My new friends MCM and Melissa were up for a little trip to the west coast of the big island on Tuesday 11/23, so Kenn and I ventured over to Singing Whale Farm and we’d carpool from there.
Although I didn’t get a photo, the flock of wild turkeys that hang out near their house provided quite the show – almost all of them all puffed up to say hello (to me and to their dogs)
Soon enough we were in the car on our way – MCM offered to drive their truck
Some scenes from the west side of Waimea (also called Kamuela since there is more than one ‘Waimea’ on the island, although natives still prefer using Waimea)
It’s amazing how quickly the scenery changes. The east side of Waimea was all green.
After checking out where our dinner spot would be in Kawaihue, we took a little drive down to Kohala to see if we could find any petroglyphs (we didn’t). This is a public beach next to Lava Lava in Waikoloa, named Anaeho’omalu Beach. As it turns out the petroglyphs were a little north of us. This area is surrounded by a ton of resorts – Hilton, Outrigger to name a few.
The waves here are a lot calmer than those in Kona. I’m not sure why. Kona is further south, but longitude-wise they look about the same on the map.
Kenn liked the beach!
And here is Kenn officially meeting MCM and Melissa!
The scene at Lava Lava.
We had a snack and cocktails and then headed up to the Seaside Grill for dinner and to watch the sun set. We were cutting it close though – it was almost down and we still had a few miles to go!
We arrived at the Seafood Grill, and though it had looked empty around 3pm, it turns out there is a big parking lot BEHIND it and it was packed. So, we put our names in. I think we waited about 30-45 minutes.
The funny thing is, we wanted to go there, planning on having dinner and watching the sun set, but the restaurant is right across the street from some big tanks and industrial buildings. Here’s a satellite:
The place itself was cool though – very retro – like the old Trader Vic’s back in the day. I could see myself hanging out there with the regulars. And the food was good too!
Here’s our view (not at the table yet – this is where we were waiting from)
Anyway, it was a nice time. We got back to MCM and Melissa’s house to find that their dog Sophie was missing. Turns out she broke through a window screen and jumped out the window. This was not the first time. We looked around the yard and Sophie was nowhere to be found. They decided they would wait til morning to look further. I said if I saw her I would call.
So, I got in my trusty AWD, drove across the lawn, through Gate 1, over the whoop-de-doos to Gate 2, got the car through, put the chain on the gate, started to back out, and there was Sophie! I tried calling MCM – no answer. I tried approaching Sophie and she didn’t like that. Tried calling MCM again, no answer. But then I noticed movement on their front porch (maybe 1/4 mile away??) and saw a headlamp coming my way.
Long story short, as soon as MCM got to the gate, there was Sophie, so, Sophie got leashed and led home, and I headed on my way back to Mahana House.
What a great day! Stay tuned for a return trip to Volcano, during the day.