second and third beaches were deserted, the a’a lava lumpy, the new shoes doing a splendid job of cushioning my feet.

After this third beach the trail heads up onto the lava for a while and crosses inland from Nawaikulua Point until it reaches a lava bench backed by vegetation. The trail, which is marked by some rounded stones in the trail and white coral markers on the edges, ends here. Mano Point is reached by crossing the lava bench, which is not difficult but, as always, requires keeping an eye on the ocean. On this day the waves were thudding against the edge of the bench, sending spray into the air and some whitewater onto the bench.

It was a day for keeping toward the back of the bench. A couple of days earlier, when the surf was higher, it would have been a place to avoid altogether. On a calmer day one could walk along the edge of the bench. This is an area of tide pools, arches, and collapsed lava tubes that have become surging inlets.

Mano Point itself is not much of a point, but it is easy to identify because it’s where most of the vegetation ends. It’s also marked by a black-bordered, yellow sign (only the back of which is seen from the land), which I think means that no aquarium fish collection (a contentious issue here) is allowed south of the sign. The return is back the same way. I took a dip in the water at one of the beaches on the way back, but the surge was fierce and I ended up discovering black sand in unlikely places for a couple of days afterwards.

It’s not an earth-shaking hike, but enjoyable in its own way. There was a breeze on the coast as there usually is, some whales to be seen offshore, and my new hiking shoes performed admirably. That said, crossing behind the last beach en route to my truck, I felt a pricking in my foot and took off my shoe to find a kiawe thorn that had penetrated the sole. Not the fault of the shoe though, just an occupational hazard of hiking here.

For more information about the Kiholo to Mano Point hike, go to bigislandhikes.com/kiholo-to-mano-point.

The trail heads across a’a lava after the third beach.

The water surges into a small inlet, probably an old lava tube.

The sign at Mano Point which I think means ‘No Aquarium Fishing.’

Reef fish

A great variety of fish make their home among the rocks and coral on the coast. From the bottom these are: two indo-pacific sergeants, a scrawled filefish, two or three whitebar surgeonfish, and in the background, a number of black triggerfish.

One of the pleasures of snorkeling here is that there’s always something to see and every day is different.

Keeltail needlefish

When snorkeling, the tendency is to look down where numerous reef fish can be seen darting through rocks and coral. Needlefish, on the other hand, are surface swimmers and, as such, can be a little unnerving. Many times I’ve looked up and found myself in the midst of a shoal of needlefish, circling around me. At such times, I try not to think of Custer’s Last Stand.

Graham's Island

Life on the Big Island of Hawaii