Our New Toy

We've been thinking of getting a used Jeep rather than go to the expense of adding a bunch of stuff to our FJ Crusier. So, even though today was Reid's 24th birthday, we got the present. We bought this 1999 Jeep Wrangler. We had looked at a 1990 on the day before but got this newer and nicer one for the same amount of money.

So then of course, we had to take it 4-wheeling. Rick's been wanting to go on the Porcupine Rim trail but we only went about 1.5 miles of the 11+ mile trip. Let's just say the ladies in the back were really getting thrown around and the road was so narrow in places, were afraid we'd go off the cliff (and it was a Long Ways Down!) No use wrecking it the first day. So we turned around and took the LaSal Loop Road home.

This give you just a little idea of the road for Pocupine Rim.

Reid has more pictures (better shots too) on his blog and in his flickr. Be sure to check them out. (See link to Reid's blog to the left.)

Reid & Melissa Come for a Visit

Tues. Eileen drove to SLC and had a great visit with Scott and Cara. Then on Wed. morning she drove out to the airport to pick up Reid and Melissa who have flown out here for a few days during Reid's quarter break from school. Temps were in the 70's and still 66 after dark so we went to Arches for some sunset pictures. Here we have Reid and Melissa taking some of their photos (which your'll find on Reid's blog in his flickr.
As usual, our first stop in Arches was Park Ave. Loved the clouds there.
Then we stopped at Balanced Rock and took a lot of photos. Will upload more into flickr. Here you can see Turret Arch and the La Sal Mountains.
Bala nced Rock was really beautiful.
The sun came out from behind the bank of clouds and the sky was really beautiful for a while. We left after dark and the temp was still 66, however, there was a breeze that made it seem cooler.

Last Day in Hawaii

We had a 10:30pm flight out of Kona so we had the day to go to the Hawaiian Tropical Botanical Garden. Rick and I each took over 200 pictures here! We had never seen so many different plants and flowers. We spent several hours here. (It's just outside of Hilo) There are a couple of waterfalls, a path to the ocean with some great views, a cage with macaws, a pond with large gold fish, and so many plants and flowers I'm not sure we saw them all. They had an orchid area that was really something. And a fern area (so many different kinds). We then drove back to Kailua Kona, had supper and drove out to the airport. They actually recheck carry on luggage at the gate. We got into Oakland where we then had a 6 hour layover for our flight back to SLC. And we couldn't believe it, our luggage was some of the first off the plane. Scott picked us up and after a very short visit with them, we drove back to Castle Valley. So glad to see the snow gone! As I said before in a post, we each took over 1000 pictures on this trip and can only put a few up, trying for the best ones, but please come and visit and we'll be happy to show you more.

Our 6th Day in Hawaii

We decided to go to Pololu Beach today. On the way there we saw these windmills and stopped to take some pictures. They were turning but were very quiet. It was a really beautiful day as you can see.
On the road with the windmills, you could see across the ocean to Maui. What an incredible site!
Then Pololu Beach. This is looking from a little ways down the path. It was a steep and rocky climb down. We were really glad we had our walking sticks and it was all I could do to get back up! The guidebook had said a 15-20 minute walk down and if you made it back up in 20 you hadn't stopped. Well, it took us more like 30 to get down and we only stopped to take a few pictures once. The the climb back up was something else. It is really steep! We rested only a couple of times and made it up in 40-45 minutes. But I was exhausted and not sure about that last little bit. I was really proud of myself for making it. But it was worth it. A beautiful black sand beach. So quiet and not many people. Thankfully they had a couple of log swings to sit and rest on before the climb back up.
After lunch we drove to Mauna Kea. It goes up 13,000 ft. What a difference after being at sea level. They strongly suggest a 4-wheel drive but we didn't have any trouble with the AWD thing we were driving. It was cold and windy there. But the view was breathtaking. You can see the clouds below the telescopes. There was a couple there with a pickup shoveling snow into the back and packing it down to get as much in as they could to take is down to the lower level. We thought of Scott and his snow blower to get rid of the snow and here were people trying to get it.
At the Visitor Center (we stopped on the way up to acclimate and again on the way down just to use the restrooms), Rick took this shot of a silversword. They don't seem to grow very many places but are really a beautiful plant.

I have again posted more pictures on the flickr in our Hawaii set. Be sure to check them out.

Hawaii - Day 5

Well, today we finally went snorkeling. Rick had a lot more fun doing it than I did. I just don't see all that great without my glasses and I tend to breathe in panic mode if I get in over my head. But still we had a fun time. We found this sea turtle and Rick got some underwater shots of him. Shooting underwater is a challenge. And the turtle didn't exactly stop and pose for us. We were at Pu'uhonua o Honaunau next to the Historical Park. There was another area there (the Bay) where other people were snorkeling and diving, but you had to go down on this ledge, wait for a wave to come in and go out with the wave. You got back in the same way. We are not good swimmers and decided NO WAY!!!
So we just stayed in the shallow swimming area and had a good time. We saw quite a few fish. We wore T-shirts over our swimsuits so we wouldn't get burned. Such a fun morning we had then back to hotel to shower and change.
We finally got our shave ice this afternoon. And really enjoyed them while sitting watching people and the ocean. It was so peaceful and beautiful. Then decided to go out to Hapuna Beach for the sunset. On the way out, about a mile before "A" Beach you come to this lava tube beside the road so finally decided to stop and take a picture of it.
Hapuna Beach is just what you think a Hawaiian beach should be. Sand, surf, and palm trees. There were quite a few people there when we got there. These guys were sure having a good time.

There were really too many clouds for a great sunset but we took a few shots anyway. The scenery was great if only the clouds had been better. Oh well, not every day can be perfect in paradise.

Be sure to check our flickr as more pictures of Hawaii are posted there.

Wednesday - Our Fourth Day

We went to Hilo today to the Farmer's Market. It wasn't as big as the Saturday one but still purchased a couple of items. We took the southern route back to Kailua Kona as we hadn't been that way. This way, we circled the entire island. We stopped at Ahalanui Warm Springs. This is a naturally heated swimming pool. We put our hands in it and it is really warm. The ocean feeds into it but the lava runs under to heat it. It is really a beautiful setting.
We then drove on to Punalu'u Black Sand Beach. This place is gorgeous. We did spot a turtle or 2 popping their heads up but could get good pictures of them as they didn't stay up long enough.
The sand is black because the waves crush the black lava that has been deposited here from the volcano.

It was getting late so we just headed back to Kailua Kona. Too many clouds for a good sunset and we planned to go snorkeling in the morning.

I've added a few more pictures to a Hawaii flickr. Be sure to check them out.

Our Third Day - Part Two

The World Botanical Gardens was a three part garden. You drove thru to the first two sections and then walked the third. We took so many pictures, I'm hoping to get some into our flicker so you can see more. The flowers were just glorious. Here are just a couple.

The is Umauma Falls. The only way you get to see this falls is to pay to go thru the gardens. But it is well worth the cost of admission.
This is in the second section of the park known as the rain forest. We were amazed at the size of many of the leaves on the plants. Just had to put this one in of Rick.

This little waterfall was also in the rain forest area. On our drive back to Kona, we call our friends Jerry and Marcia Cannon. Jerry had a heart attack just before we left for Hawaii. He was home today and answered the phone. He was doing great and we had a wonderful chat. This made for a perfect ending to our day in paradise. More than made up for the fact that there wasn't a good sunset to take pictures of.

Our Third Day - Part One

We took so many pictures on Tuesday, I've broken it up into two parts. We started out to go to the Waipi'o Valley. The is a beautiful, secluded valley, but takes a 4-wheel drive to get down to as the road is about a 25% grade. We had requested a 4-wheel drive, but the rental car agency didn't have one for us and finally gave us an upgraded SUV with AWD. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let AWD down the road so we could only take pictures from the overlook. It was quite overcast at the time so all of the photos are misty looking but you can still see the beautiful black sand beach and the waves coming in. When we were here before, this was one of Ashley's favorite places. We were very disappointed not to be able to go back there, especially Rick.
We then drove on down to Laupahoehoe Point and Memorial. This is the site of the April Fool's Day 1946 tsunami disaster where so many school children and teachers lost their lives. It is now a park and memorial.
We couldn't believe how the waves were crashing in here today. We became enthralled with them and spent quite a bit of time here. We both took a lot of pictures and really enjoyed ourselves.

From here we went to the World Botanical Gardens. I'll do another post of this later.

Trip to Hawaii - Days 1 and 2

We got to Hawaii on Sat. night and reached our hotel, Kona Seaside Hotel about 11:00 pm. On Sunday we did some shopping for snorkel gear and drove around a lot. At the end of the day, we couldn't believe we hadn't taken a single picture! But on Monday morning we were up bright and early as we had a 7:00 am Whale Watching tour schedule out at the marina. We saw several humpback whales, but all from a distance. Even this photo of Rick's is a bit blurry from the movement of the boat. And boy, did you have to be fast to get a shot at all. But we had a really great time.
After lunch we drove to Pu'uhonua O Honaunau. The is a great place to snorkel as well as a National Park. This sea turtle had come up on the beach to rest. As the waves came up higher, he moved up just enough to keep his head out of the waves. They really do move slow.
More pictures from the Park. Known as a Place of Refuge. It was really beautiful and peaceful here.

Then we drove out to 'Anaeho'omalu Beach to take sunset pictures. Even the locals call this "A" beach because it is such a long name. Anyone can take great sunset pictures here. This was the perfect way to end a day here in paradise. This was also the best sunset we had the whole time we were there.