Day 1: CALM & CONFLICT
The Calm....
First thing we did after unpacking was take a drive down the Red Road. It is so gorgeous, follows the ocean coast and jungle and hills everywhere. NO CELL service, it was like going back in time! First stop was stop at the "Warm Pond" which is ocean water heated by volcanic energy!! The water flows through rocks that are heated by Earth's magma. Makes an amazing warm bath! One of our favorite places we visited. Wish we had one on Oahu ;)
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| Ahalanui Warm Pond |
Driving along Red Road is amazing and watching the differences in lighting depending on time of day was really cool too. Found some cool spots along the way!
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| Beautiful Red Road |
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| Cloudy skies and still beautiful. This was our tiny rental car a "SPARK" which explained how much energy it had haha |
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| Coffee Mill took image with my old Infrared Camera |
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| Found this old graveyard along Red Road. Felt extra spooky since it was Halloween weekend. |
The Conflict...
The reason we took this trip is happening! Our hike to meet Pele!
"Lets take the harder way"...she said....
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| Hiking across a lava field! |
Once we found the perfect viewing spot we sat and just enjoyed every second of it. You could hear the lava sizzling when it hit the ocean, you could hear the waves, you could see the spray of the lava into the sky. It was more than I ever expected! It was just WOW. Then I took out all my fancy camera gear and guess what? My camera would NOT work!! No reason why, just simply would not work! Not even with the bright Lume Cube light we were shining onto the rocks to test it out. Battery full, lighting fine, just not working. I was freaking out, here I am seeing the most amazing thing and I can't use my camera? I wanted to cry or be really pissed off. Then I just thought, maybe I am just supposed to EXPERIENCE this moment with Rudy, just us, no one else (I will be honest, it took me awhile to get to this realization!). No photos, just experience.
After that realization, I even contemplated sleeping right there on the hard lava rocks because I didn't want to leave. However, I knew our hike was only half over and we still had to hike 4.5 miles back home and it was so late now that we were completely alone out there! No cell service, no moon to light up the sky, just us, our flashlights and the glow of Pele in the distance. The stars were bright in the sky, so much more than we see here on Oahu. As we hiked back I realized my shoes I wore (which I have never worn prior...I know...bad decision for a 24/7 slippah wearing kind of girl) were killing my feet and rubbing my skin raw. Oh crap! I was hobbling now and still had at least 3 more miles to go. Then it started pouring rain. P O U R I N G....the torrential kind. Lucky we had raincoats on. The pain was getting worse, I could barely walk (picture the walking dead zombie walk) the rain was getting harder and slapping me hard in the face and I remember starting to cry as the rain hit my face. But not because of my foot pain, it was some kind of emotional release kind of cry and the rain seemed to wash it all away as I cried with the rain. Then after walking and crying in the rain for awhile, the rain just stopped! Total quiet...I could now hear the distant sound of the Coqui frogs and it was such a welcoming feeling as they got louder and louder, knowing we were getting closer to the car. Then to top it off, I looked up at the sky and saw a shooting star!
I can't explain how creepy, surreal, exhilarating, painful, scary, spiritual but FUN this hike was for me. I felt every emotion. There was also a lot of laughter along the way, lucky Rudy was making me laugh along that long trip back. I went from moody bitch one second to laughing hard the next. Quite the experience and I am so glad I chose to do it the harder way! Even if my feet were wrecked for the rest of the trip. :)
We will never forget it! Oh, and when I got home, my camera still wouldn't work even in ideal lighting. :/
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| Rudy captured this of me, had no idea. I was just sitting in awe watching the lava hit the ocean. It was a surreal and spiritual experience for me. |
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| PAU!! |
Day 2: RECOVERY & RENEWAL
Recovery....
"Lets soak up the healing volcanic waters"
Woke up day 2 with feet covered in blisters and cuts. Oh well, I am on vacation!! I ran to get my camera to see if it would work and suddenly, no problems! crazy....So off we went to go soak in some more healing volcanic warm waters. This time we met up with our friend Mary Love who brought us to a local "secret" spot. It was just gorgeous, something out of a movie set. Small warm pond surrounded by jungle and coconut trees, totally private and hidden. I was excited and jumped in the pond. While sitting relaxing I had a horrifying feeling...MY PHONE....it was in the back pocket of my board shorts!! omg...it was too far gone, its DEAD. I felt sick and angry at myself for being so stupid. Then Mary Love said, there is nothing you can do about it, just forget it and have fun! Took me a bit to get to that part, lol...but I thought maybe I am just NOT supposed to be "connected" to the world while there?!...so on day 2 my phone died butI was renewed! No texting, no calling, no Facebooking, just enjoying all the experiences of this beautiful island. Guess what? I didn't even miss it for the rest of the trip!
On to the next adventure...Mary love brought us to the Champagne Ponds...just gorgeous! Crystal clear waters and also heated by volcanic energy! Had great conversation and fun soaking up the warm water.
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| Check out the full face snorkel? Never seen anything like it, they are really cool! |
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| Rudy using his Go Pro while using the cool full face mask. |
Renewal...
Once we got back to the cottage she mentioned using her electric bikes if we wanted to go see the lava flow again. I thought, can I handle another trip there? hahaha...this time would be SO fast on these super cool electric bikes. We tested them out around her neighborhood, omg, FUN!! So we packed them up and took off to the hiking trail again.
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| This was one fast amazing ride! |
We were FLYIN' by everyone on the way out, it was light out so we got to actually see the surroundings this time and got to Pele in just 15 minutes. Wow, what a difference. We got to see the lava flow now in lighter conditions before sunset. Incredible....is all I can say. We stood out on the rocks until near dark then headed back and raced by every bike on the way. Such a fast but cool trip, so completely different than the night before. I am actually so happy I chose to do the hard trip, Rudy is always challenging me to challenge myself. I am thankful for that! It may have been longer and many bumps along the way, but it will always be the most memorable experience for me!
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| Finally a photo of Rudy. Which is weird to say because I am always taking photos of Rudy and Brooke and I am always uncomfortable in front of the camera and run from it. He got me good on this trip haha |
Then while we were up there watching the flow, we noticed this boat. (Rudy took this shot with his cell phone). That is the boat we would be taking in the morning! I booked it for Halloween morning at sunrise. Leave in dark and watch sunrise from boat. Couldn't believe we were going to be ON that boat in morning. I have to admit, I was getting a bit anxious looking at how close he gets! However,
we knew he is an amazing local captain (born and raised in these waters) from reviews and also our friend who knows him.
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| That is our boat we are about to go on in morning! EEK! |
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| I see HEARTS, do you?? |
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| Riding back, no rain, no pain, just fun. Rudy said this is his favorite photo of me because he said I look so happy. I definitely was happy! |
After we got back, thankful for another spectacular viewing of the lava, we relaxed in our own private backyard. Hammocks, swings...she has it all! Amazing spot to relax!
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| Rudy relaxing in the hammock! |
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| Me and my happy face, I was feeling so happy after seeing 2 days of lava flows and knowing the next morning would be an epic boat adventure to see more lava! |
Day 3: ADVENTURE & ADRENALINE
"Lets Do This"!!
Halloween Morning....REAL EARLY as in 3:30am wake up call!
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| The Lava "Asteroids" shooting over the ocean! |
Today was the day! Halloween morning, my favorite holiday, my favorite month coming to a close. What better way to end it? Wake up in the darkness to go on a boat to see lava!
Headed out at 4am, we met up with the crew and all boarded up and in water by 5am. It was PITCH BLACK OUT....no moon (new moon phase) and couldn't even see the horizon!! We left the boat ramp then suddenly went into high gear. We were racing across the ocean in complete pitch blackness. I was flippin! I felt like I was on Space Mountain ride!! Couldn't see any waves coming, couldn't prepare your body to brace itself etc. No horizon, just total BLACK! It was also pouring rain. It was the most crazy ass helpless feeling I have had in a long time. I started to feel major panic because I am a control freak. I have a really hard time being out of control. It got to the point that I was forced to just give up my fear to fate and just hope we would make it out alive, LOL. ...I laugh now, but it was really a BIG deal for me at that moment. My choices were to be sick with worry the whole trip or just LET GO. Normally in stressful situations in life I only feel sick with worry and can't get past it. However, today I finally made the right decision and just let it go. Not sure HOW or why, but I am thankful for it! I will never forget the feeling I had when I released the fear. Complete CALM! I hope to use this memory for future freak out moments that are sure to come.
We were all getting soaked but had raincoats on at least (seems to be a theme for us, rain and lava). Thankfully, the boat had a roof. Just open sides but the waves and rain still came in. Suddenly the boat comes to a complete halt, and we are bobbing around in the ocean waves in darkness. I look at what I think is Rudy (haha) and say...OMG, what is happening??? Then the Captain's first mate says, sorry guys...this never happens but the captain needs to turn on his GPS because it's so dark out......wow.
So we kept speeding through darkness, and finally after awhile I could see a hint of a horizon!
YES SUN, I love you!!
Then we saw the glow of the lava in the distance!
Total excitement now! Suddenly we were there! I could see the entire flow going into the ocean. Everyone was yelling in amazement. He got so incredibly close I thought I was dreaming or maybe dead. LOL....I just kept taking photos, it was so beautiful. We could HEAR lava rock hitting the bottom of the boat. Lava rocks were also shooting out of the water and skimming across the water like asteroids in space. It was completely surreal. I shed a few tears...just from the beauty of it all. We could feel the heat in the air, smell the sulfur and see lava shooting up into the sky. Hard to put it all into words, they will never be enough to describe it.
Everyone yelled Mahalo to Pele and her beauty. She put on quite the show and we were all more than thankful!
The drive back was really rough and many people on boat were puking. eww...but we made it back to land in one piece and I will now call this my most epic adventure! Also, FIRST experience being on a boat and being taken through the jungle on the trailer! All of us still on board of the boat. That is how they enter and leave the water, with the people still on the boat. So at some points we were driving by jungle, LOL...so funny. I have been on many boats in my life, but never have I done that!
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| It was surreal seeing this right next to our boat! |
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| When you have a perfect vision of a great shot of you and your man on the most epic adventure. Then you get this...haha...At least Pele is looking awesome! |
Check out this video we took from the boat! We were SO close to the lava flow.
Click the link....
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| Our boat! We were all still boarded on the boat when it drove from the boat ramp to here! |
After we got off the boat we headed back to the cottage. We literally collapsed into a deep sleep for 3 hours. Think the excitement wore us out completely! Woke up in time to take a drive to the Volcano National Park!
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| Rudy taking in the view at The Volcano House......Amazing to see the steaming crater in the distance, where all the lava we witnessed originated! |
Still Halloween day! We drove to the Thurston lava tubes. I couldn't believe who I found walking behind us!! hahahahaha...made my day!
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| AHHHHHH....... |
We walked inside the tube and it was really cool to think that we are walking were hot lava was once flowing. It was dark but they had some lighting in the cave. Rudy decided to bring out his Lume Cube and pointed it at the top of the lava tube. I think it came out cool! Almost looks like a milky way or stars above.
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| Love this one, thanks Lume Cube for the cool effect! |
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| Exiting the Lava Tube |
The whole time I was in this cave I couldn't help but think of one of my favorite movies. THE SHINING.....do you see it too?
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| Walking through my childhood nightmare, The Shining! Looks just like it to me!! |
Headed back home to relax before our last day. This was the best Halloween I have had in my life (besides the trick or treating days when Brooke was little).
Day 4: GRATITUDE
"Lets be grateful for every second we spent here"
Last Day :(
We woke on the last day and decided of all the things we could do, we just wanted to go back to the "Warm Pond" and soak up the warm, healing volcanic waters one more time. Spent awhile there enjoying every last second. I used the full face snorkel mask thing and loved it! Colorful fish everywhere below us, never would have noticed otherwise.
One more stop! We still haven't made it to the black sand beach right next to our cottage! It is also a "clothing optional" beach haha...we checked it out. GORGEOUS. We climbed down the cliffside into the bay and walked along the black sand. Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this in the sand! I love turtles! Made my day!
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| Turtle art along the black sand beach. My kind of beach |
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| Such an artistic beach town...found this as well |
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| So, clothing is optional on this beach. Rudy let it all hang out. Haha Eventually we knew it was time to leave, had to do a few more things before our drive back to the airport. Went back "home" packed up and ran out to the 'House of Fire" a few miles down the road. I really wanted to purchase a piece of hand blown glass from the local artist here. Definitely check out his work, its AMAZING. The store besides hand blown glass, also sells other works of art from local artists. I was so happy to purchase something, no matter how small, to help support local artists! |
Time to pack up and leave :(
We said our thanks and goodbyes to our amazing host Mary Love and then stopped at a lava field I really loved and said our thanks to Pele for such an amazing show! The cool part was we could see the huge plume of smoke in the air from the lava hitting the ocean in the distance. :)
Hard to see in the wide angle photo I took below but if you look close the plume is in the distance.
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| Nothing but gratitude for Pele. Forever thankful |
MAHALO
We WILL be back....
Some photos of our amazing B&B cottage. If you are ever in the area!
Here is a link where you can book a visit.
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| Your own personal cottage with FULL kitchen. The water is so fresh, its rainwater that is triple purified. Private backyard with so many cool places to relax. The wooden swing, hammocks etc. We didn't want to leave! |
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| Loved the meditation labyrinth! |
